How Ernie Clement became an All-Star Game starter for the Blue Jays

45 minutes ago 1

Ernie Clement was the American League's first All-Star Game starter to be determined in 2026.

MLB set a deadline by which the leading vote-getter in each league would earn an automatic starting spot. In the NL, that was Shohei Ohtani. And in the AL, it was the Toronto Blue Jays' second baseman Clement.

Just that in and of itself is remarkable. Clearly, the Blue Jays fans were out in full force, and Clement was having a good enough season to get votes from elsewhere, too.

But the reality is that Clement's story is so much more than that of a guy who got a bunch of votes.

His journey to this point is of a player who wouldn't give up and, by embracing who he was, reached this moment.

MORE: How Jordan Walker overcame the bust label

How Ernie Clement became an All Star

Clement's baseball story, for so much of his life, was about success.

He showed ridiculous hand-eye coordination from the time he was a toddler. He starred in baseball and hockey at Brighton High School in upstate New York. He won a national championship as a freshman at Virginia.

Clement was a fourth-round draft pick by the Cleveland Indians in 2017, and it was only by experiencing failure that Clement could reach this moment.

When he eventually reached the majors with Cleveland in 2021, he hit .231 in 121 at bats. The next year, he batted .200 in 145 more at bats.

That led to him being shipped out of town, and he went just 1-for-18 in a short stint with the Oakland A's.

The Toronto Blue Jays landed Clement next, and he broke out in a small sample size call-up late in the 2023 season, hitting .380.

In 2024, in 139 games, he batted .263 with 21 doubles, 12 homers and 12 steals.

Then in 2025, he hit .277 with a .711 OPS and a postseason record for hits in a single playoff run.

Clement has kept right on trending upward, entering this All-Star Break hitting .296 with a .751 OPS while leading the American League with 23 doubles.

He also is one of those guys who so clearly is having a blast every time he takes the field.

And really, that's all Clement needed to be. He needed to embrace the talent and work ethic that got him this far, and the energy and vibes that make him who he is.

Turns out, Ernie Clement is an All-Star talent, just as who he is.