2011 Major League Baseball All-Star Voting – National League

The races are heating up on the National League side of the All-Star voting. The NL does not support the same East Coast bias as the American League making the NL race wide open. With only four days left for fans to vote online, only three positions of the possible six positions to vote for are a lock. National League voters do not have to vote for a Designated Hitter and all outfielders, regardless of natural position, are lumped together.

The positions that appear to be a lock to start the 2011 MLB All-Star Game are Atlanta Braves’ catcher Brian McCann (3,062,884), Philadelphia Phillies’ third baseman Placido Polanco (3,261,718), and the NL’s top vote getter Milwaukee Brewers’ outfielder Ryan Braun (3,932,100). St. Louis Cardinals’ first baseman Albert Pujols recent injury has cost him votes amongst fans. Pujols is only 400,000 votes ahead of Milwaukee Brewers’ first baseman Prince Fielder with Cincinnati Reds’ Joey Votto close behind.

The Sporting News second best player in baseball (still a puzzling pick), Colorado Rockies’ shortstop Troy Tulowitzki, who made his first and only other All-Star appearance in 2010 is batting .276 with 14 HR, and 50 RBIs is in danger of losing his chance to start the 2011 All-Star game to Jose Reyes of the New York Mets. Since Mets owner Fred Wilpon publicly ripped Reyes, he has been on a tear. Reyes was hitting .309 on May 1^st with 2 triples and 8 stolen bases. Since then Reyes has raised his batting average to .341 with 14 triples and 28 total stolen bases.

Atlanta Braves’ third baseman Chipper Jones is not drawing many sentimental votes in his last possible season in the “bigs”. Jones, a future Hall of Fame inductee, is currently second in voting for third baseman with 2,040,594.

Outfielder Matt Kemp has been a steady force for the lowly Los Angeles Dodgers this season. He is currently only 200,000 votes shy of Cardinals’ outfielder Matt Holiday for the third and final NL outfield position. Needing votes, the Dodgers’ front office has been actively enticing fans to vote for Kemp. Offers include an opportunity to meet Matt Kemp, discounted tickets, and free tickets for an upcoming 2011 game. All a fan needs to do is vote 20 times for Kemp through the Dodgers’ website.

Vote Totals for National League Players

CATCHER
Brian McCann, Braves: 3,062,884
Yadier Molina, Cardinals: 2,271,887
Buster Posey, Giants: 1,849,984
Jonathan Lucroy, Brewers: 1,451,280

FIRST BASE
Albert Pujols, Cardinals: 3,358,432
Prince Fielder, Brewers: 2,903,584
Joey Votto, Reds: 2,832,857
Ryan Howard, Phillies: 1,881,711

SECOND BASE
Rickie Weeks, Brewers: 2,869,583
Brandon Phillips, Reds: 2,791,186
Chase Utley, Phillies: 2,406,965
Dan Uggla, Braves: 1,223,812
Freddy Sanchez, Giants: 1,184,145

THIRD BASE
Placido Polanco, Phillies: 3,261,718
Chipper Jones, Braves: 2,040,594
Pablo Sandoval, Giants: 1,584,671
David Wright, Mets: 1,497,778
Scott Rolen, Reds: 1,417,248

SHORTSTOP
Troy Tulowitzki, Rockies: 2,955,609
Jose Reyes, Mets: 2,710,777
Jimmy Rollins, Phillies: 1,724,166
Alex Gonzalez, Braves: 1,142,470
Yuniesky Betancourt, Brewers: 1,131,078

OUTFIELD
Ryan Braun, Brewers: 3,932,100
Lance Berkman, Cardinals: 3,208,183
Matt Holliday, Cardinals: 2,935,965
Matt Kemp, Dodgers: 2,743,927
Andre Ethier, Dodgers: 2,264,640
Jay Bruce, Reds: 2,119,267
Shane Victorino, Phillies: 1,742,128
Carlos Beltran, Mets: 1,639,362

You can cast your vote for your favorite MLB player until Thursday 8:59 p.m. P.T. at www.mlb.com.

The MLB All-Star Game is July 12^th at Chase Field in Phoenix, Arizona. 

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