High five for five All-Stars

The Yankees have five players selected to tonight's All-Star game. While the team has been on a putrid slide over the past month, the performance of these five players should not be overlooked despite the current mood around the ballclub.

The Yankees sit at 45-41, which stinks considering they were 15 games over .500 at one point. At the beginning of the season, if you had told me they'd go into the break with this record, I'd have taken it. While they are still "ahead of schedule" in what is supposed to be a year of growth, I do believe you have to re-calibrate expectations as the season goes on. They were in first place playing well for much of the first half, so it's hard to not to feel disappointed over the past few weeks.

Regardless, it's been a fun season, and I hope they get hot again after the break.

The center of attention has obviously been Aaron Judge. I would have been happy if he hit 30 HRs for the entire year, yet here he sits at the break with 30. It's impressive to see his growth from last season, and I hope he can stay hot all season long. He's been fun to root for, and while others try to bring him down because of his high strikeout totals or the fact that he's doing this at age 25 (you know, as opposed to 23) or in New York, it's nice to watch a player mature and become a force in real-time.

Gary Sanchez missed a month of the season early on with a biceps injury. With the emergence of Judge, he went from last season's hyped hero to quietly producing. Still just 24, he's got a very bright future at a critical position on the diamond.

Dellin Betances hasn't been great lately, but prior to his slump, he did what Dellin does. He's an All-Star for the fourth straight time, and is still among the best relievers in baseball.

I'm happy for Starlin Castro getting recognized as an All-Star. He was in the middle of a big year before recently going down with an injury. The guy has always been a good hitter, but hasn't had the best approach at the plate and is a bit of a free swinger. On the year, he's hitting .313 with 12 homers, and has been playing a good second base. It's easy to forget that somehow he's still just 27.

Lastly, the guy I'm most happy for is Luis Severino. He had a miserable year last year, but to his credit he has bounced back and looks like a top-of-the-rotation starter for years to come. He's racked up 124 Ks in 106 innings, and has shown why the Yankees were so excited about him when he debuted at age 21 in 2015. Last year was a growing pain, but instead of it defining him, he's come back stronger and is a pitcher the Yankees can build a rotation around.

Hopefully one or more Yankees can make a mark in the game tonight. Regardless, I'm very happy for these guys, as each is quite deserving of the honor of being an All-Star.