The Tribune

By RENALDO DORSETT

Tribune Sports Reporter

rdorsett@tribunemedia.net

JASRADO “Jazz” Chisholm Jr was unable to play in Major League Baseball’s midseason classic but still took advantage of the opportunity to highlight The Bahamas on the sports’ grandest stage.

Chisholm Jr appeared as a guest on Fox Sports’ coverage of the All-Star Game anchored by Kevin Burkhardt, alongside baseball icons David Ortiz, Alex Rodriguez, and Frank Thomas in Los Angeles, California.

The Marlins’ All-Star second baseman discussed how his game is impacted by the similarities in his respective fanbases in Miami and The Bahamas. “I just go out there to have my kind of fun. I’m from The Bahamas which is only a 30-minute flight from Miami. I feel like basically Miami and The Bahamas have the same kind of people, we just like to enjoy life, just have fun, be ourselves, and be who we want to be so I just brought that to baseball. I like to show the people the culture in Miami and baseball is not lost.”

Due to a back strain, Chisholm has been on the injured list since June 29 and was ruled out of Tuesday’s All-Star Game. Despite his best efforts to take the field at Dodger Stadium, he did not receive medical clearance to play.

“Honestly, I can still swing. I can’t run at full speed right now but I can swing,” he said. “So I was really asking them, just let me get in there and jog to first base. I can catch a ground ball I can move on defence a little bit so let me just go and play a little defence, let me get an at-bat at least, let me show off a little something, I’m here for it.”

Chisholm was replaced on the National League roster by the San Diego Padres’ Jake Cronenworth and New York Mets’ second baseman Jeff McNeil was moved into the starting lineup.

He was one of several expected starters that missed the All-Star game due to injury.

Los Angeles Angels outfielder Mike Trout, Houston Astros’ second baseman Jose Altuve, San Francisco Giants pitcher Carlos Rodon, and St Louis Cardinals’ third baseman Nolan Arenado were all ruled out.

The American League came away with a 3-2 win over the National League.

Chisholm’s last appearance on the field in a Marlins uniform was June 28. He originally suffered the back injury early in the season on a slide and eventually re-aggravated the injury in late June, which forced him out of the lineup. He is the first-ever Bahamian-born All-Star of the nine countrymen to ever play in the MLB.

From the Marlins’ perspective, he joins Hanley Ramírez, Dee Strange-Gordon, Marcell Ozuna, Gary Sheffield, and Giancarlo Stanton as the only Marlins to be fan-elected starters.

“I enjoy the hype of everybody else watching me play. I’m looking at people’s faces every time I do something, but I love reactions,” he said of becoming a fan favourite. “Every great play in baseball gets me excited.”

Bahamian culture took centre stage as the Marlins hosted its second “Bahamian Heritage Night” June 27 at loanDepot Park in Miami, Florida and despite a 5-3 loss to the New York Mets, it was a night of celebration for Chisholm and the Bahamian contingent.

A crowd of 18,722 filled the stadium, the third largest crowd of any Marlins home game this season, as opposed to the 7,500 that attended the first Bahamian Heritage night in 2021.

Chisholm wore Bahamian flag themed cleats, batting gloves, and a bandanna to commemorate the occasion. Through 60 games he has a .254 average, 14 home runs, 54 hits, 45 RBI, 12 stolen bases and scored 39 runs.