Diamondbacks’ Ketel Marte jumps to 1st in NL All-Star voting at 2B
Jun 24, 2024, 12:12 PM
Ketel Marte #4 of the Arizona Diamondbacks hits an RBI single against the Philadelphia Phillies during the ninth inning of a game at Citizens Bank Park on June 23, 2024 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Phillies defeated the Diamondbacks 4-1. (Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images)
(Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images)
Arizona Diamondbacks second baseman Ketel Marte has moved up to first in National League All-Star voting at second base.
Marte passed San Diego Padres second baseman Luis Arraez in voting totals after initially trailing him. Marte now has 1,183,331 votes ahead of Arraez’s 1,113,342. Philadelphia Phillies fans are making it interesting with the inclusion of Bryson Stott (931,165).
It is a good course of correction by baseball fans. Marte is an MVP candidate.
Entering play on Monday, he ranks third in the National League for WAR (3.8), 10th for OPS (.835) and tied for ninth in homers (15).
MLB All-Star voting for Arizona Diamondbacks
The D-backs trio of first baseman Christian Walker, designated hitter Joc Pederson and catcher Gabriel Moreno all ranked sixth in vote-getting at their respective positions.
Walker, in particular, has both the best and worst chance to make it. The reigning Gold Glove winner is putting together another defensive season that separates him from his peers all while clocking an .801 OPS that is a top 20 mark in the NL.
The problem is Walker plays the same position as Freddie Freeman of the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Philadelphia Phillies’ Bryce Harper. Both of those guys are firmly entrenched in the NL MVP race with Marte and will be All-Stars. That leaves Walker to try and get the nod as the third first baseman on the roster, which will be a tough sell.
The main story in the American League is the Baltimore Orioles having six players positioned to be finalists at their positions: catcher Adley Rutschman, first baseman Ryan Mountcastle, shortstop Gunnar Henderson, third baseman Jordan Westburg, outfielder Colton Cowser and outfielder Anthony Santander.
New York Yankees outfielders Aaron Judge (2,375,199) and Juan Soto (2,136,383) join Harper (2,037,523) as the three players in Major League Baseball with over two million votes.
The two top vote-getters at each position (and top six outfielders) by Thursday at 9 a.m. MST will advance to the next stage of voting. The leaders will all start the game while the other finalists will be revealed on Thursday at 3 p.m. and voting commences from Sunday at 9 a.m. to July 3 at 9 a.m.
The remaining reserves and pitchers will be determined by a combination of player voting and choices by the league.
