Phillies: Scott Kingery the most deserving All-Star?

The Phillies likely won’t have many All-Stars, but their everyday utility man should get a nod.

Scott Kingery went from being the Phillies second baseman of the future, the next Chase Utley, to the club’s everyday utility man. This season he’s played wherever the team needs him, whether it be at second, third, short, center, or left.

After an atrocious rookie year, Kingery has settled into his new role and has been one of the Phillies most consistent hitters in an inconsistent season.

While his stats don’t officially “qualify him” to be among the league leaders, Kingery’s .322/.370/..596 slash line is only matched by Cody Bellinger, Charlie Blackmon, and Christian Yelich.

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Kingery doesn’t have the power numbers to match those MVP candidates, but his ability to get on base and play across the diamond has arguably made him the Phillies most valuable player. Few players have been as versatile as him this year as he’s developed into the Philly version of Ben Zobrist.

Philadelphia has several intriguing All-Star candidates with Rhys Hoskins, J.T. Realmuto, Bryce Harper, Zach Eflin, and Hector Neris. Harper would purely be due to his namesake after a slow start to his career in Philadelphia.

Hoskins has powered the club with 19 home runs and one of the game’s best on-base percentages, but he’s not a lock thanks to an early June slump.

Realmuto owns the title of best catcher in baseball and is on pace to set a career-high in home runs and doubles. There aren’t too many great catchers who would take priority over Realmuto when it comes to All-Star backups.

Eflin and Neris don’t have the name recognition but they’ve quietly been two of the Phillies best players, aside from Kingery and Hoskins. Neris’ 16 saves are top-10 in the National League and he’d been perfect in save opportunities before Thursday’s game against New York.

Eflin leads the Phils with a 2.2 WAR and has the best ERA (3.34) among the starting staff. He doesn’t have the name recognition of Aaron Nola or Jake Arrieta, but he leads baseball with two shutouts and a complete game.

Currently, Kingery doesn’t have the name recognition of Philadelphia’s stars, but as an all-around player, he’s been their best this year. When the All-Star selections are announced Sunday night it would be criminal not to see Kingery recognized for what he’s done this season.