First All-Star Ballot update: Close races and favorites emerging

Read our story on the balloting format, which includes two phases of fan voting to determine the All-Star starters.

If that’s still the case when Phase 1 of the voting concludes, Judge and Harper will automatically receive starting spots in their league’s lineup for the 2024 MLB All-Star Game presented by Mastercard at Globe Life Field in Arlington on July 16.

Of course, a lot can change between now and the end of Phase 1 on June 27 at noon ET. During this period, you can vote as many as five times per every 24-hour period exclusively at MLB.com, on all 30 MLB club sites and on the MLB app.

Judge, the overall leading vote-getter with 1,366,315, is fewer than 115,000 votes ahead of his Yankees teammate, Juan Soto, for the top spot. Meanwhile, Harper (1,110,562 votes) is one of four NL players with more than 1 million votes, along with Phillies teammate Alec Bohm, Dodgers shortstop Mookie Betts and Dodgers designated hitter Shohei Ohtani.

The leading vote-getter in each league during Phase 1 will receive an automatic spot in their team’s starting lineup. Beyond those two players, the top two vote-getters at every position, and the top six outfielders, will advance to Phase 2 of the voting, which begins June 30. If an outfielder is a league’s leading vote-getter, only the next four outfield finalists will move on to Phase 2 to determine who starts at the two remaining spots.

As Phase 1 of the voting rolls on, a number of close positional races have taken shape, including AL first base (Vladimir Guerrero Jr. leading Ryan Mountcastle), AL second base (Jose Altuve leading Marcus Semien), a three-way battle for AL designated hitter (Yordan Alvarez leading Giancarlo Stanton and David Fry) and NL second base (Luis Arraez leading Ketel Marte).

Here’s a look at the current All-Star vote totals, position by position, for the AL and NL.

1. Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Blue Jays: 746,031
2. Ryan Mountcastle, Orioles: 693,594
3. Josh Naylor, Guardians: 404,389
4. Anthony Rizzo, Yankees: 269,056
5. Nathaniel Lowe, Rangers: 162,404

Seeking his fourth All-Star selection and third starting nod for the AL, Guerrero is locked in a tight race — the closest of any position on the AL side of the ballot — with Mountcastle, who would be a first-time All-Star in his fifth MLB season. Naylor, one of the top hitters on the AL Central-leading Guardians, is also looking to nail down his first All-Star selection.

1. Jose Altuve, Astros: 620,724
2. Marcus Semien, Rangers: 539,223
3. Michael Massey, Royals: 341,510
4. Jorge Mateo, Orioles: 276,440
5. Andrés Giménez, Guardians: 265,999

Altuve already holds the Astros record for All-Star selections with eight (including five fan-vote wins). If he earns his ninth, he’d tie Red Schoendienst and Bobby Doerr for the second most among second basemen in AL/NL history and pull within one of Ryne Sandberg’s positional record. In second place is Semien, who is angling for his second straight starting nod at second base for the AL.

1. José Ramírez, Guardians: 742,910
2. Jordan Westburg, Orioles: 366,670
3. Rafael Devers, Red Sox: 342,046
4. Oswaldo Cabrera, Yankees: 218,650
5. Isiah Kiner-Falefa, Blue Jays: 199,424

Ramírez has made five All-Star teams, but he hasn’t started since 2018. That could change this year, with the Guardians third baseman opening up a huge lead over the rest of the AL field at the hot corner. Westburg has a slight lead over Devers, the starting third baseman for the AL in 2021 and ’22, to determine who else will advance to Phase 2.

1. Gunnar Henderson, Orioles: 740,436
2. Bobby Witt Jr., Royals: 541,261
3. Anthony Volpe, Yankees: 339,150
4. Corey Seager, Rangers: 295,300
5. Bo Bichette, Blue Jays: 231,694

Already among the best players in the game, the 22-year-old Henderson and the 24-year-old Witt could be battling over the starting shortstop spot in the AL for years to come. Both players are eyeing their first All-Star selection. The same goes for Volpe, another budding young star at 23 years old.

