The 6 most competitive All-Star voting races

With Phase 1 of voting for the 2023 Scotts MLB All-Star Ballot closing on Thursday at noon ET, a number of positional races could come down to the wire to determine who will advance to Phase 2 and remain in the hunt to start the 2023 MLB All-Star Game presented by Mastercard on July 11 at T-Mobile Park in Seattle.

• VOTE NOW: 2023 Scotts MLB All-Star Ballot

The top two vote-getters at each position (and the top six outfielders) in each league will be revealed on MLB Network at 6 p.m. ET on Thursday. The leading vote-getter in each league will receive an automatic spot in their team’s starting lineup while the other top vote-getters will advance to Phase 2 of voting. If an outfielder is a league’s leading vote-getter, only the next four outfield finalists will move on to Phase 2 to determine who starts at the two remaining spots.

During Phase 1, you can vote as many as five times per every 24-hour period exclusively at MLB.com, on all 30 MLB club sites and on the MLB app.

Phase 2 will begin at noon ET on Monday, June 26, and continue until noon ET on Thursday, June 29. During this 72-hour window, fans can vote only once per 24-hour period on MLB platforms for whom they want to see in the Midsummer Classic. Vote totals from Phase 1 don’t carry over.

Here’s a look at the closest races as we near the end of Phase 1.

AL catcher: Salvador Perez (KC) vs. Jonah Heim (TEX) vs. Alejandro Kirk (TOR)
This is by far the closest race in Phase 1, with less than 2,200 votes separating Perez and Heim for the second spot behind the AL catching leader, the Orioles' Adley Rutschman. A 12-year veteran who has spent his entire career with the Royals, Perez (14 HR, .791 OPS) has made seven All-Star teams and started six of them. Heim (9 HR, .792 OPS) is having a career year for the first-place Rangers and would be just the third Texas backstop to start the All-Star Game, joining Hall of Famer Ivan Rodriguez and Mike Napoli. Kirk, last year’s AL starter behind the plate, is also still in the mix, as he’s less than 57,000 votes behind Perez.

AL second base: Whit Merrifield (TOR) vs. Jose Altuve (HOU)
Altuve, an eight-time All-Star and four-time starter, was ahead of Merrifield (two career All-Star selections) in the first ballot update, but the Blue Jays second baseman has surged ahead in the race for the second spot behind AL second-base leader Marcus Semien. Merrifield, who owns a .305 average with 18 steals and a .757 OPS in 2023, is leading Altuve by less than 93,000 votes. After missing the first 43 games this season with a fractured thumb suffered during the World Baseball Classic, Altuve has returned to post a .262/.354/.452 slash with three home runs over 22 games.

AL outfield: George Springer (TOR) vs. Adolis García (TEX) vs. Masataka Yoshida (BOS)
Less than 83,000 votes separate these three in the race for the sixth AL outfield spot behind Aaron Judge, Mike Trout, Randy Arozarena, Yordan Alvarez and Kevin Kiermaier. Springer (10 HR, .730 OPS) is currently leading, but García (15 HR, .813 OPS) is only about 36,000 votes behind him. The rookie Yoshida actually has the highest OPS of the three at .848 in his first season with the Red Sox.

NL first base: Matt Olson (ATL) vs. Pete Alonso (NYM)
With more than 1.6 million votes, Dodgers first baseman Freddie Freeman has built a massive lead in first place, but Olson and Alonso are locked in a tight battle -- roughly 5,500 votes separate the two -- to determine who else will advance to Phase 2 at this spot. Alonso was expected to miss 3-4 weeks after suffering a bone bruise and sprain in his left wrist on June 7, but he was activated from the IL well ahead of schedule on Sunday, giving the Mets first baseman a few days to impress voters before the end of Phase 1. Despite the time he missed, Alonso (.858 OPS) is still the NL leader in homers with 22. However, Olson isn’t far behind in homers (20) or OPS (.850), and his Braves have a much better record than Alonso’s Mets.

NL shortstop: Francisco Lindor (NYM) vs. Xander Bogaerts (SD)
Two of this generation’s most accomplished shortstops are battling for one spot behind the surprise NL leader, Orlando Arcia of the Braves. Lindor (14 HR, .731 OPS), a four-time All-Star in search of his first career starting nod, is ahead of Bogaerts (7 HR, .743) by less than 86,000 votes. Bogaerts is in his first NL season after earning four All-Star selections and starting the All-Star Game twice as a member of the Red Sox.

NL outfield: Juan Soto (SD) vs. Fernando Tatis Jr. (SD) vs. Michael Harris II (ATL)
With the Braves' Ronald Acuña Jr. on track to come out of Phase 1 with an automatic starting nod by virtue of being the leading vote-getter in the NL (and MLB), four players will vie for the final two NL starting outfield spots in Phase 2. If Mookie Betts, Corbin Carroll and Lourdes Gurriel Jr. hold onto their spots, that will leave just one spot for Soto, Tatis or Harris.

After a cold start to the season, Soto has produced eight homers, 10 doubles, 33 walks and a 1.009 OPS over his past 37 games. He holds a lead of nearly 106,000 votes over his teammate Tatis, who has impressed on defense in his first season as a full-time outfielder. Tatis has also heated up on offense lately -- he's hitting .385 with five homers, 15 RBIs, seven steals and a 1.265 OPS in June. Harris is less than 2,000 votes behind Tatis. The reigning NL Rookie of the Year had a .490 OPS as recently as June 6, but he's added 219 points to his OPS with a sizzling stretch (1.305 OPS) over his past 12 games.