"Wright Man At 3B For All-Star Game?" Dept.

06/29/10 11:00 AM ET

Wright gains; most NL positions up for grabs

Much still to be decided in final days of All-Star balloting

By Alden Gonzalez / MLB.com

Can veteran Placido Polanco hang on to start in the All-Star Game at third base, or will a late push drive David Wright into his fifth consecutive Midsummer Classic appearance?

Is it going to be Yadier Molina starting at catcher for the second year running, or can Brian McCann or Ivan Rodriguez climb the ladder?

Will it be Hanley Ramirez starting his third consecutive All-Star Game, or will Jimmy Rollins' return from the disabled list come right in time to take over the top spot?

And what about the battle for fourth place in the outfield that has become so relevant all of a sudden?

All of that is still up in the air.

But on Sunday, we'll have all the answers.

Fan balloting for the 2010 All-Star Game is reaching its crescendo, with online voting ending Thursday at 11:59 p.m. ET. Then, on Sunday, the starting position players for the July 13 All-Star Game at Angel Stadium in Anaheim will be revealed.

Based on Tuesday's results for the National League, there could be some last-minute changes.

For the third week running, the projected starters didn't change for the NL side. But while NL leading vote-getting Albert Pujols sports a comfortable lead, and so does Phillies second baseman Chase Utley, the battles at shortstop, third base, catcher and in the outfield remain interesting.

The closest race is at the hot corner.

Polanco, who hasn't been to an All-Star Game since 2007 and is a full-time third baseman for the first time since 2002, has led the position since voting began. But his margin has been shrinking.

Last week, Polanco's lead was about 130,000 votes. Now, with 1,418,096 votes, he leads Wright by 22,635. The Mets slugger has been named on 1,395,461 ballots.

Polanco ranks second in the National League with a .318 batting average, through Monday's action, while Wright adds the power numbers with 14 homers and a league-leading 61 RBIs to go along with a .303 average.

The Braves' Chipper Jones (1,084,675 votes) and the Reds' Scott Rolen (1,024,079) are also within striking distance.

In the outfield, the Brewers' Ryan Braun (2,262,663 votes), the Braves' Jason Heyward (2,205,534) and the Dodgers' Andre Ethier (2,113,048) continue to lead, in that order, while the Phillies' Jayson Werth is in fourth place with 1,623,802 votes.

Unfortunately for Heyward, he was placed on the 15-day disabled list on Monday with a left thumb injury.

An MRI showed no structural damage in the thumb, and the power-hitting rookie would be eligible to be activated prior to the All-Star Game, but he likely won't play so he could get right for the second half.

If he holds his current position, Heyward will be the second-youngest rookie to be elected to start an All-Star Game. An MRI showed no structural damage in the thumb, and the power-hitting rookie would be eligible to be activated during the All-Star break. While he might not be cleared to play, there's a chance he would still travel to Anaheim to participate in the festivities.

His place in the starting lineup could be influenced by who finishes fourth, a race between Werth, the Cardinals' Matt Holliday (1,540,986) and the Phillies' Shane Victorino (1,517,594).

At shortstop, Ramirez's lead went from roughly 300,000 to 458,000 in a one-week span, as his 1,900,092 votes leads Rollins' 1,442,243. Ramirez hasn't posted his usual gaudy numbers, but they're solid: a .295 batting average, 11 homers and 46 RBIs. Rollins, meanwhile, recently came off the DL and has been limited to 18 games this year because of a troublesome right calf.

Behind the plate, Molina's lead over McCann is fewer than 200,000.

Molina, batting .240, leads with 1,682,998 votes. But McCann, hitting .264 with nine homers, is close with 1,497,097. And Pudge, who would be leading all NL catchers with a .303 batting average if he had enough at-bats to qualify, is within shouting distance with 1,331,145 votes.

Nobody, however, is within shouting, screaming or hollering distance of Pujols and Utley.

Pujols is seeking his ninth trip to the All-Star Game and is primed to get it with a league-leading 3,249,146 votes. The Cardinals slugger is sporting a .305 batting average with 16 homers and 52 RBIs to easily put him ahead of the second-place Ryan Howard (1,371,913 votes) and give him the largest lead in the NL. At second base, Utley -- a four-time All-Star who is batting .277 with 11 homers -- has 2,887,350 votes, which easily puts him ahead of the man who leads the league in batting average, Martin Prado of the Braves.

But, as has been the case all along, everything besides the right side of the infield is close.

