MLB All-Star Game 2018 voting: Where are Yankees' Aaron Judge, Gary Sanchez, Giancarlo Stanton?

by Felix Pantaleón

The 2018 MLB All-Star Game will be played on Tuesday, July 17, 2018 (7/17/18) at Nationals Park in Washington, DC. Yankees right fielder Aaron Judge, catcher Gary Sanchez and outfielder Giancarlo Stanton are vying for spots in the American League’s starting lineup.

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The first round of voting for the 2018 MLB All-Star Game has been tabulated. The early ballots are good news for Yankees right fielder Aaron Judge and catcher Gary Sanchez, but not so much for outfielder Giancarlo Stanton.

Here is MLB’s press release with the latest voting numbers for the American League. The 2018 MLB All-Star Game will take place on July 17 at Nationals Park in Washington, DC.

Boston Red Sox outfielder Mookie Betts leads all Major League players in fan balloting for the 2018 MLB All-Star Game presented by Mastercard. The first American League balloting update was announced earlier today on MLB Network. The 2018 Camping World MLB All-Star Ballot, which is available exclusively online and via mobile devices at MLB.com, all 30 Club sites and the MLB At Bat and MLB Ballpark mobile apps, will be accessible until the voting period ends on Thursday, July 5th at 11:59 p.m. (ET).

Betts, an All-Star in each of the last two seasons, has received 748,872 votes to pace the Majors ahead of Houston Astros second baseman and reigning AL Most Valuable Player Jose Altuve (701,236) and 2016 AL MVP Mike Trout of the Los Angeles Angels (639,822). The 25-year-old Betts, who is currently on the disabled list with an abdominal strain, leads the Majors with a .359 batting average to go along with 17 home runs, 37 RBI, 19 doubles, 13 stolen bases and 52 runs scored. Betts, who was a fan-elected starter in 2016, would become the first Red Sox outfielder since Manny Ramirez to earn multiple fan elections.

Altuve, who has started each of the last three Midsummer Classics, is bidding for his sixth All-Star selection overall. The 28-year-old native of Venezuela would join Hall of Famer Rod Carew (six straight, 1970-75), Hall of Famer Roberto Alomar (four straight, 1991-94; five straight, 1996-2000) and Robinson Cano (five straight, 2010-14) as the only AL second basemen to win four consecutive fan elections. Altuve, who is followed at second base by rookie Gleyber Torres of the New York Yankees (279,810), is batting .342 on the season with five home runs, 34 RBI, 16 doubles and a Major League-best 93 hits.

Trout, an All-Star in each of the last six seasons, is in line for his sixth consecutive fan election. The last AL outfielder to earn six straight fan elections was the aforementioned Ramirez, who won eight consecutive fan elections from 1999-2006. The 26-year-old New Jersey native, who leads the Majors with 54 walks and 54 runs scored, is hitting .304 with 21 home runs, 41 RBI, 15 doubles and 13 stolen bases. Joining Betts and Trout among the AL outfield leaders is 2017 AL Rookie of the Year and MVP runner-up Aaron Judge of the Yankees (541,983). The 26-year-old Judge, who has 18 home runs and 45 RBI on the season, is followed by Michael Brantley of the Cleveland Indians (238,659).

The remaining AL leaders include: first baseman Jose Abreu of the Chicago White Sox (267,812), who is bidding to become the first White Sox player to win a fan election since Hall of Famer Frank Thomas in 1996; third baseman Jose Ramirez of the Indians (443,234); shortstop Manny Machado of the Baltimore Orioles (321,887); catcher Gary Sanchez of the Yankees (336,280); and designated hitterJ.D. Martinez of the Red Sox (513,415). Abreu is followed closely at first base by Boston’s Mitch Moreland (241,889), while Ramirez is followed by Yankees rookie third baseman Migual Andujar (219,691). Indians shortstop Francisco Lindor (211,756) trails Machado at shortstop and Tampa Bay Rays backstop Wilson Ramos (320,969) is chasing Sanchez in the AL’s tightest race. The 2017 NL MVP Giancarlo Stanton, now of the Yankees, ranks second at designated hitter behind Martinez with 231,885 votes.