Cincinnati Reds catcher Jose Trevino didn’t even need to hear the conclusion of the question to know what was coming, and how strongly he felt on the matter.

“A starter for the All-Star Game? Yeah,” Trevino said. “Yeah, should be. Pretty good.”

The subject of the question was Reds starting pitcher Andrew Abbott, who had to be close to proving his worthiness for the 2025 MLB All-Star Game in Atlanta prior to his Saturday, June 28 start. It’s possible Abbott had already made a good enough case.

Just in case he hadn’t proved his point to the various All-Star voting blocs, Abbott bolstered his case yet again against the San Diego Padres. He went five innings, allowed one run, seven hits, two walks and struck out four at Great American Ball Park on Saturday.

Abbott exited the game with a 3-1 lead that grew to 4-1 in the bottom of the fifth inning, but Abbott didn’t factor in the decision after the Padres took a 6-4 lead on Gavin Sheets’ three-run homer in the seventh inning off reliever Lyon Richardson.

Both Abbott’s record 7-1 and his ERA (1.79) remained unchanged by the time he exited in what would ultimately be the Padres’ 6-4 victory.

Abbott’s ERA was the eighth-lowest by a Reds pitcher through his first 14 starts in a season since earned runs became an official statistic in the National League in 1912, according to the club.

The Reds had a chance to win Saturday’s contest in the ninth inning with Spencer Steer at the plate and two runners on. After homering in 3 of 4 at-bats less than 24 hours earlier, Steer struck out to end the game.

That the Reds were within striking distance late was due in large part to Abbott working through what appeared to be one of his more labor-intensive game of 2025. He maneuvered through a bases-loaded jam in the fourth inning with one out, and the only run he surrendered was a fifth-inning solo home run by Luis Arraez.

While Abbott should have several more starts prior to the July 15 All-Star Game, Saturday might have been Abbott’s last chance to make a closing argument to his peers.

Player All-Star balloting includes voting for starting pitchers, but the competition to earn peer votes is tough.

Saturday was the shortest start of June for Abbott, but it still put Cincinnati in a strong position considering its bullpen was largely spared during Nick Martinez’s no-hit bid on Friday, June 27.

“He gave up one (run). I mean, that’s pretty impressive,” Reds manager Terry Francona said. “It’s a good lineup and, like I said, he threw a lot of pitches. It was hot. But he doesn’t give in. Holds his stuff. Just we gotta make sure we keep an eye on him. He’s been throwing a lot.”

In the end, Saturday went down as another bullet point on Abbott’s All-Star Game resume. His five-inning performance was his 12th game of at least five innings. Ahead of the game against San Diego, Abbott ranked fifth among National League pitchers in WAR (3.0).

Ahead of Abbott on the list of the NL pitching WAR leaders? Pittsburgh’s Paul Skenes (4.1), Philadelphia’s Zack Wheeler (3.7), Philadelphia’s Cristopher Sánchez (3.4), and Washington’s MacKenzie Gore (3.1).

Abbott didn’t break camp with the Reds following spring training. His season began with two starts at Triple-A Louisville, as well as a stint on the injured list. After Abbott finally made his 2025 debut with the Reds on April 12, he went about compiling an All-Star-caliber resume.

“It’s really, really cool. Every outing is something more,” Reds starter Brady Singer said. “He’s just adding more to his resume every time he pitches… because obviously, we all know it’s there, the All-Star Game. We know it’s approaching. We know he’s in the talks about it and it’d would be his first one, possibly, and for him to, one, not act any different. He’s still the same guy every day. He knows he’s gonna go out there and give the team a chance to win, and ‘that’s all I can control.’ Everything else will fall in line.

“He’s not worried about it at all. Obviously, I hope he goes. I think he should be there. I think he’s deserved it. I think he’s one of the best pitchers in the NL this year. The ERA speaks for itself… The resume that he has, I think he should be in the All-Star Game.”

Reds reliever Emilio Pagán, an All-Star candidate in his own right after converting 18 of 21 save opportunities in the first half of the season with a 3.18 ERA, also backed Abbott for earning the trip to Atlanta.

“He’s definitely pitched well enough to be called an All-Star,” Pagán said. “I think if you just look at the quality of pitching, there’s no doubt he’s been one of the best pitchers in the game. When you are voting for All-Stars, it impacts people’s earnings… We, as players, owe it to each other to vote for who should be there.”