Chances are, Toronto Blue Jays slugging first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. would be the first to admit that he’s not having his typical All-Star-calibre type of season.
Guerrero Jr., who is 27 years old and a five-time All-Star, has, in what is his seventh season with the Blue Jays, witnessed a sharp decline this year in his power numbers, which has seen this feared slugger in 75 games his only four home runs with a .735 OPS along with 31 RBIs which with all due respect to Vladdy pails in comparison to other AL first basemen’s stats.
Despite not putting up his usual offensive numbers, and even to the sluggers surprise, he currently holds down the top spot among AL first basemen in phase one of MLB All-Star Game voting which started on June 3rd at noon and goes until June 25th.
“I was surprised that I’m in first,” Guerrero Jr. said. “There’s a lot of first basemen doing a better job than me. But I don’t control the fans. I don’t control the vote.”
While it’s true that the MLB All-Star Game is all about entertaining the fans, it’s hard to agree with the concept that they get to cast so many votes on who starts. The biggest drawbacks for All-Star Game fan voting is that it often comes down to are Popularity vs. Performance and Fan Base vs. Influence.
Should Fans Really Be Voting On Who Plays at the MLB All-Star Game?
In terms of Guerrero, it’s definitely popularity and name recognition over performance. Guerrero Jr. is a popular veteran who has achieved quite a lot and is currently the best known American League First baseman. That popularity is why he currently leads in Phase 1 voting with as of June 19th, 603,014 votes.
Right behind him in second is New York Yankees slugger Ben Rice who at this point of the season has 20 home runs and 49 RBIs which earned this emerging star 509,30 votes.
Another AL first basemen enjoying a more productive season than Guerrero Jr. include Chicago White Sox Munetaka Murakami who in his first season playing in North America has 20 home runs along with 41 RBIs. So far Murakami, who is from Japan has racked up 437,107 votes. Two other candidates who should really be fighting in out for first among AL first basemen balloting are Athletics Nick Kurtz (269,658 votes) who has 18 home runs and 58 RBIs along with Baltimore Orioles Pete Alonso (202,781 votes) who in his first season playing for Baltimore is having an average year with 17 home runs and 49 RBIs.
On June 25th, when phase one of the MLB All-Star voting is over, the top two vote getters and top six vote getters in the outfield will move on to MLB All-Star voting phase two.
Guerrero Jr. Leaves Series Opener vs. Chicago Cubs With Back Tightness
The Blue Jays have been hampered this season with one injury after another.
Currently, the Jays who are waiting for outfielders Addison Barger, Daulton Varsho, infielder Ernie Clement along with pitchers Shane Bieber and Yimi Garcia to return, may have avoided another big bat being sidelined.
During Friday afternoon’s 16-2 loss at Wrigley Field against the Chicago Cubs, Guerrero Jr threw a huge scare into Blue Jays management and fans watching from around the globe when during sixth inning action, right after popping up, the slugger reached for his back in pain and had to be taken out of the game.
Despite this being the second time within a couple of weeks that Guerrero Jr. has experienced back tightness, no one is to worried at this time about long terms effects and Jays manager John Schneider believed that Vladdy won’t be missing any time.
“I just want to be careful. Just checked with him, he’s feeling better. Nothing like what it was when he missed a couple games,” Schneider said.
Guerrero Jr. might be slumping and miles behind his usual pace in the power department, but it’s important for Jays fans to remember that he is a five-time All-Star, two-time Silver Slugger Award winner and Gold Glove winner who obviously is an extremely talented superstar who can go on a roll at any time.
Phillies’ Bryson Stott Shouldn’t Be Second in NL Second Baseman All-Star Game Votes
Another major reason why fans shouldn’t have all the votes for the All-Star Game is that Philadelphia Phillies second baseman Bryson Stott, who only has six homeruns along with 36 RBIs and a .236 batting average is currently holding down second spot in phase one MLB fan voting with 399,729 votes. What makes this so puzzling is that Milwaukee Brewers second baseman Brice Turang who has 11 homeruns and 46 RBIs, has only 373, 656 votes while San Francisco Giants second baseman Luis Arraez who has 94 hits and has the third best NL average at .321 sits in fifth spot with 325,994 votes.
Perhaps among the two biggest surprises of the phase one MLB All-Star Game voting is that Washington Nationals outfielder James Wood who has 20 home runs and 48 RBIs is currently ranked ninth in NL outfield voting.
Also being overlooked is Florida Marlins shortstop Otto Lopez who despite already having 100 hits and an impressive .332 batting average, sits fifth in NL Shortstop voting with 230, 286.
These are just a couple of the many players who have a solid case to play on July 14th at Citizens Bank Park in the MLB All-Star Game.
Yes, the All-Star Game is for the fans and they deserve to see play their favorite players. At the same time, should they really get an entire say with the voting on who starts?
Fans should definitely continue voting, but shouldn’t media people who unlike the fans have seen every team and doesn’t have a home team bias get a say on who the positional starters are for the mid-season classic?
Main Image: Jaiden Tripi-Imagn Images
