Nats strike Final Vote alliance with Yankees
Teams partner to garner support for shortstop Desmond, reliever Robertson
PHILADELPHIA -- The Nationals and Yankees have teamed up to get Ian Desmond and David Robertson into next week's All-Star Game. And it showed in Desmond's attire Tuesday.
Both Desmond and Robertson are candidates in this season's Final Vote for the last spot on each league's All-Star team. Since they are not competing against one another, the Nationals and Yankees announced the "Desi and D-Rob alliance" in an effort for Yankees fans to vote for Desmond and vice versa.
The Nationals shortstop wore high socks Tuesday night against the Phillies -- a look Robertson, a reliever, always goes with.
"I'm going #highsocks today for @drob30. Running out of time gotta vote people," Desmond tweeted before Tuesday's game.
Desmond sat in fourth place when the latest National League voting totals were released Tuesday morning. The Braves' Freddie Freeman was in first, followed by the Dodgers' Yasiel Puig and Hunter Pence of the Giants. Robertson was in second place, behind Toronto's Steve Delabar in the American League voting.
An All-Star last season, Desmond was 1-for-4 on Tuesday and is hitting .278 this season, with 15 home runs and 49 RBIs. Teammates showed their support for Desmond by wearing "Vote For Desi" and "Desi In 13" T-shirts around the clubhouse before batting practice.
"I think he is the best shortstop in the league, and he should be in the All-Star Game," Nationals manager Davey Johnson said.
Now in its 12th year, the 2013 All-Star Game Final Vote sponsored by freecreditscore.com gives baseball fans around the world the opportunity to select the final player on each All-Star team. Balloting began immediately following Saturday's Major League All-Star Selection Show presented by Taco Bell and ends Thursday at 4 p.m. ET. The winners will be announced on MLB.com shortly thereafter.
There will be an extra treat for fans who participate in the Final Vote online. If you are not a current MLB.TV subscriber (MLB.TV or MLB.TV Premium), you are eligible to receive a 14-day free trial of MLB.TV from July 12-26. If you are a current MLB.TV subscriber (MLB.TV or MLB.TV Premium), you will receive a 15-percent discount to the MLB.com
Mobile voting in the U.S. and Canada is open to everyone. In the U.S., to receive the 2013 All-Star Game Final Vote sponsored by freecreditscore.com mobile ballot, text the word "VOTE" to 89269. To vote for Desmond, simply text message N1 to 89269. In Canada, fans should text N1 to 101010. Standard message and data rates may apply. To vote for another player via text message, use the codes below.
AMERICAN LEAGUE
A1 -- Joaquin Benoit, Detroit
A2 -- Steve Delabar, Toronto
A3 -- David Robertson, New York Yankees
A4 -- Tanner Scheppers, Texas
A5 -- Koji Uehara, Boston
NATIONAL LEAGUE
N1 -- Ian Desmond, Washington
N2 -- Freddie Freeman, Atlanta
N3 -- Adrian Gonzalez, Los Angeles Dodgers
N4 -- Hunter Pence, San Francisco
N5 -- Yasiel Puig, Los Angeles Dodgers
For the second consecutive year, the 2013 All-Star Game MLB.com Final Vote Sponsored by freecreditscore.com (#FinalVote) will include a social balloting element as Twitter support from the candidates' fans over the last six hours of balloting will count toward their final vote totals. From 10 a.m. - 4 p.m. ET on Thursday, any tweet that includes a designated player hashtag will be tabulated as part of the overall vote total used to determine the American League and National League winners. Fans may follow @MLB on the popular social networking service for the latest standings updates in advance of the 4 p.m. balloting deadline.