Fans can cast their votes for starters up to 25 times at MLB.com and all 30 club sites using the 2010 All-Star Game MLB.com Ballot sponsored by Sprint. Sprint subscribers can now vote on the go with select Sprint devices. They can learn more about how to vote on their smart phones at MLB.com/Sprint.

Starting rosters will be announced during the 2010 All-Star Game Selection Show on TBS on Sunday. Baseball fans around the world will then be able to select the final player on each team via the 2010 All-Star Game Final Vote sponsored by Sprint.

And the voting doesn't end there. Fans will have the opportunity to participate in the official voting for the Ted Williams Most Valuable Player Award presented by Chevrolet at the Midsummer Classic via the 2010 All-Star Game MVP Vote sponsored by Sprint.

The All-Star Game will be televised nationally by FOX and around the world by Major League Baseball International. ESPN Radio will provide exclusive national radio play-by-play, while MLB.com will offer extensive online coverage.

http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20100629&content_id=11715326&vkey=news_mlb&fext=.jsp&c_id=mlb

Im so turned off by this years begging by teams to put their guys in. I dont ever remember it being this bad.

this whole thing is so stupid.

I'd honestly prefer wright not to make it - take the 3 days off and get rested for a big second half.

the less of our guys that play in this outdated meaningless exhibition, the better

I can't imagine Charlie not picking David. And I'd expect Chipper to get on since this is his last year. I can't believe McCann doesn't have the lead at catcher.

I think the tough decisions will be with pitching.

I can't imagine Charlie not picking David. And I'd expect Chipper to get on since this is his last year. I can't believe McCann doesn't have the lead at catcher.

I think the tough decisions will be with pitching.

I think it'd be a big joke to have Chipper on the All-Star team. He's been horrid this year. I know they did it the last year of Tony Gwyn and Ripken's career...can't remember if they were elected or not though.

I'd have no problem with Chipper being on the team, especially considering what they did to Zito to put Clemens on the team the year he was supposedly retiring (except he didn't really).

I think it'd be a big joke to have Chipper on the All-Star team. He's been horrid this year. I know they did it the last year of Tony Gwyn and Ripken's career...can't remember if they were elected or not though.

Ripken was a starter, and Torre had A-Rod switch positions with him for the first play so he could start as the SS.

I think it'd be a big joke to have Chipper on the All-Star team. He's been horrid this year. I know they did it the last year of Tony Gwyn and Ripken's career...can't remember if they were elected or not though.

see, here's the thing... it's an "all star" team. and there's no denying that chipper is a star.

they've polluted the waters with the whole let's make the game matter bs.

i get that a lot of people hope to see the best players on the field, but that's never really been how this has worked, and honestly, it's never been the idea. it's always been about getting the most popular guys out there that the fans want to see the most. the "stars." not the stand out players.

OK, but the only reason I am into the All Star game is because it means home field advantage for the NL if we win. So if the ultimate goal is to WIN the game, then don't waste a roster spot on Chipper's corpse.

Or make him an honorary captain who can play or something, that's fine. Just don't get in the way of guys that can make a difference in the game..

If it was really about winning, the ASG managers wouldn't let all the players play. And wouldn't talk to other managers about limitations on players.

It's still about fans voting their favorites on the team, and it seems Chipper is in the top 3 no matter what, so he deserves to go.

BTW, I just read that Polanco is going on the DL, (Utley too). The Gods of baseball getting back at their 3 extra home games?

So that moves David and Chipper up a notch.

Chipper should start. No one can tell me otherwise. The guy is a future Hall Of Famer. We all know this is his last year. Let the man start and get his due.

Chipper should start. No one can tell me otherwise. The guy is a future Hall Of Famer. We all know this is his last year. Let the man start and get his due.


Totally agree. Have no problem with this.

Chipper should start. No one can tell me otherwise. The guy is a future Hall Of Famer. We all know this is his last year. Let the man start and get his due.

The tricky part is we don't KNOW it's his last year. He's kind of hinted at it being the last, but what if he's back next year and batting .190 in June? Do we make this thing a bigger farce and invite him to the game?

I think "stars" should get to go i.e Chipper, in addition, the players with the best stats should also get to go.

expand the roster by 15 to include the "star's of the game in their twilight.

I've thought this for years

Back in the day, players like Mays and Aaron were 'locks' in their latter years, even (or especially) with the fans voting. Before that, players like Musial made it every year, no matter what, in their twilight years.

I get it that it's different now with the 'home field' for the World Series being decided by the outcome of the game, but is there really that much of an 'advantage'?

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