By Dan Glickman
Four former members of the Rochester Red Wings are heading to the Major League Baseball All-Star Game after rosters were announced on Sunday.
Pitcher MacKenzie Gore and outfielder James Wood, both products of the current Washington Nationals affiliation and members of the 2025 Nationals, will travel to represent Washington for the National League at the 95th Midsummer Classic. Minnesota Twins outfielder Byron Buxton and Athletics’ designated hitter Brent Rooker, who both played in Rochester during the Twins affiliation, will play for the American League.
Gore and Wood, who both came to the Nationals organization from the San Diego Padres in the Juan Soto trade, are both making their All-Star debuts. Gore, who as of Sunday is is third in the National League with 131 strikeouts, had a brief stint in Rochester, making four starts for the Red Wings in late 2022. Wood, however, spent most of the first half of the 2024 season at Innovative Field, where in 52 games he hit .353 with a .463 on-base-percentage and .595 slugging percentage while hitting 10 home runs and driving in 37 runs. The 6’7” left-hander has been having a breakout season for the Nationals, and will also take part in the Home Run Derby- the Marylander has hit 23 round-trippers so far this season, fifth-best in the NL.
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Byron Buxton, once the top prospect in baseball, played portions of four seasons with the Red Wings between 2015 and 2018 for a total of 100 games. The right-hander from Georgia hit .310 as a Red Wing while hitting 18 home runs. Although injuries have often plagued the speedy outfielder, Buxton earned a spot in his second All-Star Game for a season where he is fifth in the American League in the sabermetric Offensive Wins Above Replacement stat. In addition, he’s gone a perfect 15-for-15 in stolen bases this season so far, already his best season on the basepaths since he stole 29 in 2017.
Brent Rooker played 65 games for the Red Wings in 2019, the final year of the Twins affiliation. In those games, the right-hander hit 14 home runs while hitting for a .281 average and 47 RBI. Now a member of the Sacramento-based Athletics, this is Rooker’s second All-Star Game. Rooker is seventh in the American League in hits (97) and 10th in home runs (18).
It is possible further former Red Wings may join the All-Star rosters as time goes on before the game in Atlanta, as players often withdraw due to injury or pitching rotation concerns. Some possibilities include Nationals shortstop CJ Abrams and Twins reliever Griffin Jax. Regardless of who makes the final roster, the 2025 All-Star Game can be seen on July 15 at 8 P.M. on FOX.
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