McMahon needs push to make next round of All-Star voting
HOUSTON -- Ryan McMahon remained in the hunt to make the All-Star Game on the fan ballot. But with the first phase of balloting ending Thursday, the Rockies’ third baseman will need a late surge to be one of the two finalists.
McMahon was in seventh in the race for NL third basemen. He trailed Manny Machado by 255,000 votes for the second-place spot in the latest voting update on Monday.
Despite the uphill battle, McMahon has put up All-Star numbers over the first half of the season, hitting .281 to go with a team-leading 14 home runs and 42 RBIs entering Wednesday's series finale in Houston. His batting average is second on the team to Ezequiel Tovar’s .285 among qualified hitters, and he leads Colorado with a .358 on-base percentage.
McMahon has never been an All-Star in his eight-year career, but this could be the year he represents the Rockies in Arlington, Texas.
“That’s one of those things that if it happens, it happens,” McMahon said earlier this month. “If it doesn’t, that’s not how I measure it -- it’s what I’m doing and how I’m helping us.”
McMahon is having a career year and is on pace to set highs in batting average, home runs and RBIs. His previous highest average was .254 in 2021, his high for home runs was 24 in ‘19 and his high in RBIs was 86, also in ‘21.
In the latest voting update, Elias Díaz was eighth among NL catchers with 161,708 votes. The 2023 All-Star Game MVP trails Philadelphia’s J.T. Realmuto by more 900,000 votes for second place. Díaz has played well this season, batting .303 with five home runs and 28 RBIs, but his candidacy has been hurt as he sits on the injured list with a left calf strain.
Tovar was ninth among NL shortstops with more than 152,000 votes, trailing Philadelphia’s Trea Turner by more than 900,000 votes for second place. Tovar has played at an All-Star level with a team-best 92 hits, including a team-high 23 doubles.
The two finalists at each position will be announced Thursday, and All-Star Game starters will be announced July 2 before full rosters are announced July 7.