Baltimore Orioles with a Possibility of Making the American League All Star team in 2025

Even with the Birds well-below .500, Baltimore still has a plethora of guys with a potential of earning all star status.

It’s been a rocky road in Charm City in 2025. The season began with the Orioles garnering the second highest odds on various betting sites to win the American League this coming season. No team in the league won more games than them in the previous two seasons.

Though, their second half decline in 2024 has clearly translated into 2025, the Orioles—for now—out of the playoff picture with a steep hill to climb if they want to get back. While their play has improved as of late, the Orioles slow start is still haunting their season.

Though, as All Star fan voting opens, the Orioles do have a few players with the potential to make an All Star team in 2025. And it’s not the usuals. In fact, if they do make the team, most would be making their first appearance.

The Orioles have five players with an opportunity to make the All Star team this coming July:

Ryan O’Hearn, DH

The journey has been unconventional for Ryan O’Hearn. A former failed top prospect with Kansas City, he was signed by the Orioles for the 2023 season with one last chance to prove his worth. He was great, though after two years, his mediocre fielding and lackluster hitting against left handed pitchers defined his story. Until now.

O’Hearn has put together a career season, batting .306 (13th best in the Majors), with an elite .878 OPS, also among the best in the sport. He’s provided fielding depth in the outfield and at first base, and his improved average against left handed starters has made him an everyday player. While he is far from an elite power hitter, he is on pace for career numbers in homers and RBI’s, while his hard hit percentage is in the 83rd percentile according to Baseball Savant.

Among other designated hitters in the American League, O’Hearn is more than qualified to become a starter at the position on the AL All Star team, as he’s second in average and first in OPS among the other candidates. Not to mention, Rafael Devers was traded to San Francisco, opening up more room for his All Star candidacy. Whether he starts or not, he should get on to the team one way or the other.

Will he make it? Yes

Jackson Holliday, 2B

The big question all of last season: what is wrong with Jackson Holliday? Besides one promising stretch last summer, Holliday left a lot to be desired in his first MLB season. But here comes Holliday in 2025, and no one has seemed to care.

In his first full season as a full-time starting second basemen, the game’s former top prospect has been on a tear, batting .255 with a .719 OPS, eleven doubles, two triples, eight homers and 28 RBI’s. He’s shown extreme promise on the base pass, and his exceptional fluency and speed has increase his looks on base. Since Tony Mansolino stepped in as manager, Holliday has played and excelled in the leadoff spot. In the Mansolino era, only a few times has Holliday not hit leadoff, and he’s put together incredible numbers.

Where’s the improvement coming from? According to Baseball Savant, Holliday is getting far more pitches in the zone and more “meatballs” over the middle of the plate, and the 20-year old is capitalizing on those opportunities. According to Baseball Savant, he’s chasing balls outside the zone four percent less frequently than league average, swinging the bat four percent more than league average, and swinging on the first pitch 13% more than league average. Those mechanics have paid dividends in his development in 2025.

Among qualifying American League second basemen, Holliday is tied for fourth in homers, fifth in RBI’s, sixth in batting average and ninth in OPS, so it is still a little bit of an uphill climb. Though, only Jose Altuve beats him in every metric, the reason why Holliday is currently projected to propel into phase two of voting. If consistency and versatility is valued, Holliday without-a-doubt has a chance to make this year’s All Star team.

Will he make it? Possibly

Gunnar Henderson, SS

Gunnar missed the beginning portion of the season with an intercostal strain, which also sidelined him for the vast majority of spring training. So while he didn’t miss much time, it took him a few weeks to “warmup” and return to his elite level, MVP-type play. In the month of April, Henderson hit .229 with a .681 OPS along with 27 strikeouts to just five walks.

Since that time, however, Henderson has bat above .300 with an OBP near .380 with an improved K:BB ratio. For the season, his OPS+ is up to 123, and his wRC+ is also elite. But has it been enough to warrant All Star status? Because even with his improvements, Henderson is sixth among qualifying AL shortstops in batting average, fourth in homers, eleventh in RBI’s and tied for fifth in XBH. When it’s all set and done in October, Henderson will overtake these players, though their “head start” compared to Gunnar gives them more leverage for a mid-season All Star vote.

The bigger worry, if any, is if Henderson’s power-hitting mechanics will return to his 2024 form, where he hit 37 homers and 92 RBI’s compared to the eight dingers and 21 driven in runs thus far in 2025. I believe they will, as his average exit velocity, bat speed, and hard hit percentage are all in 90th percentile or better on Baseball Savant, suggesting more bombs will come with more at-bats.

Henderson has been productive, both at the plate and in the field, as a top-of-the-order hitter for Baltimore once again. There is no long-term concern about whether he will return to his old form. However, unless he goes on a tear in these next few weeks, his case for a 2025 All Star appearance will be a hard one to make.

Will he make it? Probably not

Tomoyuki Sugano, SP

Baltimore’s starting rotation began the season as one of the MLB’s worst. With recent improvements, however, it has improved across the board, though early season faults still keep many of the O’s starters out of All Star conversation. If any were to have a valid argument, it would be 35-year-old rookie Tomoyuki Sugano from Japan.

In the JPCL and other Japanese pro-leagues, Sugano had blossomed as one of Japan’s top starters. In his late transition to the MLB level, however, many fans and analysts wondered whether his talents would translate over to the Majors. And they have. Despite a rough and uncomfortable start, Sugano has managed to put together a more-than-solid 2025 starting campaign thus far. He’s 5-4 with a 3.38 ERA and 113 ERA+. Though his low strikeout rate and lack of “command” on the mound leave him far behind an elite starter, his six quality starts and consistency has made him Baltimore’s most dependable pitcher all season.

Though statistically he is still far behind the elite starters that will most likely qualify for an All Star team, Sugano is worth mentioning due to his great first stretch at the Major League level.

Will he make it? Very unlikely

Felix Bautista, CL

In 2023, there was not a closer in Major League Baseball that come close to Felix Bautista up until his season-ending injury in August that sidelined him for all of 2024 due to Tommy John surgery. It also limited the opportunity for Bautista to pitch back-to-back days for the first portion of the season.

But now, folks, The Mountain is back. Not quite at his 2023 level, but still elite, once again pitching above 100 mph and working back in his suffocating command on the mound. He went through a rough patch in May, where his elite 1.64 ERA was elevated to 4.30 after allowing an earned run in four straight appearances. Though, he has once again dialed in, Felix allowing a run in just one of his past ten showings.

With a 2.92 ERA and 14 saves, Bautista is once again a candidate to make the All Star team in the American League. He is tied for the fifth most saves among AL closers despite far less opportunities, Baltimore beginning 2025 as one of the MLB’s worst teams.

Only Houston’s Josh Hader has both more saves and a higher save percentage than King Felix. While his strikeout rate and high walk rate are glaring red flags, statistically, Bautista is still among the best closers in the American League.

Barring a sudden collapse, Felix could very well make his second All Star team. Last year, five closers were rewarded with such honor in the American League. And Bautista has a legitimate case to be a top four or five guy deserving of the nod.

Will he make it? Possibly

Be sure to vote the Orioles stars for the All Star game here. Phase one of fan voting ends on June 26th.

Chase Coburn

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