CLEVELAND -- Danny Salazar had a case for being named the American League's starter for the All-Star Game. The hard-throwing Indians right-hander will instead take in his first Midsummer Classic as a spectator.
On Sunday, Major League Baseball announced that Salazar has been replaced on the AL's All-Star roster by White Sox lefty Jose Quintana. The Indians indicated that Salazar is dealing with mild elbow discomfort, though the issue is not believed to be serious enough to warrant a trip to the disabled list.
"We would never stand in their way unless we thought there was [a good reason]," Indians manager Terry Francona said Saturday, referring to letting his pitchers appear in the All-Star Game. "I worry, because you know Danny is going to come out throwing 100 [mph]. You worry about that."
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Salazar will still attend Tuesday's All-Star Game presented by MasterCard, along with fellow Tribe pitcher Corey Kluber and Indians shortstop Francisco Lindor. Salazar is scheduled to make his first start of the second half as planned on July 19 in Kansas City, giving him nine days of rest between outings.
During Saturday's 7-6, 11-inning loss to the Yankees, Salazar picked up a no-decision after allowing six runs on eight hits in 5 2/3 innings in which he struck out five, walked two and logged 112 pitches. Over his past two starts combined, the Tribe righty has surrendered nine runs on 16 hits in 11 1/3 innings.
Last month, the Indians gave Salazar an eight-day rest period between his June 3 and June 12 starts due to arm fatigue. Given that brief setback, there was already some wariness within the team about having him flashing his powerful right arm in Tuesday's showcase of the game's stars.
"We bumped him back in Seattle," Francona said. "That wasn't that far ago, because he was a little bit tender. Shoot, man, you worry about that. But we're not the only team. Everybody is [worrying about] the same thing."
Through 17 starts this season, Salazar has gone 10-3 with a 2.75 ERA and 118 strikeouts in 104 2/3 innings. Entering Sunday, he led all AL starters in WAR (3.8, according to baseball-reference.com) and strikeout percentage (27.6), while ranking second in ERA and opponents' average (.203) and third in Fielding Independent Pitching (3.39).