With All-Star balloting set to end tonight at 11:59 p.m. (ET), five positional races are set up for down-to-the-wire finishes, including the starting spot at third base in both leagues, in fan voting for the 2017 MLB All-Star Game presented by Mastercard. The 2017 Esurance MLB All-Star Game Ballot, available exclusively online via MLB.com, Club sites and mobile devices, closes tonight, setting the stage for Sunday's official announcement of the American League and National League All-Star Teams on the "Esurance All-Star Selection Show" on ESPN at 7:00 p.m. (ET) - prior to the network's 8:00 p.m. (ET) "Sunday Night Baseball" telecast featuring the Washington Nationals at the St. Louis Cardinals.
In the American League, a triumvirate of third basemen is vying for the start with less than 60,000 votes separating all three players. Miguel Sanó (MIN) continues to lead the way with 1,764,734 votes, followed very closely by José Ramírez (CLE - 1,730,869) and Josh Donaldson (TOR - 1,671,408). A second tight three-player race in the AL balloting is for the designated hitter spot, where new leader Corey Dickerson (TB - 1,616,809) holds a small edge over both Nelson Cruz (SEA - 1,557,747) and Edwin Encarnacion (CLE - 1,505,226).
The National League has three of its own close races coming down the stretch, including at first base where Anthony Rizzo (CHI - 1,915,790) is trying to catch Ryan Zimmerman (WSH - 1,989,104) and trails by less than 75,000 votes. At third base, Nolan Arenado (COL - 2,426,431) is vying to hold off Kris Bryant (CHI - 2,322,249), while Zack Cozart (CIN - 2,260,205) maintains a narrow lead over Corey Seager (LAD - 2,151,923).
WHERE ARE THE VOTES COMING FROM?
For regional analysis of these closest races in the 2017 Esurance MLB All-Star Game Ballot, go to MLB.com's data visualization map.
FINAL VOTE BEGINS SUNDAY
Following Sunday's announcement of the American League and National League All-Star rosters, fans will begin voting to select the final player for each League's 32-man roster via the 2017 Esurance MLB All-Star Game Final Vote. Fans will cast their votes from a list of five players from each League over the balloting period. Now in its 16th season with over 680 million votes cast, fans again will be able to make their Final Vote selections on MLB.com, Club sites and their mobile devices. The winners of the Final Vote will be announced live on MLB Network's MLB Tonight on Thursday, July 6th at 6:00 p.m. ET.
MLB All-Star Week includes the MLB All-Star Game presented by Mastercard at Marlins Park (July 11th), Gatorade All-Star Workout Day featuring the T-Mobile Home Run Derby (July 10th), All-Star Sunday featuring the SiriusXM All-Star Futures Game and All-Star Legends & Celebrity Softball Game (July 9th), All-Star FanFest at the Miami Beach Convention Center (July 7th-11th), plus a lineup of additional events taking place around the city. The 88th Midsummer Classic will be televised nationally by FOX Sports; in Canada by Rogers Sportsnet and RDS; and worldwide by partners in more than 180 countries. FOX Deportes will provide Spanish language coverage in the United States, while ESPN Radio and ESPN Radio Deportes will provide exclusive national radio coverage of the All-Star Game. MLB Network, MLB.com and Sirius XM also will provide comprehensive All-Star Week coverage. For more information about MLB All-Star Week and to purchase tickets, please visit AllStarGame.com and follow @AllStarGame on social media.