The results of the first round of voting for the 2024 MLB All-Star Game presented by Mastercard have already been revealed and, as usual, you fans have done a great job. All the names you would expect to see at the top of each position are there (Shohei, Betts, Harper, Judge), and other lesser players who are having a fantastic season (Jurickson Profar, Alec Bohm) also received great support.
But there are also some players who are having extraordinary years and who are being ignored. Voting will remain open for some time, so take this as a tip sheet to consider some players who might have slipped through the cracks.
Here, we present nine players who have looked excellent so far and who didn’t finish in the top five at their respective positions (or 15 for outfielders) … but hopefully they could be soon. (Note: Monday’s results were limited to the top 10 players by position, and the top 20 for outfielders.)
All statistics until the end of the day on Sunday
Correa already knows what it’s like to be a starter in a Mid-Season Classic – the Puerto Rican led the voting in 2017, when he was just 22 years old – but he has struggled in recent years, largely due to injuries. And there is no doubt that shortstop is the most contested position on the ballot on the American League side, as it has several candidates for the MVP Award. That said: Could it be that Correa is having the best year of his career? The Puerto Rican is on fire right now, having raised his average above .300, and ranks third among American League shortstops in OPS, only behind Gunnar Henderson and Bobby Witt Jr.
Current position: Outside the Top 20
It’s easy to lose sight of Greene because he plays in Detroit, on a squad that has taken some steps forward this season but is still in fourth place in an improved division. (And that ultimately he has generated more attention for his pitching). But Greene could be taking a leap toward stardom. On Saturday, the slugger went 4-for-5 with six RBIs, improving his OPS to .824 on the season. If that mark doesn’t seem so high to you, we’ll let you know that no Tigers player has posted an OPS higher than .824 in a season since Nick Castellanos in 2018. (Venezuelan Miguel Cabrera’s last campaign with those numbers was in the 2016). Greene is only 23 years old, and he will have many opportunities to make an All-Star Game in the future. But having him outside the top 20 right now, even behind Mike Trout — who hasn’t stepped foot on a diamond since April and won’t be participating in this event — seems unfair.
Current Rankings: O’Hoppe 9th/Jeffers Out of Top 10
If shortstop is the most crowded position in the American League, catching is not far behind. Adley Rutschman of the Orioles and Venezuelan Salvador Pérez of the Royals are and deserve to be in the first two spots: They are the leaders of two of the best teams in the league. No complaints here. But O’Hoppe and Jeffers have been two of the best hitters in the league this year. O’Hoppe has shouldered the Angels’ offense with Trout sidelined – he’s coming off a 467-foot rocket over the weekend – and Jeffers has been one of the most consistent players outside of Correa for an offense of The Twins continually reorganized. (To be fair, Jeffers has seen his fair share of action at DH, but is listed as a catcher on the ballot.) O’Hoppe is only three points behind Rutschman in OPS and is two years younger. He should be in the top five, and maybe the top two.
It makes sense to some extent that the A’s won’t get as much attention this year, but Rooker deserves to be considered. 2023 was his breakout year, when he hit 30 home runs and posted an OPS of .817, numbers that earned him the status of the only player called to the All-Star Game representing Oakland. But the guy has looked even better this year, with an .843 OPS and 13 homers in just 59 games. His OPS is almost 70 points higher, for example, than that of Giancarlo Stanton, who is in second place in the voting. Cuban Yordan Álvarez is No. 1 for obvious reasons, but Rooker continues to continually elevate his game. And we could see him as the sole representative of the A’s once again this year.
The answer here is obviously Vote for Betts, even after Mookie’s injury: In fact, seeing him hurt makes me vote for him more. But it should be noted that the Rockies’ Venezuelan shortstop is having a revelation season. After a so-so April, Tovar has been on fire for two months, posting an .864 OPS in May and .814 in June. The data to highlight is his .808 OPS and his 11 home runs outside of Coors Field. The fact is that Tovar is a future star in this league and although many people haven’t realized it yet, this is the opportunity to appreciate it. Dominican Elly de la Cruz is the second most supported shortstop behind Betts in the National League. But so far, Tovar, who is only four months older than De la Cruz, has looked considerably better.
Current position: All outside the Top 20
This trio is among the outfielders with the highest OPS in the National League: Reynolds and Winker are tied for fourth at .768, along with Chisholm Jr. — who has been on the cover of a video game! for the love of God! –is right behind them at .762. Sure, the ballot for National League outfielders is loaded this year. But if three of the top six hitters didn’t even crack the top 15, it probably should stand out.
