Pirates' other All-Star was unfortunately overshadowed by Paul Skenes craze

If you watched any coverage of the 2024 MLB All-Star Game, you would think the Pittsburgh Pirates had only one representative at this year's Midsummer Classic.

Rookie phenom Paul Skenes received much of the hype – and deservedly so – as the first player in major league history to be selected first overall and make the All-Star team the following season. Skenes was the story of the night after taking the game of baseball by storm in just 11 major league starts en route to being named the National League's starting pitcher and tossing a scoreless inning against the top of the American League lineup.

But Skenes wasn't the only Pirates All-Star with a strong performance on Tuesday at Globe Life Field. Outfielder Bryan Reynolds also made the most of his appearance, lining a single to left field off the first pitch he saw from the Kansas City Royals' Seth Lugo in his first at-bat in the sixth inning.

Pirates outfielder Andrew McCutchen reacts to Bryan Reynolds' All-Star performance

Reynolds was making his second All-Star appearance – he was also named to the NL squad in 2021 as a replacement for injured Atlanta Braves outfielder Ronald Acuña Jr. – and there was far less fanfare surrounding his selection than there was around Skenes'.

Since his last All-Star appearance, Reynolds signed an eight-year, $106.75 million contract with the Pirates, which is the largest deal in franchise history, keeping him with the club through 2031. Reynolds has arguably been the Pirates' most consistent player this season, entering the All-Star break with a .284 batting average, 18 home runs and 61 RBI. He has totaled 110 hits this season and leads the Pirates in virtually every offensive category, with the exception of total runs – his 45 runs trail only outfielder Andrew McCutchen's 47.

McCutchen showed Reynolds some love on X after his sixth-inning single on Tuesday with a simple, tongue-in-cheek message: "Shocker...Reynolds got a hit."

In a way, Reynolds' consistency has become a curse, often pushing him into the shadows of his younger, flashier Pirates teammates. But his ability to be in the lineup every day and consistently produce have made him indispensable to his team, even if he doesn't always get the respect he deserves.

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