From Ryne Sandberg to Andrew Kittredge, local standouts have history in MLB's All-Star game

Jul. 10—Playing in baseball's Midsummer Classic is one of the outstanding achievements in a major league player's career . Among those over the years who have played in the All-Star Game are two who were born and played youth baseball in Spokane.

The 93rd MLB All-Star Game will be held Tuesday at T-Mobile Park in Seattle, with three players from the hometown Mariners. The American League roster includes Seattle center fielder Julio Rodríguez and starting pitchers Luis Castillo and George Kirby.

The last player from Spokane to play in the game was Ferris High's Andrew Kittredge.

Kittredge was an average pitcher in his first four seasons of somewhat limited action at the big league level. Through 111 1/3 innings of work, mostly in relief, Kittredge had a 4-3 record, struck out 105 batters and posted a 4.94 earned-run average.

That changed in 2021, when Kittredge landed his first and, so far, only All-Star selection. In 2021, Kittredge threw 71 2/3 innings in 57 appearances, both career highs. Kittredge had a 1.88 ERA, 77 strikeouts and 0.98 WHIP (one of baseball's newer metrics, which measures walks and hits allowed per inning).

The Tampa Bay right-hander saw some action in the All-Star Game. He entered the game in the seventh inning and retired all three batters with groundouts.

Kittredge was drafted out of Ferris by the Seattle Mariners in 2008. John Thacker, said it was clear from the beginning that Kittredge was a special player with next-level potential. Thacker realized Kittredge was "going to be really, really good" after he saw Kittredge's first bullpen session as a freshman.

"It's unbelievable. It is such a rarity to coach anyone who goes on to make the MLB, let alone the All-Star Game," Thacker said.

Thacker coached at Ferris for 34 years, and Kittredge is the only player he coached to make it past AAA of five that were drafted.

Kittredge displayed his All-Star caliber talent throughout his high school career and could effortlessly throw over 90 MPH. He was a good hitter and position player and Thacker believes he could have made it as a position player at the next level.

"Andrew was really special," Thacker said. "Didn't garner the limelight. He was the type of player to say 'get me on the field, give me a bat, let my talents do the speaking for me.' "

Kittredge has missed most of the last two seasons due to Tommy John surgery — the first arm injury of his career — and is expected to make his return later this season.

—The greatest All-Star from Spokane is Hall of Famer Ryne Sandberg, who was selected for 10 consecutive National League All-Star teams.

Sandberg, who was born and raised in Spokane, and is considered one of the best all-around infielders in the history of baseball. Sandberg attended North Central High School and was drafted by the Philadelphia Phillies in the 20th round of the 1978 MLB draft.

Sandberg played in just 13 games for the Phillies and only reached base once before finishing the remaining 2,153 games of his career as a member of the Chicago Cubs. Sandberg quickly became a crucial component of the Cubs roster.

Throughout his 16-year career, Sandberg racked up 2,386 hits, 282 home runs, 344 stolen bases, 1,318 runs and 1,061 RBIs. He had a .285 lifetime batting average. He won nine Gold Glove Awards and seven Silver Sluggers.

Sandberg won the National League Most Valuable Player Award in 1984, his breakout season. He was fourth in MVP balloting in 1989, and again in 1990 when he led the National League with 40 homers and 344 total bases. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2005.

A few other players from the Inland Northwest have also been All-Stars.

—Mel Stottlemyre, who was born in Prosser, Washington, was a standout pitcher for the New York Yankees from 1964 to 1974. Stottlemyre was named to five All-Star teams. He had a career earned run average of 2.97 .

Stottlemyre struck out 1,257 batters in 11 seasons.

Washington's neighbor state, Idaho, is one of the least productive states in terms of supplying Major League talent. Of the 50 states, Idaho ranks fifth-lowest in the number of MLB players produced . Only 31 native Idahoans have reached the major league level, and only five were selected for the All-Star Game.

—Larry Jackson, a right-handed pitcher, was the first Idahoan named to an All-Star team, that happening in 1957.

Jackson was born in Nampa and played 14 seasons in the majors. Jackson had a career 194-183 record, 3.40 ERA and 1.24 WHIP. He was selected to four All-Star Games in his career and was elected into the Boise State Hall of Fame in 1982.

Jackson was the winning pitcher for the National League in the 1963 All-Star Game. The following season, he came second in the voting for the NL Cy Young award.

—The most recent All-Star from the Gem State is starting pitcher Jason Schmidt. Schmidt was born in Lewiston, Idaho, and played 14 seasons before retiring in 2009. The peak of Schmidt's career was with the San Francisco Giants, finishing in the top-four in Cy Young voting twice and being selected for three All-Star Games.

Schmidt finished his MLB career with a 130-96 record and 3.96 ERA . Schmidt was the starting pitcher for the National League in the 2003 All-Star Game and threw two innings, striking out three batters and not allowing a run.

—The best player born in Idaho is slugger Harmon Killebrew.

Killebrew was born in Payette and is the only Idaho-born player in the Hall of Fame. Killebrew's 573 home runs rank 12th all-time. Of the 28 players in baseball history to hit more than 500 home runs, Killebrew is one of eight with fewer than 10,000 career plate appearances.

While he had more than 2,000 career hits, Killebrew is primarily known for his extraordinary power at the plate. In his 17 final seasons, after playing sparingly in his first five, Killebrew averaged more than 33 home runs a year.

Killebrew was an 11-time All-Star and was the American League MVP in 1969.

—Over 250 father-son duos have made it to the MLB. Vernon and Vance Law from Meridian, Idaho, took it one step further and became one of the few father-son duos to each be selected for an All-Star game.

Vernon Law was born in 1930 and attended Meridian High School. A Pittsburgh Pirates right-hander, he made his MLB debut in 1950 with a complete game against Philadelphia.

Vernon Law played 16 seasons, all with Pittsburgh, and finished with a 162-147 record and a 3.77 career ERA. In 1960, he was named to the NL All-Star team, finished sixth in MVP voting and won the Cy Young Award .

Vance Law was born in 1956 in Boise and was one of six Chicago Cubs to be selected for the 1988 NL All-Star team, along with Sandberg. An infielder, he hit .256 with 71 home runs in his 11-year career.

Liam Bradford's reporting is part of the Teen Journalism Institute, funded by Bank of America with support from the Innovia Foundation.