How many All-Stars will each New York team get?

It may be hard to believe, but Major League Baseball's All-Star Game is just a month away. On July 13 the American League and National League will send squads to Coors Field to stage the Midsummer Classic after a one-year hiatus due to COVID-19, a welcome sign marking a return to normalcy for baseball. The natural follow-up question in this town is how many members of the Mets and Yankees will be taking a flight to Denver to represent their teams as All-Stars next month.

The Mets are a first-place team but have seen most of their offensive stars either underperform or miss time with injuries, leading pretty much all of their top contenders to be on the pitching side. The Yankees are underachieving significantly but have a few marquee names producing so they could still be in line for a decent contingent at Coors Field. Let's take a look at the potential All-Stars for each side starting in the Bronx.

New York Yankees' All-Star candidates

Gerrit Cole

This is probably as close to a lock as possible for the Yankees. Cole has been brilliant so far this season, going 7-3 with a 2.31 ERA and 113 strikeouts in 81.2 innings of work. The anchor of the Yankees' staff, there's a strong chance that Cole ends up getting the start for the AL with few other worthy contenders to challenge him.

Aaron Judge

Whether it is through the fan vote or players vote, Judge will be in Denver. Judge has been by far the Yankees' most productive hitter, batting .289 with 15 home runs and 35 RBI's, totals that should help him land on the AL roster as an outfielder.

Aroldis Chapman

The third Yankee with a legitimate case for being an All-Star is Chapman, who has been dominant outside of a few hiccups this season. Chapman has recorded 12 saves and picked up four wins while pitching to a 1.93 ERA and 0.99 WHIP, striking out 43 batters in 23.1 innings pitched. Those numbers should have Chapman firmly in the mix for a spot in the American League bullpen.

Long shots

Jonathan Loaisiga has had a stellar season in middle relief, pitching to a 1.83 with a 0.96 WHIP, but it's hard to envision him making an All-Star roster as a middle reliever on a middling team . . . Giancarlo Stanton has decent counting stats (12 homers and 32 RBI's) in just 46 games but would need a major hot streak to sneak onto the roster as a DH candidate.

New York Mets' All-Star candidates

Jacob deGrom

There are a ton of great pitchers in the National League but none have excelled like deGrom, who you can pencil in to start the All-Star Game right now as long as he doesn't pitch the final Sunday of the first half. deGrom's brilliant numbers speak for themselves as he is in hard pursuit of history and is a legitimate candidate for the MVP honors in the NL. A third Cy Young in four years is a shoo-in if he stays healthy.

Marcus Stroman

The decision to take the qualifying offer has been a brilliant one for Stroman, who is 6-4 with a 2.33 ERA and 1.07 WHIP as the clear no. 2 starter on the Mets. Stroman ranks inside the Top 10 in ERA in the National League but is actually third on his own team, a sign of how brilliant the Mets' pitchers have been in 2021.

Taijuan Walker

A fallback move after Trevor Bauer spurned the Mets, Walker has outpitched the Dodgers' star and been a rock in the Mets' rotation. Walker is 5-2 with a 2.07 ERA and has struck out 60 batters in 61 innings pitched while working to a 1.03 WHIP. Given the strong starting pitching depth in the NL, Walker could be fighting with Stroman for the same spot on the All-Star roster.

Long Shots

Edwin Diaz has been solid as the Mets' closer in 2021, recording 12 saves and pitching to a 2.81 ERA as well as a 1.05 WHIP, but a shaky performance in non-save situations combined with a strong field of closers in the NL should leave Diaz on the outside looking in . . . Pete Alonso has been heating up since his return from the injured list and is now batting .262 with 10 home runs and 31 RBI's but will need to keep raking to make a run at this roster. The best path onto the squad for Alonso would be to top Freddie Freeman in the fan vote, although he will likely be invited to defend his title at the Home Run Derby even if he doesn't make the roster.