KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KCTV) – Kansas City Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. is trailing in one of the tightest voting races for a starting spot in the American League All-Star lineup.
Witt Jr. trails Athletics rookie shortstop Jacob Wilson for the top spot at shortstop, according to an update from MLB.
Wilson led with 562,696 votes and Witt Jr. trailed with 519,984, after voting opened on June 4.
READ MORE: Here’s how you can vote to send your favorite Royals to the All-Star Game
Last season, Witt Jr. made his first career All-Star appearance as a reserve, losing out to Baltimore Orioles shortstop Gunnar Henderson in the voting process. Now, he’s in another battle with Wilson, who has a .367 batting average and .401 on-base percentage as a rookie.
With a special defensive season at shortstop and better power numbers, Witt Jr. has a better wins above replacement (WAR) than the Athletics’ rookie.
Maikel Garcia (seventh among third basemen), Vinnie Pasquantino (sixth among first basemen) and Salvador Perez (eighth among catchers) were outside of the top 5 in their position.
This year’s MLB All-Star Game will be played in Atlanta, Georgia, on Tuesday, July 15.
Voting will take place in two phases. According to the MLB, the first phase will include one nominated player at each position from every club. At the end of phase one, the top overall vote getter in the National League and American League will automatically earn a starting roster spot at their position.
In the remaining positions, the top two players for each infield position and top six players for outfield positions will move on to the second phase of voting.
Last year, the Royals had four All-Stars, with Witt Jr. and pitchers Seth Lugo and Cole Ragans each making their first appearance while Perez made his ninth All-Star appearance.
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