7 big All-Star voting storylines to follow

Read our story on the balloting format, which includes two phases of fan voting to determine the All-Star starters.

Phase 1 of the balloting for the 2024 MLB All-Star Game presented by Mastercard at Globe Life Field in Arlington is underway, allowing fans to vote for the starting position players in both leagues.

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Here are some of the most interesting storylines we’ll be following as the voting progresses.

1. Even if Trout’s streak ends, the American League outfield is in good hands

Mike Trout has been voted as a starting outfielder for the AL in each of the past 10 years the game was held. But with Trout sidelined while recovering from surgery to repair a torn meniscus in his left knee, his streak will likely come to an end in 2024.

Still, fans have some strong options to choose from here, including Yankees teammates Aaron Judge and Juan Soto and the Astros’ Kyle Tucker. Those three rank first, second and third, respectively, among qualifying AL hitters in OPS.

2. Who will take the crown as the top overall vote-getter?

A player hasn’t repeated as the leading All-Star Game vote-getter since Alex Rodriguez did it as a member of the Yankees in 2007-08, and that drought is poised to continue this year after last year’s leading vote-getter, Braves superstar Ronald Acuña Jr., suffered a season-ending ACL tear in his left knee.

Judge and Soto are among the top candidates to take the crown in 2024, though Dodgers teammates Mookie Betts and Shohei Ohtani could also make a run at the top spot. Of those four, only Judge has been MLB’s leading vote-getter before, earning that distinction in 2022.

3. Who will start at shortstop for the AL?

This is arguably the toughest call on the ballot, with the Orioles’ Gunnar Henderson and the Royals’ Bobby Witt Jr. both putting together spectacular individual seasons for teams in playoff contention.

Henderson leads all Major Leaguers with 4.3 WAR (per Baseball-Reference), is tied for second in homers (19) and ranks sixth in OPS (.957). Witt, meanwhile, ranks third with 3.9 WAR, with a .319 average, 11 homers, 17 steals and a .936 OPS. Witt ranks second in FanGraphs’ version of WAR (4.0), while Henderson is fourth (3.8).

The Rangers’ Corey Seager -- last year’s AL starter at shortstop -- has also put himself back in the mix with an incredible hot streak over the past month. Seager had just a .594 OPS through May 2, but he has produced a .324/.417/.677 slash with 11 homers and 21 RBIs over his past 27 games.

4. Will Betts and Harper both win the vote at their new positions?

As two of the best players of their generation, Betts and Bryce Harper both have their share of experience starting the All-Star Game. However, all of their starts (five apiece) have come in the outfield. (Harper also won the fan vote to start at DH for the National League in 2022, but he missed the All-Star Game due to injury.)

In 2024, the two are stationed at new positions, with Betts playing shortstop for the Dodgers and Harper playing first base for the Phillies. Each is among the leading contenders to earn the start at his new spot, which is a testament to how well these switches have worked out for Los Angeles and Philadelphia.

5. Salvy could join some exclusive company

Salvador Perez is in the midst of a resurgent 2024 season at the age of 34, hitting .315 with 10 homers, 41 RBIs and a .904 OPS over 60 games for the upstart Royals.

The veteran’s performance puts him squarely in the running to earn his seventh All-Star Game starting nod (ninth selection overall) behind the plate, a feat that would certainly bolster his Hall of Fame credentials.

Only eight players all time have made at least seven All-Star Game starts as a catcher. The list includes six Hall of Famers -- Ivan Rodriguez, Yogi Berra, Johnny Bench, Mike Piazza, Carlton Fisk and Gary Carter -- plus Del Crandall and Bill Freehan.

Perez could also become the oldest starting catcher for either league since 2007, when Rodriguez -- then 35 years old -- started for the AL as a member of the Tigers.

6. William Contreras could end a long drought for the Brewers

Speaking of catchers, Contreras could make some history of his own on the NL side of the ballot.

A Brewers catcher has won the fan vote to start the All-Star Game only once in the franchise’s history, when future Hall of Famer Ted Simmons did so for the AL in 1983. (Jonathan Lucroy also earned the start behind the plate for the NL in 2014, but he was an injury replacement for fan-vote winner Yadier Molina.)

Contreras is arguably the favorite to start at catcher for the NL this season, having recorded a .310 average with eight homers, 44 RBIs, 48 runs scored and an .858 OPS over 61 games.

The 26-year-old has started the All-Star Game before, drawing the nod as the NL’s designated hitter in 2022 with the Braves, but this would be his first start as a catcher. His brother, Willson, has started three times.

7. Will Profar’s storybook season include an All-Star starting nod?

With Acuña suffering an injury, Betts and Harper relocating and reigning NL Rookie of the Year Corbin Carroll struggling, the NL outfield is wide open on this year’s All-Star ballot. That could set up Jurickson Profar to grab one of the starting spots.

Profar was formerly MLB Pipeline’s No. 1 overall prospect with the Rangers, but he entered this season with a lifetime .706 OPS for four teams over 10 seasons. He was released by the Rockies less than 10 months ago and signed a one-year, $1 million deal with the Padres in late February.

Improbably, Profar has been one of the most productive hitters in the Majors this season, leading MLB in on-base percentage (.424) while hitting .329 with eight homers and a .915 OPS over 64 games.