All-Star Ryan McMahon is Happy to Stay in Colorado

DENVER – At some point during the 3.5 hour flight from New York City to Dallas-Ft. Worth, it became real to Ryan McMahon that he was an All-Star.

Sitting on a private jet with two-time Home Run Derby winner Pete Alonso of the New York Mets and former teammate Jose Iglesias, who was going to perform his hit Latin Pop song “OMG” during Monday’s festivities, made it all the more surreal.

“Jose was sitting next to me on his phone. He’s pretty busy with that song. He was showing me the charts and things like that,” McMahon joked. “I didn’t know Pete very well, just know him from playing against him. (It was) cool to get to talk to him.”

McMahon was chosen by his peers to represent Colorado on the National League squad, his first All-Star Game selection.

In the process, he became the fourth Rockies’ third baseman to be selected to the Midsummer Classic, joining Vinny Castilla (1995, 1998), Jeff Cirillo (2000) and Nolan Arenado (2015-19).

It was something he had dreamed of achieving since being selected by Colorado out of Mater Dei High School in Santa Ana, CA in the second round of the 2013 MLB Draft.

“I didn’t really know what to expect. I was just going in with an open mind,” he said of the environment at baseball’s biggest exhibition game. “I was kind of like that kid on the first day of school. I just wanted to do everything and get the whole experience.”

The 29-year-old was able to do exactly that. He shared so many of the moments in the spotlight with his wife Natalie and five-month-old daughter Austin, as well as his parents and in-laws. 

The best advice about the two-day whirlwind came from teammate and four-time All-Star Kris Bryant. “Get everything you can out of the gift room.”

Upon arriving at Globe Life Field, he was stationed in the National League clubhouse alongside Milwaukee Brewers’ stars William Contreras and Christian Yelich. Not too far away were former teammates Jeff Hoffman of the Philadelphia Phillies and Jurickson Profar of the San Diego Padres. 

“I got to talk to Jackson Merrill a lot. He was cool. He’s so young, it’s crazy. He’s gonna be a problem for a long time,” McMahon said of the San Diego Padres’ 21-year-old outfielder. “I tried to talk to everybody. I’m pretty sure I got in a couple of words with just about everyone.”

The Home Run Derby was a bit long, but provided another reminder for how much more he hopes to accomplish. “I would love to,” he said of participating in the contest some day. “I’ve always been open and I’ve tried to get in a couple of times, thrown it my agents way and stuff. So, fingers crossed it happens.”

Despite having never reached the 30-homer plateau in a single season, McMahon is known by many as a prodigious home run hitter. His average home run distance of 415 ft is tied for the ninth-best in the Majors in 2024 and his average of 417 ft since 2021 ranks second in the Majors behind only Ronald Acuña Jr.’s 420 ft for those with at least 80 long balls.

The Red Carpet Show was exciting until the heat triggered his fatherly duties and focused on getting his young daughter out of the sweltering Texas temperatures. 

During the All-Star Game introductions, McMahon said he felt small standing along the third base line sandwiched between a pair of 6’5” stars: Elly De La Cruz of the Cincinnati Reds and Freddie Freeman of the Los Angeles Dodgers.

When it came to the actual in-game specifics of the Midsummer Classic, NL manager Torey Lovullo approached McMahon on Monday about playing second base with reigning batting champ Luis Arraez sitting out due to a thumb issue.

McMahon, who’s been a finalist for the NL Gold Glove Award at third base the last three years and is currently fourth in MLB with six defensive runs saved at the position, was happy to slide over to a role he’s done for 244 games in his eight-game career.

“I was pumped. I didn’t see every pitch — full disclosure — of the game. But I did make sure that I saw Mac’s at bat and Mac’s time on the field,” manager Bud Black said. “It just makes you feel good, right? Original Rockie, I saw his first big league game, first big hit. I’ve seen the work that he’s put in to become an All Star. And he wants more, which is great.”

In a 5-3 ballgame with De La Cruz and Bryan Reynolds on base with one out, McMahon had an opportunity to do what Elias Díaz did one year earlier by hitting the game-deciding, go-ahead home run and winning the All-Star Game MVP Award.

Against Kansas City Royals pitcher Seth Lugo, a pitcher he had just faced 10-days earlier and went 2-for-2 against with a walk, McMahon struck out on four pitches.

His next at-bat, unfortunately, never came. Representing the go-ahead run once again in the top of the ninth, Bryan Reynolds struck out against Emmanuel Clase to leave him stranded in the on-deck circle to end the game.

“I was really hoping that I got that opportunity to do something big. Those are the moments you want,” he said of his thoughts at that moment. “Obviously Clase is disgusting. I watched the pitches he threw to Bryan Reynolds and they were pretty gross. So it was gonna be tough for him to get on base.”

For the greatest exhibition game in the sport, McMahon thought the overall level of intensity was higher than anticipated for the 94th All-Star Game. 

“I thought it was more competitive. From the pure baseball side, guys are not sprinting the hardest,” he shared. “Don’t want to get hurt or anything, but everything else: the at-bats, the pitches, going after ground balls, going after fly balls. It was a little bit more competitive than I expected.”

Before he had a chance to truly settle in, Monday’s media availability spilled the details on his future and closed the door on further speculation about him being traded to another team in pinstripes.

Owed $44 million for the next three full seasons and in the midst of his best offensive first-half, McMahon was towards the top of many contending clubs’ wish list.

Schmidt sat down with McMahon — a player he’s known since first scouting him in high school — and explicitly told his third baseman that he would not be moved ahead of the July 30 trade deadline. 

“I’m excited to be staying here. This is where I’ve grown up. An 18-year-old kid and one of the first guys in this organization and I’ve grown up a lot,” McMahon said. “There’s a lot of guys I really enjoy playing with every year so I’m not sad about it. I’m happy about it.”

Fellow career-Rockies like Charlie Blackmon and Germán Márquez also appear safe from being dealt to another organization. As for any other player on the active roster not named Ezequiel Tovar and Brenton Doyle, the same courtesy will not be extended.

“He wants to lead this team to win a World Series,” Black said of McMahon. “He wants his team to be a perennial contender. So he’s doing everything he can and it’s good to see him get acknowledged as an All Star.”