The moment Felipe Vazquez had been awaiting was more awkward than he would have liked.
When the Pirates entered the clubhouse following a 4-1 victory over the Phillies Sunday afternoon at PNC Park, Clint Hurdle gathered the entire team to announce that Vazquez, the club's closer for the past calendar year, was selected to play for the National League in the All-Star Game, which will be held July 17 in Washington.
Vazquez, who expected to be an All-Star last season, called the moment "tough" since he and most of the team expected either Francisco Cervelli or Corey Dickerson to be selected.
"I was thinking more about Dickerson, and Cervi was doing a pretty good job, so I was low key," Vazquez told reporters. "For me, being there by myself will be a little bit tough. I thought [Dickerson] or [Cervelli] were going to go. Now, I’m going by myself."
Vazquez struck out the side Sunday to earn his 18th save — the seventh-most in the National League — and lowered his ERA to 3.38. The 27-year-old has a 1.31 WHIP with 51 strikeouts to 17 walks. However, he's blown four saves, and 64 percent of his inherited runners have scored.
Meanwhile, Cervelli, who returned from the seven-day concussion disabled list Sunday, leads all NL catchers in on-base percentage (.392) and ranks second in OPS (.868) behind the Marlins' J.T. Realmuto. He's thrown out 11 runners attempting to steal, which is the second-highest total in the NL, and has hit a career-high nine home runs with 36 RBIs.
Cervelli wasn't selected, though, because the Cubs' Willson Contreras was voted the starter, while Realmuto had to be the Marlins' representative and the Giants' Buster Posey was also chosen. Cervelli, 32, has yet to be selected to an All-Star Game, and it's the second time in four seasons he thought he was deserving. He was batting .294 with a .766 OPS at the break in 2015.
"I have no comment for that," Cervelli said when asked of his feelings about his exclusion. "This is the second time that happened, so it doesn’t matter anymore. Whenever."
Cervelli added that Vazquez was deserving, calling him "one of the best in the game," and expressed optimism that he'll be selected one time in his career. "Maybe one day before I retire I go at least one time in my career," Cervelli said. "It’s not happening now, so I’m going to keep playing hard. The most important thing is my team."
Dickerson's .310 average ranks first among qualified left fielders in the major leagues, and he's posted a .341 on-base percentage with a .458 slugging percentage. On the other hand, he's walked only 10 times in 317 plate appearances and has only six home runs. To compare, he was batting .312 with a .909 OPS and 17 home runs on July 8 last year.
Although Dickerson quickly left the clubhouse Sunday afternoon, he explained his concerns with the voting process last month.
"It’s hard to say homers aren’t important but I want to impact the game as much as possible," Dickerson said. "If you’re voting for a guy, the public, you see a guy hitting .270 with 15 and you see a guy hitting .300 with five or seven, they automatically look at the home run numbers. My numbers are increased when you look deeper."
Vazquez expected to be selected last season, when he had a 0.76 ERA and 55 strikeouts to 12 walks in 47 1/3 innings during the first half. However, he had only six saves at the break since he wasn't named the closer until June, and the Padres' Brad Hand was selected since each team must be represented.
Vazquez told reporters after Josh Harrison was announced as the All-Star last July that he wouldn't agree to go if selected in MLB's final vote or as a replacement. He was planning on returning to his home near Orlando for the break this year since he didn't even consider being selected a possibility.
Neal Huntington didn't mention Vazquez when asked of possible All-Stars during his weekly radio show with 93.7 The Fan. Vazquez, though, has returned to form over the past three weeks. Since allowing two runs and nearly blowing a save against the Diamondbacks on June 13 — a game where Ray Searage yelled at him on the mound — Vazquez has pitched 10 2/3 consecutive scoreless innings.
He has 21 strikeouts to two walks in that span, while his velocity has consistently hovered around 100 mph. Vazquez is also throwing his changeup and slider with conviction, as well as a curveball against right-handed hitters. Now, he's returning to the city where he began his major league career.
The Pirates acquired Vazquez, along with lefty prospect Taylor Hearn, from the Nationals in exchange for Mark Melancon at the trade deadline in July 2016. Now, he's representing the Pirates on a grand stage.
"It’s not like my heart belongs to D.C," Vazquez said. "My heart belongs here. It’s more like I’m from Pittsburgh now."
MATT SUNDAY GALLERY