Final Vote races tighten; LoMo in 5th

July 5th, 2017

CHICAGO -- After another quality start and notching his first career hit Tuesday, Chris Archer figured it might be time for some more responsibility. Specifically, the right-hander began his stint as the campaign manager for in the 2017 Esurance All-Star Game Final Vote, announcing his intentions on Twitter before going into more detail on Wednesday.
Cast your Esurance Final Vote for Morrison
"I don't even know [how it happened]. I went on MLB Network and was campaigning for Corey Dickerson to win the fan vote [to start] the All-Star Game," Archer said. "We're all doing our part. We're all tweeting, we're all really pushing for LoMo to get that last spot."
:: Complete All-Star Game coverage ::
Fans can cast ballots for the 2017 Esurance MLB All-Star Game Final Vote on MLB.com, club sites and their mobile devices until 4 p.m. ET today. The winners, as chosen exclusively by online fan voting totals, will then be announced during "MLB Tonight" live on MLB Network and MLB.com at 6 p.m. Extensive coverage throughout the Final Vote will be provided by MLB Network and MLB.com, including interviews with the candidates, frequent updates, heat maps indicating where votes are being cast for each candidate, news on player and club campaigns, and a running countdown clock leading up to the announcement.
Archer's stint unofficially began at 8:50 a.m., when he sent out a tweet to his near 85,000 followers urging them to get out and vote for Morrison, who has some ground to make up.
After Tuesday's returns, the first baseman remained in fifth in the AL vote. Kansas City's Mike Moustakas was leading the way with 8.5 million votes, followed by Boston's , New York's Didi Gregorius and Texas' .
"Good morning!" Archer tweeted. "I'm a part time campaign manager and I say #VoteLoMo for the final vote for the '17 all star game! Do it NOW! (LoMo voice)"

Archer hasn't been the only one spreading the word.
Several Rays, including right fielder Steven Souza Jr., third baseman and right-hander have all shared their own posts.
The Rays have also gone offline to spread the message, deploying what the team's Twitter account referred to as the "most elite mass communication technique" in Tampa Bay -- fixing a banner on the end of a speed boat that read "VOTE RAYS LOGAN MORRISON TO THE ALL STAR GAME ! MLB.COM."

While he was impressed by the gesture, Archer wasn't quite sure if he had anything that big in his campaign-manager bag of tricks.
"Nah, nah," Archer said with a smile. "Just little stuff, tweets. Hopefully it goes a long way."
That being said, the biggest opportunity for a statement Wednesday wasn't on Twitter or the ocean -- or anywhere other than Wrigley Field for that matter. After getting the day off Tuesday, Morrison returned to the lineup for the finale against the Cubs. He went 2-for-4 in the Rays' 7-3 loss, singling in the first and ninth innings -- though in each instance he became a part of a double play during the ensuing at-bat.
Morrison, who entered Wednesday tied for third in the Majors with 24 home runs, said he appreciated the support of his teammates, but affirmed an earlier statement that he has one primary role with the club, and outside of that, things are out of his hands.
"Like I said before, I'm a baseball player. My job is to win games," Morrison said. "So my teammates helping me out sounds -- it's appreciated. Hopefully it works, but we'll see."
Now in its 16th season, with more than 680 million votes cast, the Final Vote again will include social votes on the last day of balloting, as Twitter support for the 10 candidates over the final six hours of balloting will count toward their 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 official vote total used to determine the winners.
On Tuesday, July 11 at 7:30 p.m. ET, tune in to the 2017 All-Star Game presented by Mastercard live on FOX, and during the game visit MLB.com to submit your choice for the Ted Williams Most Valuable Player Award presented by Chevrolet via the 2017 MLB All-Star Game MVP Vote. The 88th All-Star Game, in Miami, will be televised nationally by FOX, in Canada by Rogers Sportsnet and RDS, and worldwide by partners in more than 160 countries via MLB International's independent feed. ESPN Radio and ESPN Radio Deportes will provide national radio coverage of the All-Star Game. MLB.com, MLB Network and SiriusXM will also provide comprehensive All-Star Week coverage. For more information, please visit allstargame.com.