St. Louis Cardinals relief pitcher Pat Neshek stretches between batters in the eighth inning in a game against the Miami Marlins at Busch Stadium in St. Louis on July 5, 2014.   UPI/Bill Greenblatt

St. Louis Cardinals relief pitcher Pat Neshek stretches between batters in the eighth inning in a game against the Miami Marlins at Busch Stadium in St. Louis on July 5, 2014. UPI/Bill Greenblatt

Cardinals manager Mike Matheny, who will coach the National League All-Stars, notified four of his players on Sunday that they would be representing their league.  Yadier Molina is the only starter and take up his position behind the plate.  Matheny also notified Adam Wainwright that he was selected through the player/manager vote, and that Matt Carpenter would be going to the All-Star Game for a second straight year. Matheny also gave the nod to Pat Neshek, a non-roster invitee at the beginning of spring training, who turned into setup man, is a first-time All-Star at the age of 33.

Molina’s offensive numbers are down, but he remains arguably the game’s best defensive catcher and a fan favorite as the six-time Gold Glove Award winner has thrown out 50 percent of the runners trying to steal against him.

Wainwright, the NL’s first pitcher to win 11 games, was also the league’s ERA leader (1.89) as of Sunday’s All-Star Game roster announcement. He has pitched three complete games, including two shutouts, and has allowed one run or fewer in 11 of his 17 starts.

Carpenter leads the Cardinals with an on-base percentage of .378, ranks second among NL leadoff hitters with 32 RBIs and is in the league’s Top 10 in runs scored and walks.

This All-Star game will be a homecoming for Neshek.  He is a native of Minnesota, where he also played the first four seasons of his career. According to the Cardinals’ website, his brother is a member of the Twins’ grounds crew team.

It will be Matheny’s decision on who is starting pitcher for the All-Star game.  He has the option to select his own pitcher in Wainwright.  Matheny will make his decision a day before the game, which is schedule for July 15th.