Read our story on the balloting format, which includes two phases of fan voting to determine the All-Star starters.
MIAMI -- The last time Luis Arraez went to the All-Star Game was in 2024 with the Padres. The memory that stayed with him was walking the red carpet at Globe Life Field hand-in-hand with his “Mami,” Maria, and “Papi,” Ernesto.
“It’s something special for me and my family,” Arraez said in Spanish. “All I can ask is for the fans to support me and if they feel in their hearts that I need to go to the All-Star Game then I give them a lot of thanks.”
Arraez has certainly made his case this season after ranking fifth in the NL at second base in the latest voting update.
Known as “La Regadera” -- Spanish for “the sprinkler” -- because of his ability to spray hits all over the field, Arraez entered the Giants’ off-day Monday slashing .320/.357/.444 with an .801 OPS. The three-time batting champion ranks fifth in the Majors in batting average.
While Arraez’s offensive profile remains unique, his defensive growth at second base has strengthened his All-Star credentials.
When the Giants signed Arraez to a one-year, $12 million contract on Feb. 10, he had not regularly played second base since 2023 with the Marlins. Yet he has quickly emerged as one of the position’s most reliable defenders.
Arraez entered Monday ranked fifth in the Majors (second among second basemen) with 10 Outs Above Average and had prevented eight runs defensively. For manager Tony Vitello, the All-Star case is clear.
“He’s got to be one of the best this particular year defensively at second base,” Vitello said. “Maybe people that are on a different coast or people that aren’t on our schedule yet, just assume, well, he played first last year, so he’s not doing that.
“Everybody knows what he can do with the bat, but I think if you’re talking about the type of player he is on both sides of the ball, he is an All-Star.”
During Friday’s series opener against the Marlins, Arraez turned a quick double play in the sixth inning, retiring Connor Norby at second. After the play, middle infield coach Ron Washington turned to Vitello in the dugout and offered a similar assessment.
On Saturday, Arraez also leaped to start a double play on a liner off the bat of Joe Mack, with Leo Jimenez retired at first in the third inning. An inning later, he handled a low flip from shortstop Willy Adames to complete another double play. Arraez has turned 41 double plays this season.
“He’s very consistent,” Washington said. “He can turn the hell out of a double play. I’ve never seen anyone turn a double play as quick as he does. [Just] being able to just make all the plays, and I’m talking about mainly the routine plays … so far this year there isn’t a routine play that he can’t make, or hasn’t made.”
The biggest point of emphasis from Washington since Arraez joined the Giants has been keeping the 29-year-old's feet moving, a change that has translated directly to his defensive success.
“The stuff I do is good for his hands,” Washington said, who works through hand drills with Arraez pregame. “I just try to remind him about keeping the feet moving because [then] his hands are going to work.”
Of course, Arraez’s value has always started with his bat.
Unlike a traditional leadoff hitter who piles up walks, Arraez gets on base by consistently putting the ball in play and extending at-bats. That skillset remains especially valuable in the eyes of hitting coach Hunter Mense.
And what has kept Arraez so consistent, Mense said, is that he values parts of hitting that many players overlook.
“He tries to drive the ball… just like some of the bigger guys do,” Mense said. “He also values being able to hit line drives and get base hits, too. I think people would be surprised with how much intent he has with trying to hit the ball hard. It’s a wide variety of things that he kind of possesses.”
Beyond the production, Mense believes Arraez’s personality has an impact that extends throughout the clubhouse. His childlike love for the game reminds Mense of his 6-year-old son.
“He’s got a fearlessness to him, too,” Mense said. “But I think when you have somebody and you see somebody kind of with the fight and the fearlessness that he has in the box [in the leadoff spot], I think that resonates with a lot of people.”
It is also the kind of energy Vitello believes should be seen in Philadelphia this summer.
“The one thing about the All-Star Game, too … it’s for the fans, and I don’t know a more fun guy,” Vitello said. “We got some guys that are pretty fun to watch, but I don’t know a more fun flavor brand of baseball than the Arraez brand.”