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Jose Bautista among outfield leaders in final A.L. balloting update

Miguel Cabrera aiming to become first Tiger to Lead A.L. in balloting; All-Star Game MLB.com Ballot sponsored by FreeCreditScore.com closes Thursday at 11:59 p.m. (ET); 2013 All-Star Game Selection Show presented by Taco Bell to Reveal All-Stars on Saturday at 6:30 p.m. (ET) on FOX

Toronto Blue Jays outfielder Jose Bautista, who was Major League Baseball's leading vote-getter in 2011, has joined the American League outfield leaders in the final balloting update for the 84th All-Star Game, to be played on Tuesday, July 16th at Citi Field in New York. The final National League balloting update will be revealed tomorrow afternoon, and the All-Star Game MLB.com Ballot Sponsored by freecreditscore.com will officially close at 11:59 p.m. (ET) on Thursday night. Rosters for the Midsummer Classic will be revealed on FOX on Saturday at 6:30 p.m. (ET) on the 2013 All-Star Game Selection Show Presented by Taco Bell.

Bautista, a three-time All-Star and fan-elected starter in each of the last two seasons, has totaled 2,679,230 votes to pull in front of Nick Markakis (2,536,864) of the Baltimore Orioles for the third outfield spot. Bautista would become the first Blue Jays outfielder, and the second Blue Jays player ever, to receive three fan-elected starting assignments, joining Hall of Famer Roberto Alomar, who earned four consecutive fan-elected starts at second base from 1991-94. The Dominican Republic native, who has RBI in seven of his last nine games, ranks among A.L. leaders with 19 home runs (T-6th); 53 runs scored (T-6th); and 43 walks (T-6th). The 32-year-old, who leads all Major Leaguers with 143 home runs since the start of the 2010 season, is followed by Markakis, four-time All-Star and two-time fan-elected starter Torii Hunter (2,390,336) of the Detroit Tigers, 2009 A.L. All-Star Nelson Cruz (2,258,797) of the Texas Rangers and 2008 N.L. All-Star Nate McLouth (2,169,772) of the Orioles.

Reigning A.L. Rookie of the Year Mike Trout of the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim has surpassed a fellow leading outfielder, Adam Jones of the Orioles for the top spot in the outfield. Trout, who has received 4,822,983 votes, is tied for second in the A.L. with 33 multi-hit games. The 21-year-old collected 39 hits in June, which was tied for the A.L. lead, and since June 14th, he is batting .393 (24-for-61) with 10 RBI, 10 runs scored and six stolen bases over 15 games. The New Jersey native, who is the only player in the A.L. to hit at least 10 home runs and steal at least 20 bases this season, was the seventh-youngest A.L. position player in All-Star history last year. He is aiming to join Hall of Famer Reggie Jackson (1982-84), Fred Lynn (1982-83) and Vladimir Guerrero (2004-07) as the only outfielders in Angels history to earn a fan-elected starting assignment. Jones, who has garnered 4,766,256, is contending for his first fan-elected start and his third All-Star selection overall. He would join Hall of Famer Frank Robinson (1970-71), Ken Singleton (1981) and Brady Anderson (1997) as the only outfielders in Orioles history to be voted an All-Star by the fans. The 27-year-old San Diego native ranks among A.L. leaders with 56 runs scored (4th), 101 hits (5th), 22 doubles (T-5th) and 57 RBI (T-6th).

Tigers third baseman Miguel Cabrera, who leads the Majors with a .373 batting average and 82 RBI, holds a close advantage over Orioles first baseman Chris Davis, who leads the Majors with 31 home runs, for the highest overall vote total in the A.L. Cabrera, who has received 5,844,165 votes, also leads the Majors with 64 runs scored, 118 hits and a .461 on-base percentage, while Davis, who has 5,468,703 votes, also leads the Majors with a .728 slugging percentage. Cabrera, the 2012 A.L. MVP and Triple Crown winner, is trying to secure his first-ever fan-elected start and his eighth All-Star selection overall. He would become just the fifth Tigers infielder in history to receive a fan-elected start, joining Lou Whitaker (1984-86), Alan Trammell (1988), Placido Polanco (2007) and Prince Fielder (2012). Miguel is followed at third base by 20-year-old Manny Machado (2,752,627) of the Orioles, who leads the Majors with 38 doubles and 34 multi-hit games. Machado is on pace for 73 doubles this season, which would break the all-time single-season record of 67, set by Boston's Earl Webb in 1931. Davis, who is vying for his first All-Star selection, is the first player in baseball history with at least 30 home runs and at least 25 doubles by the end of June. In addition, he is just the eighth player in MLB history to have at least 30 homers before the end of June. The 27-year-old Texas native would become the third Orioles first baseman to gain a starting nod, joining Boog Powell (1970-71) and Hall of Famer Eddie Murray (1985). Davis is followed by four-time All-Star and three-time fan-elected starter Prince Fielder (3,280,681) of the Tigers.

