Missouri bias? Royals and Cardinals combine for six All-Star starters
Forget about East Coast bias, it’s time Major League Baseball started looking into their Midwest bias. They can start the investigation in Missouri.
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The Kansas City Royals and St. Louis Cardinals fared well as the All-Star Game starters were announced Sunday. While neither team dominated the ballots the way they did a few weeks ago, both came away with some solid results.
The Cardinals came away with two starters in the National League, but many of their players finished second at their respective positions.
After weeks of intrigue, the Royals wound up with four starters in the American League.
In the weeks leading up to the announcement, Royals fans seemed to dominate the vote. At one point, the club would have had eight starters. Rival fans came out in force the last few rounds of voting, lowering that number to four.
The Cardinals never had the same support, though fared exceptionally well throughout the voting. The team only has two starters, but that’s because hometown hero Todd Frazier beat out Matt Carpenter in the past few days, and Buster Posey surged over Yadier Molina in that same timeframe.
OTHER TIDBITS OF NOTE
- Josh Donaldson was the top overall vote-getter. He actually set a new All-Star Game record with just over 14 million votes.
- In the National League, Bryce Harper led the way. Harper received 13.8 million votes.
- The NL outfield could look different on game day. Giancarlo Stanton won’t be back from his injury, and Matt Holliday is still working his way back. Holliday told MLB.com reporter Jenifer Langosch that he plans on playing as long as he can return from his quad injury.
- Miguel Cabrera will also have to be replaced at first base. He’s out at least six weeks with a calf strain.
- The biggest snub in the AL is probably Cleveland Indians second baseman Jason Kipnis. Jose Altuve isn’t a bad choice, but Kipnis is hitting .342/.421/.506 this season while playing solid defense.
- There are a lot of deserving candidate in the NL. Anthony Rizzo and Andrew McCutchen stand out. A.J. Pollack has been really good, but has flown under the radar since he plays in Arizona.
- Todd Frazier is the only Red to start the game, which will be held in Cincinnati this year.
- Overall, the fans cast 620 million votes, setting a new All-Star Game record.
The All-Star Game will take place July 14 in Cincinnati. Flip on the game, and cheer on your favorite players. For the first time in a long time, that might be tough to do if your team plays on the East Coast.
Reserves, pitchers and final vote candidates will be announced Monday. Which players do you want to see make the final All-Star squad?
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Chris Cwik is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Chris_Cwik
