3 Cardinals players who should receive All-Star Game considerations but won't

While the Cardinals' season has been an absolute nightmare that seems to have no end, there comes a huge break that could get the team back on track. The All-Star festivities have been full of Cardinals in the past years, as we saw five All-Stars in 2022, with only one of those five returning in this year's All-Star game: Nolan Arenado. There are definitely Cardinals who deserve to be considered for the All-Star game but have been simply ignored due to the Cardinals' lackluster year.

It is still in question if the players who deserve recognition will even be on the roster in the upcoming years, as the Cardinals are in full desperation mode. They are halfway through the season and have a 35-50 record after dropping two straight games to the Marlins, with another lackluster pitching performance from former three-time All-Star Adam Wainwright. The Cardinals are limping into this All-Star break with a restless fanbase that expects changes soon. Will the All-Star break mark the beginning of the moves that the Cardinals are desperately in need of?

The All-Star break is a good indicator of where a team stands, and the Cardinals look bleak. However, we can focus on the positive aspect of players who should be All-Stars but, unfortunately, their performance with the Cardinals is simply overlooked. Here are the three players I think deserve some All-Star consideration, but unfortunately won't receive it.

Here are three Cardinals that had legitimate arguments to be All-Stars this season

1. Brendan Donovan

If there were a utility spot for the All-Star Game, similar to the Gold Glove award, I believe Brendan Donovan would surpass the competition and earn a spot on the roster. Although Donovan is listed as an outfielder and demonstrates exceptional defense while batting .282/.374/.416, it's not enough to compete with some of the outfielders who were voted in as reserves or starters.

The player who compares most closely to Donovan but made the All-Star team would be Lourdes Gurriel Jr., who is slashing .268/.319/.495. One factor that overlooks Donovan in a single-position voting system is his versatility around the diamond. I believe this puts him ahead of Gurriel Jr., and it even reflects in the WAR statistic. According to Fangraphs, Donovan has a 0.5 higher WAR than Gurriel Jr.

Another reason Donovan is overlooked is simply because the Cardinals are not performing as well as the Diamondbacks. The Diamondbacks have a record of 50-36, practically the opposite of the Cardinals' record. As a result, Gurriel is receiving more All-Star recognition.

2. Paul Goldschmidt

This one pains me to put on this list, as I believe all Cardinals fans expected their last year's MVP to make the All-Star Game this year, but he clearly got snubbed. While I don't think he should have started over Freeman, I firmly believe he deserved a spot on the reserve list for the infield.

The player he clearly outperformed for this role was Pete Alonso. According to FanGraphs, Paul Goldschmidt quite literally doubles Alonso's WAR, along with having a higher average, OPS, OPS+, and essentially every other statistic, except for home runs and RBIs. The chicks clearly dig the long ball.

Unless there are any injuries or players opting out of the All-Star Game, this future Hall of Famer will miss out on his 8th All-Star appearance and his 2nd appearance in a Cardinals uniform.