The Baltimore Orioles had two players named starters for the American League in the 2024 MLB All-Star Game that will take place in Texas, and the two are Adley Rutschman at catcher and Gunnar Henderson at shortstop. Rutschman spoke on Henderson's selection, saying it is “a testament to the work he has put in.”

“The dedication, and the guy is just impressive all around as a human being and baseball player,” Adley Rutschman said, via Jesse Rogers of ESPN. “It has been fun to watch him grow and develop into the player that he is now. He definitely deserved it.”

Henderson is firmly in the MVP conversation in the American League this season. He is hitting .284 with a .379 on-base percentage for a 173 wRC+, according to FanGraphs. Him being the starting shortstop for the American League was an obvious choice. It is a scenario we very well could see play out for the next several years.

The same is the case for Rutschman, who is batting .288 with a .345 on-base percentage for a 130 wRC+, according to FanGraphs. The two players are the cornerstones for a young Orioles team that has emerged as one of the best teams in MLB. They had the best record in the American League last season before a disappointing playoff performance, and are looking to take that next step and make a deep run this time around.

In the meantime, the Orioles will try to close out the next few weeks strong before the All-Star Game, where Rutschman and Henderson will start, and perhaps be joined by some other teammates as well. It will be interesting to see how Rutschman and Henderson fare in the All-Star Game, and who else on the team joins them in Texas.

Orioles' outlook for remainder of the regular season

The Orioles are currently two games ahead of the New York Yankees for first place in the American League East. The Yankees are struggling right now, which allowed Baltimore to take the advantage in the division race. Many still expect that to go down to the wire in the regular season, but the Orioles will look to build a lead and hope that the Yankees continue to struggle.

Baltimore has a stacked lineup, with players like Ryan O'Hearn, Ryan Mountcastle, Anthony Santander and more having solid seasons. The lineup is one of, if not the deepest in baseball. The starting rotation is strong with Corbin Burnes leading the way, but there could be an addition made there. The bullpen sticks out as a main area to improve ahead of the trade deadline, with Felix Bautista out for the season.

The Orioles are still flush with prospects that could be dealt ahead of the trade deadline, and they could get help in multiple areas not only to help out in the race for the American League East, but in the playoffs as well. It will be interesting to see who the Orioles add ahead of the MLB Trade Deadline to try to take a stranglehold on the American League.