Three Houston Astros starters are expected to advance past the first phase of American League All-Star voting.
Three Houston Astros players are still in contention to progress from the first phase of All-Star Game voting, which concludes at noon on Thursday.
Jose Altuve and Yordan Alvarez are the leading vote-getters at their positions, while Kyle Tucker is one of the top six outfielders.
The top two vote-getters at each position, along with the top six outfielders, will advance to phase two voting, which begins on June 30. The voting selects the starting lineup for the All-Star Game, which will be held on June 16 at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas, home of the Astros’ archrivals, the Texas Rangers.
Altuve was ahead at second base after the first round of voting was announced last Monday. He still holds a significant lead over the Rangers’ Marcus Semien. Altuve received 1,233,299 votes against Semien’s 963,423.
Semien took over as starter last year after Altuve missed the majority of the first half of the season due to an injury sustained in the World Baseball Classic. The Astros veteran is looking for his ninth All-Star Game appearance and sixth as a starter.
Alvarez got 963,519 votes, more than Giancarlo Stanton of the New York Yankees (717,023). Stanton is out for the next month with a hamstring injury. David Fry of Cleveland comes in behind Stanton.
Alvarez is looking for his third straight All-Star Game selection. Shohei Ohtani, a former Los Angeles Angels standout, had been the AL’s starting DH for the previous three seasons, but his move to the Los Angeles Dodgers opens up the starting position.
Tucker ranked third following the first vote release and remained there with 1,002,803 votes. He is considerably behind the New York Yankees’ Aaron Judge (2,375,199) and Juan Soto (2,136,383). Judge is also the leading vote-getter, and if that continues, he will be selected a starter.
Tucker has attended the last two All-Star Games.
Cleveland’s Steven Kwan, Baltimore’s Anthony Santander, and Baltimore’s Colton Cowser are the other three outfielders poised to move to the second round of voting.
Voting from phase one does not transfer over to phase 2.
Other Astros in the Top 10 are catcher Yainer Diaz in fifth place, first baseman Jon Singleton in seventh, third baseman Alex Bregman in sixth, shortstop Jeremy Pena in sixth, and utility player Mauricio Dubon in 14th place in outfield voting.
The Astros are within two games of.500 as they begin a two-game series against the Colorado Rockies on Tuesday at Minute Maid Park. Following that, Houston travels to face the New York Mets, Toronto Blue Jays, and Minnesota Twins.