1. Aaron Judge, Yankees: 1,366,315
2. Juan Soto, Yankees: 1,252,020
3. Kyle Tucker, Astros: 593,358
4. Steven Kwan, Guardians: 464,274
5. Anthony Santander, Orioles: 321,333
6. Alex Verdugo, Yankees: 293,984
7. Colton Cowser, Orioles: 278,573
8. Adolis García, Rangers: 257,623
9. Mike Trout, Angels: 253,710

The AL outfield features some heavy hitters, including the top-three players on the league’s OPS leaderboard: Judge, Soto and Tucker. The Judge-Soto tandem has been instrumental in the Yankees’ incredible start, leading the Bronx Bombers to the best record in baseball. Judge and Soto are actually the two leading vote-getters in the Majors, with more than 2.6 million votes between them. Tucker is currently on the injured list after fouling a ball off his right shin on June 4, but he is expected back soon as he pursues his first career All-Star starting nod. Kwan, who’d be a first-time All-Star, is also having an outstanding campaign, recording MLB’s best batting average (minimum 150 PAs) at .398.

Barring a late charge from Trout, this would mark the first time since 2012 that he didn’t earn a starting spot in the AL outfield via the fan vote, snapping his streak at 10 straight fan-vote wins. The Angels outfielder is sidelined after undergoing surgery to repair a torn meniscus in his left knee in early May.

1. Adley Rutschman, Orioles: 792,857
2. Salvador Perez, Royals: 588,952
3. Jose Trevino, Yankees: 234,469
4. Danny Jansen, Blue Jays: 212,782
5. Jonah Heim, Rangers: 176,821

Rutschman is more than 203,000 votes ahead of Perez, a six-time All-Star starter behind the plate. The 2019 No. 1 overall pick could become just the third Orioles catcher to win the All-Star fan vote dating back to 1970, joining Terry Kennedy (1987) and Matt Wieters (2014).

1. Yordan Alvarez, Astros: 475,158
2. Giancarlo Stanton, Yankees: 408,610
3. David Fry, Guardians: 379,845
4. Ryan O’Hearn, Orioles: 290,091
5. Josh Jung, Rangers: 208,187

Shohei Ohtani was the AL’s starting DH in each of the past three years, but with the superstar slugger jumping over to the NL when he joined the Dodgers in free agency, the door is open for someone else to claim the starting spot this year. We have a close race brewing between two established names in Alvarez and Stanton, but it will be interesting to see whether Fry can close the gap and advance to Phase 2. Cleveland’s super-utility man has been one of the biggest surprises in MLB this season, turning heads at the plate (.983 OPS) while making appearances at five different defensive positions (C, 1B, 3B, LF, RF) in addition to DH.

1. Bryce Harper, Phillies: 1,110,562
2. Freddie Freeman, Dodgers: 713,858
3. Matt Olson, Braves: 154,672
4. Pete Alonso, Mets: 151,602
5. Jake Cronenworth, Padres: 139,632

In his first season as a full-time first baseman, Harper not only has taken a sizable lead over Freeman — the NL’s starting first baseman at four of the past five All-Star Games — he’s leading the entire NL in voting. If that holds, Harper would become the first Phillie to win the fan vote at first base since John Kruk in 1993. Harper himself has won the fan vote six times previously, five times as an outfielder and once as a DH.

1. Luis Arraez, Padres: 613,068
2. Ketel Marte, D-backs: 608,807
3. Bryson Stott, Phillies: 486,315
4. Ozzie Albies, Braves: 247,517
5. Gavin Lux, Dodgers: 183,441

In the closest positional race in either league, fewer than 4,300 votes separate Arraez and Marte. This would be Arraez’s third straight All-Star selection, each with a different team. The two-time batting champion, who started at second base for the NL a year ago as a member of the Marlins, could become the first second baseman in Padres history to win the fan vote. If he does it, he’d also snap a lengthy drought for the NL — the league hasn’t had a repeat starter at second base since Chase Utley did it from 2006-09. Marte could become just the second player in D-backs history to win the fan vote multiple times, joining Paul Goldschmidt (2014-15).

