Rafael Devers trade opens up amazing Orioles opportunity in All-Star voting

The Rafael Devers trade has many implications. On and off the field, 2025's biggest blockbuster trade can be traced to several significant happenings around the league. One involves the Baltimore Orioles and coincides with MLB's Midsummer Classic.

The first All-Star ballot update was released Monday, less than 24 hours after the Devers trade was official. Devers would have led all American League designated hitters in the fan vote, but his shift to the National League's San Francisco Giants puts him in second place among NL DHs, behind Shohei Ohtani.

With Devers out of the picture, Orioles slugger Ryan O'Hearn took over the top spot among AL designated hitters. His lead is by more than 100,000 votes, but a few weeks remain in the selection process.

O'Hearn joked about the trade, thanking the Red Sox for aiding his All-Star campaign.

“Yeah, I just want to shout out Craig Breslow real quick. Appreciate you, man," O'Hearn said while appearing on "Foul Territory" on Tuesday.

The Orioles benefit from not seeing Devers 10+ times a season, and they might be closer to the Red Sox on paper than before the trade. It might also help Baltimore get national exposure with a potential All-Star starter. The O's could have a few players going to Atlanta for the 2025 MLB All-Star Game.

Ryan O'Hearn pushing for first All-Star selection

O'Hearn's case for the All-Star Game is helped by Devers moving leagues, but the 31-year-old is undoubtedly having a good enough season to warrant consideration. His numbers have dipped in June while most of Baltimore's offense heats up, but O'Hearn's slash line remains among the best in the American League.

He entered Tuesday as one of five players in the AL hitting .300 or better with at least a .490 slugging percentage. Those same five (O'Hearn, Aaron Judge, Jose Ramirez, Jonathan Aranda, Jacob Wilson) all rank in the top 10 in the AL in batting average, on-base percentage, and slugging percentage.

Judge and Ramirez are multi-time All-Stars, while the other three strive for their first selections. Except for Aranda, all lead their respective positions after the first voting update, and Judge is the top vote-getter in the league.

The Orioles have had a first-time All-Star every season since 2019 (there was no All-Star Game in 2020). O'Hearn is trying to make it six consecutive seasons, and he's in a good position to make that happen. Breaking out of his recent slump would increase his chances.

O'Hearn has a .195 batting average with just eight hits in 12 games in June. His OPS is only a tick above .500, and his strikeout and walk rates are well out of the range of what they were in April and May. His strikeout rate is more than eight percent higher than the season's first two months (15.5 to 23.9), and his walk rate is seven percent lower (11.4 to 4.3).

With Devers no longer in his way, O'Hearn's route to the Midsummer Classic is much clearer. He has never been closer to joining MLB's elite.

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