The next round of Mlb All-star Game movement is here before the league has even made it official: projected rosters for the 2026 MLB All-Star Game are out, and the first true deadline lands Saturday when the initial teams are announced. The forecast matters because the game itself is set for July 14 in Philadelphia, and the path to get there now starts with who clears the roster cut.
That is why Foster Griffin matters in this picture. The Washington Nationals left-hander is 8-2 with a 2.93 ERA, and his June run was strong enough to keep him in the conversation after he allowed four earned runs in five starts, struck out 33 and walked four in 31 1/3 innings. Griffin spent three seasons in Japan before returning to this version of himself, and he said he did not want to load himself up with expectations. He said he felt he was in a good space after changing some things, and that he had matured as a pitcher while making small tweaks that made him better.
The National League projection is crowded in the places that matter most. Shohei Ohtani is already in at designated hitter as the NL's top vote-getter, and CJ Abrams and James Wood are expected to be among the 20 NL position players. On the pitching side, the depth is obvious: through Thursday, there were 17 other NL pitchers with at least 10 starts and an ERA of 3.33 or below. That leaves little room for a surprise, because only one or two more starting pitchers may fit before replacements begin shaping the final look of the roster.
The American League has a different problem, and it is harder to hide. Ernie Clement already has a spot after collecting the most votes of any AL player, but he is also the only healthy AL second baseman with at least 25 games at the position and a.750 OPS. MLB has to make sure every team is represented somewhere on the roster, yet the AL is thin enough at second base that the pool can look short even before player votes are counted. That creates a squeeze that runs straight through the rest of the 12-man staff and the reserve slots, where pitchers and bench players are chosen by players from June 24 to 28 and at least five starters and three relievers have to be selected among the 12 pitchers.
The roster math points to a familiar ending: Saturday will tell the story of who made the first cut, but it will not settle the roster completely. Replacements often follow once injuries and extra rest for starting pitchers start to reshape the list, so the most useful answer may not come all at once. For now, the sharpest question is whether the AL can find enough balance on the infield to match the NL's pitching depth before the All-Stars line up along the baselines in Philadelphia on July 14.