A.L. East rivals J.J. Hardy of the Orioles and Robinson Cano of the New York Yankees maintained their leads up the middle to round out the A.L. infield. Hardy, an N.L. All-Star in 2007, leads A.L. shortstops with 15 home runs and 46 RBI as he aims for his first starting assignment. He would join Hall of Famer Cal Ripken, Jr. (1984-87, 89-96) and Miguel Tejada (2005) as the only Orioles shortstops to earn fan-elected starts. Hardy, along with Davis and Jones, are looking to become the third trio of Orioles in franchise history to earn starting assignments together. They would join Boog Powell and Hall of Famers Brooks Robinson and Frank Robinson in 1971, and Brady Anderson and Hall of Famers Ripken and Alomar in 1997. Hardy, who has tallied 3,509,180 votes, is followed at shortstop by 2011 A.L. All-Star Jhonny Peralta (2,505,348) of the Tigers. Cano, the A.L. captain for the 2013 Chevrolet Home Run Derby, is seeking his fifth All-Star selection and fourth consecutive fan-elected start. He would become the first A.L. second baseman to earn four straight starting nods since Alomar accomplished the feat in five consecutive years from 1996-2000. Cano, who leads Major League second basemen with 17 home runs, has received 3,974,322 votes. He is followed by three-time All-Star and two-time fan-elected starter Dustin Pedroia (2,838,129) of the Red Sox, who leads Major League second basemen with 53 runs scored, 104 hits, a .322 batting average and a .401 on-base percentage.

Minnesota Twins catcher Joe Mauer has tallied 3,869,330 votes as he contends for his fourth fan-elected starting assignment behind the plate and his sixth All-Star selection overall. The 2009 A.L. MVP would join Ivan Rodriguez (12) and Hall of Famer Carlton Fisk (7) as the only A.L. catchers to earn four fan-elected starts. In addition, he would become one of three players in Twins history to accomplish the feat, joining Hall of Famers Rod Carew (9) and Kirby Puckett (6). Mauer, who leads A.L. catchers and ranks third among Major League catchers with a .320 average, is followed by Matt Wieters (2,677,959) of the Orioles. Mauer also leads Major League catchers with 49 runs scored and a .404 on-base percentage, and he ranks second with 24 doubles.

Red Sox designated hitter David Ortiz has totaled 4,398,197 votes as he aims for his ninth All-Star selection and seventh fan-elected starting assignment. Ortiz, who is followed by Lance Berkman (2,004,388) of the Rangers, would become the second Red Sox player in history to earn seven fan-elected starts, joining his former teammate Manny Ramirez, and he would become the 10th player in A.L. history to receive at least seven fan-elected starts with a single team. The 37-year-old native of the Dominican Republic ranks fourth in the Majors with 57 RBI since his season debut on April 20th. Ortiz, who is one double shy of 500 for his career, is currently riding a seven-game hitting streak, batting .417 (10-for-24) with three RBI in that stretch. With his next double, he will join Todd Helton (574), Derek Jeter (524), Albert Pujols (521) and Alex Rodriguez (512) as the only active players with 500 doubles. In addition, Ortiz, who has 416 career home runs, would become the 20th player in Major League history to reach both the 400-homer and 500-double milestones.

MLB's All-Star Balloting Program is the largest of its kind in professional sports, and last year produced a record-shattering total of 40.2 million ballots cast. This year, more than 20 million Firestone All-Star ballots will be distributed at the 30 Major League ballparks, each of which will have 25 dates for balloting, and in approximately 100 Minor League ballparks. 

