Frank Victores-USA TODAY Sports
The Cincinnati Reds may be two and a half games out of first place behind the St. Louis Cardinals in the National League Central division. However, the Reds have more players in line to start for the National League in the 2013 Major League Baseball All-Star Game than their division rival.
Cincinnati first baseman Joey Votto has a whopping lead over San Francisco Giants’ Brandon Belt due to his 1,044,742 votes. Votto has the third most votes for an infielder or catcher behind only Giants catcher Buster Posey (1,275,956) and third baseman Pablo Sandoval (1,094,475).
The 2010 NL Most Valuable Player has gone to three consecutive All-Star games and it certainly looks like he will be elected to his fourth. Votto is dominating at the plate once again in 2013 to the surprise of no one. The 29-year-old is batting .330 with a team-high 10 home runs, 28 RBI, 10 doubles, one triple and 47 walks in 218 at-bats.
Meanwhile, second baseman Brandon Phillips leads his respective position with 1,019,240 votes. He has a substantial lead over San Francisco’s Marco Scutaro, who has 801,754 votes. However, with exactly a month left for voting (polls close on July 4) anything is possible.
Phillips is off to the most productive start of his career. The 32-year-old is batting .296 with nine home runs, a team-high 45 RBI, 13 doubles and 37 runs in 216 at-bats. There is no question he deserves to start for the NL in the All-Star Game after the start he has had.
The only other player on the Reds that has a legitimate shot at starting is outfielder Shin-Soo Choo, who is in fifth place with 743,755 votes. Milwaukee Brewers left fielder Ryan Braun is currently in third place with 945,665 votes.
