Altuve gaining steam in All-Star balloting

Altuve, who leads all Major League second basemen in batting average (.326) and hits (78), moved up a spot to fourth place among National League players at his position in the latest All-Star balloting results released Tuesday.

Altuve passed Milwaukee's Rickie Weeks, moving into fourth place with 700,640 votes. He trails only Dan Uggla of the Braves (1,341,088), Brandon Phillips of the Reds (885,250) and fellow Venezuelan Omar Infante of the Marlins (737,715).

No other Astros players were among the leaders at their positions, including shortstop Jed Lowrie, who's certainly putting up some All-Star-caliber numbers. Lowrie leads all Major League shortstops in home runs (12) and slugging percentage (.533).

Fans can cast their votes for starters up to 25 times at MLB.com and all 30 club sites -- online or via your mobile device -- using the 2012 All-Star Game MLB.com Ballot until Thursday, June 28, at 11:59 p.m. ET.

Fans can also once again participate in the State Farm Home Run Derby Fan Poll. Fans will have the opportunity to select three players in each league who they would most like to see participate in the State Farm Home Run Derby. The 2012 State Farm Home Run Derby -- part of Gatorade All-Star Workout Day -- will be broadcast live on ESPN, ESPN HD, ESPN Deportes and ESPN Radio in the United States beginning at 8 p.m. ET on Monday, July 9.

The 2012 American League and National League All-Star teams will be unveiled on Sunday, July 1, on the 2012 MLB All-Star Game Selection Show, televised nationally on TBS. Baseball fans around the world will then be able to select the final player on each team via the 2012 All-Star Game Final Vote on MLB.com.

And the voting doesn't end there. The final phase of All-Star Game voting will again have fans participating in the official voting for the Ted Williams All-Star Game Most Valuable Player Award presented by Chevrolet. During the Midsummer Classic, fans will vote exclusively online at MLB.com via the 2012 All-Star Game MLB.com MVP Vote, and their voice will represent 20 percent of the official vote determining the recipient of the Arch Ward Trophy.

The 2012 All-Star Game will be played at Kauffman Stadium on Tuesday, July 10. Come to MLB.com for extensive online coverage of the All-Star Week festivities.

The 83rd All-Star Game will be televised nationally by FOX Sports, in Canada by Rogers Sportsnet and RDS, and worldwide by partners in more than 200 countries via MLB International's independent feed. ESPN Radio and ESPN Radio Deportes will provide national radio coverage of the All-Star Game. MLB Network and Sirius XM also will also provide comprehensive All-Star Week coverage. For more information, please visit allstargame.com or royals.com/asg.

Altuve, 22, began last season in Class A Lancaster and wound up in Houston by the end of July. He batted .276 with two homers and 12 RBIs in 57 games for the Astros in 2011.