Four Monarchs Make All-Star Team, Collins Last Man In Candidate

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KANSAS CITY Kan. — Four Kansas City Monarchs are heading to the American Association’s All-Star game, the league announced Monday.

Catcher Chris Herrmann and second baseman Justin Wylie both made the starting lineup for the West Division. Pitchers Jalen Miller and Trey Jeans also made the squad.

Additionally, Monarchs catcher and infielder Gavin Collins is one of six candidates for the Last Man In, a fan vote to determine the final roster spot on each division’s All-Star team. Fans can vote for Collins here. Voting is open until Thursday at 5 p.m. Central time.

Dylan Rosa was also named to the West Division team as their starting designated hitter, but was traded from the Monarchs to the Chicago Dogs shortly after the announcement was made.

The American Association All-Star Game is set for July 18, 2023 at 6:35 p.m. from Franklin Field, home of the Milwaukee Milkmen.

The Monarchs enter Monday’s action with the best record in the American Association at 29-17. They play the Sioux Falls Canaries on the Fourth of July Tuesday at 1 p.m.

Herrmann leads the Monarchs and is second in the league with a .360 batting average. He leads the Association with 49 RBIs and ranks second with a .622 slugging percentage. His 11 home runs pace Kansas City.

A former major leaguer with the Twins, Diamondbacks, Mariners and Athletics over eight seasons, “The Herrmannator” is in his first year with the Monarchs.

Wylie sports a .311 batting average and .855 OPS on the season, both best among West Division second basemen. He leads the Monarchs with 25 walks against just 24 strikeouts in 39 games.

This is Wylie’s second straight All-Star appearance after playing in the Frontier League All-Star Game in 2022 as a member of the New Jersey Jackals. Wylie represented Great Britain in the World Baseball Classic earlier this year.

Miller makes the team fresh off of perhaps the best outing of his career: a 133-pitch complete-game shutout Wednesday night at Kane County. The performance lowered his season ERA to 3.83 with 42 strikeouts in 47 innings pitched.

A former Orioles prospect, Miller has experience in nine different professional leagues. This is his second year with Kansas City after posting a 2.52 ERA over five appearances (regular season and playoffs) in 2022.

Jeans is one of Kansas City’s most dependable bullpen arms. He owns a 4-0 record and 3.38 ERA. The left-hander has allowed more than one run in just one of his 15 appearances on the season.

The Texarkana, Arkansas native is in his fourth professional season and first in the American Association. He spent three years as a Chicago White Sox prospect, reaching Double-A in 2022.

Collins owns a .306 average and .848 OPS on the season. He’s coming off a 3-for-5 performance in the Monarchs’ thrilling 12-11 victory over Winnipeg Sunday afternoon.

Drafted by Cleveland out of Mississippi State in 2016, Collins has made it as high as Triple-A in his affiliated career. He joined the Monarchs in 2023 from the Rays organization, where he played in 16 big-league spring training games earlier this year.