Bryan Reynolds always dreamed of playing in the All-Star Game but made contingency plans during the break for the Midsummer Classic, just in case.

The Pittsburgh Pirates center fielder was happy to change his itinerary Sunday, when he was selected to the All-Star Game as a National League reserve through MLB player voting. Reynolds didn’t make the top 20 in fan voting.

“I hoped it would happen. One of my goals this year, so it’s really exciting,” Reynolds said. “I had flights booked home, but you can always cancel those. So those are canceled now. I was just going to sit on my couch. I’m pretty sure I’ll take this 10 times out of 10 over that one. So, yeah, flight’s canceled.”

Bryan Reynolds has been named to the 2021 All-Star Game! pic.twitter.com/Ui1mezP1Cm

— Pittsburgh Pirates (@Pirates) July 4, 2021

It marks the first All-Star appearance for Reynolds, 26, who is batting .306/.392/.533 with 21 doubles, 15 home runs and 46 RBIs through 80 games. He was boosted by a big June, when he hit .376/.442/.645 with four doubles, seven homers and 22 RBIs in 25 games.

“I think we’ve talked about all along that Reynolds can hit,” Pirates manager Derek Shelton said. “He can really hit. He’s hit at every level. Last year was the first time, I think, that he got into a little bit of a hole and couldn’t get out of it. This is the guy that we expected. This guy’s one of the elite hitters in the league. To be able to do it from both sides of the plate, it’s extremely impressive.”

Reynolds joins Pirates second baseman Adam Frazier, who earned a starting role by receiving 47% of the fan vote, on the NL All-Star roster. It will mark the first time the Pirates have had two position players in the All-Star Game since 2014, when they were represented by center fielder Andrew McCutchen and super utility player Josh Harrison.

“He’s one of my good buddies on the team,” Reynolds said, “so it’s going to be fun to experience that with him.”

The Pirates had two All-Stars in 2019, when first baseman Josh Bell started for the NL as the designated hitter and was joined by closer Felipe Vazquez. With Bell and Vazquez no longer on the roster, the Pirates are thrilled to have two new All-Stars.

“When we talk about Adam Frazier and Bryan Reynolds, we’re talking about two players who are incredibly consistent in how they prepare to play,” Pirates general manager Ben Cherington said. “Physically and mentally, they find ways to get better every day. … We need lots and lots of players like that.”

Reynolds has made a major turnaround from last year, when he batted .189 with seven homers and 19 RBIs in 55 games in the shortened season, and returned to the form of his rookie season. Reynolds said his confidence never wavered, even when his timing was off.

“It’s cool,” Reynolds said. “I didn’t need any type of validation to know the type of player that I can be, but, obviously, it’s a great honor and I’m ecstatic to be able to go.”

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