Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Ozuna has NL outfield spot right now.
Harper, Judge lead NL, AL; voting closes Thursday
Marcell Ozuna is a couple days away from locking down a starting spot in the All-Star Game.
The Miami Marlins left fielder moved into third place among National League outfielders — the last starting position — in the final voting update released by Major League Baseball on Monday. Fans have until 11:59 p.m. Thursday to submit online ballots, and participants in the July 11 All-Star Game at Marlins Park will be announced Sunday at 7 p.m. on ESPN.
Ozuna, who has a .324 batting average over his last five games, has climbed from fifth place to third among NL outfielders in the past week. Ozuna had 1,270,464 votes as of Monday’s update, trailing Washington’s Bryce Harper (3,617,444) and Colorado’s Charlie Blackmon (3,115,730). He’s holding off Jason Heyward (1,241,194) and Ben Zobrist (1,122,946) from the World Series champion Chicago Cubs.
Marlins right fielder Giancarlo Stanton remained in sixth place among NL outfielders with 1,069,313 votes. No other Marlin is in the top five at his position.
Ozuna, 26, is experiencing a breakout season in his fifth year with the Marlins. He’s batting .319 with 54 RBI, and his 20 homers are tied for second in the NL.
Harper leads all of baseball in the All-Star vote. New York Yankees rookie outfielder Aaron Judge — who has a major leagueleading 26 homers — paces the American League with 3,442,597 votes.
Two South Florida products are in a heated race to start for the AL at first base. The Kansas City Royals’ Eric Hosmer, who starred at American Heritage in Plantation, remains in first place for the second straight week, while Yonder Alonso, a former University of Miami player and current Oakland Athletics first baseman, sits in third after previously leading at the position.
Parkland’s Anthony Rizzo, who played his high school baseball at Douglas, sits in second place among NL first basemen.
Fans can vote up to five times every 24 hours (up to a total of 35 ballots) at mlb.com/all-star/ballot.
Below are the vote totals released Monday:
National League Catcher
1. Buster Posey, Giants: 2,530,713
2. Willson Contreras, Cubs: 1,216,513
3. Yadier Molina, Cardinals: 1,068,485
4. Yasmani Grandal, Dodgers: 749,923
5. Matt Wieters, Nationals: 680,644
First base
1. Ryan Zimmerman, Nationals: 1,728,607
2. Anthony Rizzo, Cubs: 1,601,245
3. Paul Goldschmidt, Dbacks: 1,200,995
4. Freddie Freeman, Braves: 767,375
5. Joey Votto, Reds: 703,832
Second base
1. Daniel Murphy, Nationals: 3,057,360
2. Javier Baez, Cubs: 1,654,829
3. DJ LeMahieu, Rockies: 621,188
4. Brandon Phillips, Braves: 475,916
5. Logan Forsythe, Dodgers: 393,238
Third base
1. Kris Bryant, Cubs: 1,978,692
2. Nolan Arenado, Rockies: 1,920,610
3. Justin Turner, Dodgers: 1,075,524
4. Anthony Rendon, Nationals: 779,468
5. Jake Lamb, D-backs: 726,560
Shortstop
1. Zack Cozart, Reds: 1,915,806
2. Corey Seager, Dodgers: 1,657,732
3. Addison Russell, Cubs: 1,204,204
4. Trea Turner, Nationals: 804,703
5. Chris Owings, Dbacks: 676,666
Outfield
1. Bryce Harper, Nationals: 3,617,444
2. Charlie Blackmon, Rockies: 3,115,730
3. Marcell Ozuna, Marlins: 1,270,464
4. Jason Heyward, Cubs: 1,241,194
5. Ben Zobrist, Cubs: 1,122,946
6. Giancarlo Stanton, Marlins: 1,069,313
7. Matt Kemp, Braves: 1,058,050
8. Kyle Schwarber, Cubs: 949,780
9. Yoenis Cespedes, Mets: 785,178
10. Adam Duvall, Reds: 664,379
11. Dexter Fowler, Cardinals: 631,395
12. Yasiel Puig, Dodgers: 626,565
13. Jay Bruce, Mets: 561,984
14. Jayson Werth, Nationals: 540,609
15. Carlos Gonzalez, Rockies: 518,241
American League Catcher
1. Salvador Perez, Royals: 2,150,223
2. Gary Sanchez, Yankees: 1,337,651
3. Brian McCann, Astros: 1,330,042
4. Welington Castillo, Orioles: 1,050,023
5. Yan Gomes, Indians: 895,482
First base
1. Eric Hosmer, Royals: 1,419,887
2. Justin Smoak, Blue Jays: 1,348,233
3. Yonder Alonso, A's: 1,076,984
4. Miguel Cabrera, Tigers: 1,011,382
5. Carlos Santana, Indians: 966,199
Second base
1. Jose Altuve, Astros: 2,925,041
2. Starlin Castro, Yankees: 1,737,446
3. Jason Kipnis, Indians: 957,179
4. Whit Merrifield, Royals: 589,154
5. Dustin Pedroia, Red Sox: 551,841
Third base
1. Miguel Sano, Twins: 1,550,240
2. Jose Ramirez, Indians: 1,341,076
3. Josh Donaldson, Blue Jays: 1,191,244
4. Mike Moustakas, Royals: 1,067,150
5. Manny Machado, Orioles: 946,013
Shortstop
1. Carlos Correa, Astros: 2,229,857
2. Francisco Lindor, Indians: 1,648,532
3. Didi Gregorius, Yankees: 1,069,822
4. Xander Bogaerts, Red Sox: 982,987
5. Troy Tulowitzki, Blue Jays: 783,649
Designated hitter
1. Nelson Cruz, Mariners: 1,366,962 2. Corey Dickerson, Rays: 1,267,234 3. Edwin Encarnacion, Indians: 1,186,483 4. Matt Holliday, Yankees: 1,107,847
5. Evan Gattis, Astros: 885,391
Outfield
1. Aaron Judge, Yankees: 3,442,597
2. Mike Trout, Angels: 2,559,173
3. George Springer, Astros: 1,619,385
4. Michael Brantley, Indians: 1,325,473
5. Avisail Garcia, White Sox: 1,292,694
6. Mookie Betts, Red Sox: 1,223,195
7. Jose Bautista, Blue Jays: 1,055,645
8. Carlos Beltran, Astros: 1,054,503
9. Brett Gardner, Yankees: 889,616
10. Lonnie Chisenhall, Indians: 885,443
11. Andrew Benintendi, Red Sox: 869,774
12. Lorenzo Cain, Royals: 829,284
13. Josh Reddick, Astros: 827,203
14. Kevin Pillar, Blue Jays: 801,968
15. Abraham Almonte, Indians: 684,675
iacohen@sun-sentinel.com or Twitter @icohenb