1. Alec Bohm, Phillies: 1,012,174
2. Manny Machado, Padres: 267,063
3. Joey Ortiz, Brewers: 244,957
4. Max Muncy, Dodgers: 226,585
5. Ryan McMahon, Rockies: 187,838

Since Mike Schmidt played his final season in 1989, Placido Polanco (2011) and Scott Rolen (2002) are the only Phillies third basemen to win the All-Star fan vote. Bohm could join that group in 2024, with a lead of more than 745,000 votes over Machado in Phase 1 of the voting. That’s the largest gap between first and second place at any position in either league.

1. Mookie Betts, Dodgers: 1,023,690
2. Trea Turner, Phillies: 509,043
3. Elly De La Cruz, Reds: 324,559
4. Orlando Arcia, Braves: 147,103
5. Willy Adames, Brewers: 137,323

Like Harper, Betts is dominating the vote at his new position, taking a lead of more than 514,000 votes over Turner, who was slated to be activated from the injured list on Monday after missing more than six weeks with a left hamstring strain. However, with Betts set to miss considerable time after fracturing his left hand on a hit-by-pitch, Turner may be able to turn the tide and earn his second career All-Star start.

1. Jurickson Profar, Padres: 900,541
2. Christian Yelich, Brewers: 821,037
3. Fernando Tatis Jr., Padres: 798,609
4. Teoscar Hernández, Dodgers: 761,934
5. Brandon Marsh, Phillies: 521,461
6. Nick Castellanos, Phillies: 439,764
7. Johan Rojas, Phillies: 363,047
8. Cody Bellinger, Cubs: 352,565
9. Heliot Ramos, Giants: 241,532

With Harper and Betts at new positions, reigning NL MVP Ronald Acuña Jr. out for the season after tearing his left ACL and reigning NL Rookie of the Year Corbin Carroll struggling, the competition is wide open for the starting spots in the NL outfield. Fans so far have come out in support of Profar, a former top prospect turned journeyman who is in the midst of a career year. The Padres haven’t had a starting outfielder in the All-Star Game since Tony Gwynn in 1998, but they could have two this year with Tatis also in the running to advance to Phase 2. Profar and Tatis are two of four NL outfielders who have received more than 750,000 votes, along with Yelich and Hernández.

1. William Contreras, Brewers: 746,461
2. J.T. Realmuto, Phillies: 558,624
3. Will Smith, Dodgers: 557,970
4. Willson Contreras, Cardinals: 149,315
5. Sean Murphy, Braves: 132,575

It’s been more than 40 years (Ted Simmons in 1983) since a Brewers catcher has won the fan vote to start the All-Star Game, but Contreras could potentially end that drought in 2024. The 26-year-old drew the start as the NL DH in 2022, replacing an injured Harper, but this would be his first All-Star starting nod behind the plate. Realmuto, who recently underwent surgery to repair a torn meniscus in his right knee, and Smith are in a close race to advance to Phase 2 along with Contreras.

1. Shohei Ohtani, Dodgers: 1,002,377
2. Marcell Ozuna, Braves: 478,538
3. Kyle Schwarber, Phillies: 435,416
4. Rhys Hoskins, Brewers: 103,366
5. Donovan Solano, Padres: 101,195

New league, same result for Ohtani, who has captured 38% of the NL DH votes cast so far, tying him with Harper for the largest vote share at any position in MLB. Ozuna, meanwhile, is in the running for the NL Triple Crown, but he’ll have to hold off Schwarber to advance to Phase 2. Fewer than 44,000 votes separate the two NL East sluggers, both of whom are two-time All-Stars.