In addition, fans around the world can cast their votes for starters 25 times exclusively at MLB.com and all 30 Club web sites - online or via their mobile devices - with the 2013 All-Star Game MLB.com Ballot Sponsored by freecreditscore.com. During the voting period, the All-Star Game MLB.com Ballot Sponsored by freecreditscore.com will be available in English, Spanish, Japanese, Korean and Chinese, and will offer audio CAPTCHA functionality for visually-impaired fans. Banco BHD will sponsor online All-Star balloting in the Dominican Republic, making Spanish-language ballots available to fans in the Dominican Republic via LasMayores.com, the official Spanish-language Web site of Major League Baseball.

Every Major League Club began its in-stadium balloting no later than Tuesday, May 7th. The in-stadium phase of balloting concluded on Friday, June 28th, but fans will continue to have the opportunity to cast their ballots exclusively online at MLB.com, the 30 Club Web sites and their mobile devices until Thursday, July 4th at 11:59 p.m. (EDT).

Firestone, the official tire of MLB, is once again the exclusive sponsor of the 2013 In-Stadium All-Star Balloting Program. The ballot features an All-Star sweepstakes, in which a winner will be rewarded with a trip for two to MLB All-Star Week, including airfare, hotel accommodations and tickets to the All-Star Game and other MLB All-Star Week events.

For the fifth consecutive year, this year's ballot features the Home Run Derby Fan Poll. Fans will have the opportunity to select the three players in each League who they would most like to see participate in the Home Run Derby. The Fan Poll is also available online at MLB.com. The 2013 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 8:00 p.m. (EDT) on Monday, July 15th. The 10 American League candidates are Jose Bautista of the Toronto Blue Jays; Adrian Beltre of the Texas Rangers; Miguel Cabrera of the Detroit Tigers; the winner of the 2011 Home Run Derby, Robinson Cano of the New York Yankees; Adam Dunn of the Chicago White Sox; the winner of the 2009 and 2012 Home Run Derby, Prince Fielder of the Tigers; Josh Hamilton of the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim; Adam Jones of the Baltimore Orioles; Evan Longoria of the Tampa Bay Rays; and Mike Trout of the Angels. The 10 National League candidates are Carlos Beltran of the St. Louis Cardinals; Ryan Braun of the Milwaukee Brewers; Bryce Harper of the Washington Nationals; Jason Heyward of the Atlanta Braves; Matt Kemp of the Los Angeles Dodgers; Andrew McCutchen of the Pittsburgh Pirates; Buster Posey of the San Francisco Giants; Giancarlo Stanton of the Miami Marlins; Joey Votto of the Cincinnati Reds; and David Wright of the Mets.

The 2013 American League and National League All-Star Teams will be unveiled on Saturday, July 6th on the 2013 MLB All-Star Game Selection Show presented by Taco Bell, televised nationally on FOX at 6:30 p.m. (EDT) prior to its slate of prime time games that evening. The show, airing live from MLB Network's Studio 3, will feature MLB Network personalities Matt Vasgersian, three-time All-Star Dan Plesac and two-time All-Star Harold Reynolds. 

The A.L. All-Star Team will have nine elected starters via the fan balloting program, while the N.L. All-Star Team will have eight fan-elected starters. The pitchers and reserves for both squads - totaling 25 for the N.L. and 24 for the A.L. - will be determined through a combination of "Player Ballot" choices and selections made by the two All-Star managers - A.L. skipper Jim Leyland of the Detroit Tigers and N.L. manager Bruce Bochy of the defending World Series Champion San Francisco Giants.

Immediately following the announcement of the American League and National League All-Star rosters, fans will begin voting to select the final player for each League's 34-man roster via the 2013 All-Star Game MLB.com Final Vote Sponsored by freecreditscore.com. Fans will cast their votes from a list of five players from each League over a four-day period and the winners will be announced after the voting concludes on Thursday, July 11th. Now in its 12th season with more than 350 million votes cast, fans again will be able to make their Final Vote selections on MLB.com, Club sites and their mobile phones.

This year's final phase of All-Star Game voting again will 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 and the 30 Club sites via the 2013 All-Star Game MLB.com MVP Vote, and their collective voice will represent 20 percent of the official vote determining this year's recipient of the Arch Ward Trophy. 

The 2013 All-Star Game will be played at Citi Field on Tuesday, July 16th. The 84th 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. Pregame ceremonies will begin at 7:30 p.m. (EDT). 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, please visit allstargame.com or mets.com/asg.