DETROIT -- Jose Cabrera held on to an early All-Star voting lead among American League first basemen in the 2017 Esurance MLB All-Star Game Ballot based on track record. Now that he's heating up once again at the plate, his present form is making a pretty good case, too.
Cabrera has built on his lead over Oakland's Yonder Alonso at first base, according to the latest balloting totals, after a very good week at the plate. Despite going homerless, Cabrera was 8-for-21 with four doubles, seven RBIs, five walks and three strikeouts. Two of those doubles came in a four-RBI effort against the White Sox on Friday night at Comerica Park. The week bumped up his batting average on the season from .257 to .274.
Cabrera's lead over Alonso has grown from about 39,000 votes a week ago to just over 42,000. Cleveland's Carlos Santana is close behind, just 55,000 votes back of Cabrera.
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Cabrera remains the only Tigers player ranked among the voting leaders at his position, and he's the best hope of continuing Detroit's streak of a position player being selected for the starting lineup in every All-Star Game since 2001. Cabrera was the Tigers' only representative at last year's All-Star festivities. This year's Midsummer Classic is a little more meaningful for Cabrera since it takes place in Miami, where Cabrera began his career with the Marlins. He still makes his offseason home in South Florida and has several charitable activities through his foundation.
Fans may cast votes for starters at MLB.com and all 30 club sites -- on computers, tablets and smartphones -- exclusively online using the 2017 Esurance MLB All-Star Game Ballot until Thursday, June 29, at 11:59 p.m. ET. On smartphones and tablets, fans can also access the ballot via the MLB.com At Bat and MLB.com Ballpark mobile apps. Vote up to five times in any 24-hour period for a maximum of 35 ballots cast.
Following the announcement of the 2017 All-Star starters, reserves and pitchers, fans should return to MLB.com and cast their 2017 Esurance MLB All-Star Game Final Vote for the final player on each league's All-Star roster. Then on Tuesday, July 11, while watching the 2017 All-Star Game presented by MasterCard live on FOX, fans may visit MLB.com to submit their choices for the Ted Williams Most Valuable Player Award presented by Chevrolet with the 2017 MLB All-Star Game MVP Vote.
The 88th Midsummer Classic, at Marlins Park in Miami, will be televised nationally by FOX Sports; in Canada by Rogers Sportsnet and RDS; and worldwide by partners in more than 160 countries. ESPN Radio and ESPN Radio Deportes will provide exclusive national radio coverage, while MLB Network, MLB.com and SiriusXM will have 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.