The Athletic's All-Star roster prediction features 1 shocking Yankees starter, 1 snub

The first-place New York Yankees have benefitted from a wide variety of surprising performances and superstar standouts. Unfortunately, even though the American League All-Star manager is literally Aaron Boone, several deserving Yankees are going to be left on the cutting room floor. Every AL team needs at least one representative, and there are plenty of Yanks in the "great-not-exceptional" category who are going to be stuck watching from home in order to make room for a (shudders) Sacramento representative.

Aaron Judge is a lock. He'll start. Max Fried and Carlos Rodón both feel hard to deny, but ... the pitching side of things usually gets really tight. There's a good chance that one makes it and not the other.

Luke Weaver was close to a lock before his unfortunate injury, which will now take him out right up until the All-Star break, if not through it. The players might select him, but his manager sure won't.

Beyond that group, the Yankees have two polarizing test cases. Has Trent Grisham's ridiculously hot start been enough to carry him through the All-Star break, even though the regression monster is coming (and might already be here)? And how will voters treat Paul Goldschmidt's star power and late-career resurgence?

If we had to guess, Goldschmidt's gaudy numbers and name recognition will make the difference for him at first base, and Grisham will get lost in a crowded outfield — he's a "fourth outfielder," after all. But Jim Bowden of The Athletic feels the exact opposite, so maybe we should trust him? He's got Grisham in and Goldschmidt watching from home.

The Athletic MLB All-Star Roster Projection: Yankees' Trent Grisham starts, Paul Goldschmidt (and Luke Weaver) snubbed

Consider me a bit less certain that the MLB world at large knows all about Jonathan Aranda of the Rays and will pencil him in. That said, the Rays are always greater than the sum of their parts, and this year's roster might be the plainest example of that phenomenon yet. If not Aranda ... who will it be? That smells like a classic "Manager's Selection," which will be doubly painful for Boonie.

Expect a quartet of Yankees at the Midsummer Classic in Atlanta, but probably no more. That fight for the final spot will be a doozy.