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Navarro, Kazmir Named All-Stars

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By MARC LANCASTER | The Tampa Tribune

Published: July 6, 2008

The Rays have the best record in baseball, and they have been rewarded with more than one All-Star for only the second time in their history.

Catcher Dioner Navarro and left-hander Scott Kazmir will represent the Rays at Yankee Stadium on July 15—and they may be joined by Evan Longoria.

Navarro, a first-time selection, has been among the most productive catchers in the league both offensively and defensively. He's hitting .318 with 14 doubles, four homers and 33 RBIs, and has thrown out 38.1 percent of runners attempting to steal against him—the best percentage in the American League and second-best in baseball.

Kazmir, who also was an All-Star in 2006, is 7-3 with a 2.63 ERA in 12 starts after opening the season on the disabled list. Opponents have hit only .204 against him and he has struck out 75 batters in 72 innings.

Longoria is one of five players in the running for the 32nd and final spot on the AL team, with the winner to be selected in online balloting this week. Longoria is up against Jason Giambi, Jermaine Dye, Jose Guillen and Brian Roberts, so that'll be a tough sell. Voting is open now on MLB.com and continues through 5 p.m. ET Thursday.

The only other time the Rays have had more than one All-Star was 1999, when Jose Canseco and Roberto Hernandez were selected. A back injury kept Canseco from attending the game.

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