All-Star selections for Santander and Westburg are family affairs

ARLINGTON, Texas – The smile came before the response.

Anthony Santander gave it away, failing to offer a spoiler alert, during today’s on-field media session at the All-Star Game.

Where are his father, Roger, and mother, Yoleida? Are they back in Venezuela or maybe at his Miami home?

Santander lit up, the way he’d react to a fastball down the middle of the plate. But he didn’t swing. He spoke.

“They’re here in Texas,” he said. “I can’t be here without them, you know?”

It really makes sense if you understand the relationship.

His parents attend as many games at Camden Yards as they can and are easy to find in their seats in the lower bowl of the ballpark and later sitting on a bench where families gather outside the clubhouse. Roger is the one watching replays of his son’s at-bats on his phone when the social media team posts them.

They haven’t been around much lately. Their absences also are noticeable.

“They went back, like, four weeks ago,” Santander said. “They have to be careful with their visa, so as soon as I got the (All-Star) call, I called them and said, ‘Hey, you have to be here in Texas.’ They just got here last night.”

Santander was a finalist among American League outfielders and made the team as a late injury replacement for the Astros’ Kyle Tucker. The former Rule 5 pick out of Class A ball was an All-Star.

“They were so happy,” Santander said. “They know the stuff I’ve been through and they’re just happy. They’re really going to enjoy this moment.”

A final question made Santander smile again. About whether the All-Star Game is more special than any other reason because he can share it with them.

“Uh, my top three, yeah. For sure,” he said.

“The World Baseball Classic was something special for them, too, when you represent your country. And this year, we’re All-Stars. It’s going to be something similar.”

Jordan Westburg attracted Texas media this afternoon because he grew up in New Braunfels, about 250 miles from Arlington. He recounted playing Wiffle Ball with childhood friend Bryce Miller, a starter now with the Mariners.

Paul Westburg fed his son’s passion for baseball. He’d toss tennis balls toward their inflatable pool and Jordan, who couldn’t see over the top of it, would imitate Ken Griffey Jr. leaping to rob home runs.

“You’re diving into water, so if you go over it doesn’t hurt. And balls float, so you just snag them,” Westburg said.   

“That’s the oldest memory I can think of, where I was just like, this is so much fun. This part of the game, cool plays are awesome. It doesn’t really matter about the results. We’re just trying to emulate the guys we watch on TV.”

Paul didn’t get the first phone call after Westburg found out that he’d made the All-Star team. Wife Anna Claire was at the front of the line.

“And then my dad,” Westburg said.

“He didn’t pick up because he as at work on a job. I don’t think he had (cell) service. So then I called my mom, got hold of her, and my dad called back about 30 minutes later.”

At the exact moment that Westburg was heading into a team meeting. He had about 10 seconds to share the news.

“Hey, I made the All-Star team,” Westburg said. “Get to Dallas. We’ll figure this out.”

Then he hung up.

“I kind of left him on nothing, a cliffhanger, I guess,” he said. “The next morning we connected.”

His dad’s reaction was about what you’d expect.

“Some tears shed, I think, maybe behind the phone call,” Westburg said.

“Just a cool moment that I get to share with my family. It means just as much to them as it does to me because they’re the ones who sacrificed so much through my youth and amateur baseball career. My parents are the ones who paid for travel ball, who paid for gas traveling to tournaments, sacrificed, worked to get me to Little League games. It just means a lot.”

Though he isn’t a Home Run Derby participant, Westburg said he’s most excited about the annual event and can’t wait to have a good seat for it tonight while teammate Gunnar Henderson tries to become the youngest winner. Westburg always watched it as a kid.