"Chris Young was sleeping when his phone rang around 9 a.m. Sunday. Upon answering, he realized it was his manager calling, so the Diamondbacks center fielder tried his best to sound awake.

It didn't work. Kirk Gibson can't be fooled.

"Don't worry about it," Gibson told Young, according to Young. "You're an All-Star."

This year's All-Star game will include greats such as Derek Jeter, Albert Pujols, Alex Rodriguez and Ichiro Suzuki. It also will include a 26-year-old who struggled so much last season, his team demoted him to the minor leagues.

At the break last season, Young looked lost at the plate. He was hitting .196 with six home runs and 25 RBIs. Entering Sunday's game against the Dodgers, he was hitting .264 with 15 home runs and 57 RBIs. In addition, he has stolen 14 bases, three more than he had all of last season.

"It's a funny game," said right-fielder Justin Upton, a close friend of Young's. "Everybody in Arizona wanted to write him off last year. But being beside him every day and knowing how hard he works, this makes me feel good, too. Because I know what it's like to be in that situation. (Early) last year everybody wanted to send me to Triple-A, and then I ended up making the All-Star team. I love when things that like that happen.""