 New York Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez and Philadelphia Phillies second baseman Chase Utley have finished as Major League Baseball’s leading vote-getters in a record year for fan balloting and will start in the 79th All-Star Game, to be played on Tuesday, July 15th as a part of the final season at Yankee Stadium. MLB’s All-Star Balloting Program is the largest of its kind in professional sports. This year, an all-time high 20 million votes were cast. The 2008 American League and National League All-Star Teams were revealed today on the “MLB All-Star Game Selection Show presented by Chevy” on TBS. Rodriguez, now a 12-time American League All-Star who has been fan-elected 11 times, earned Major League Baseball’s highest vote total for the second consecutive year with 3,934,518, surpassing his total from last year (3,890,515). Rodriguez is the first player to be MLB’s overall balloting leader in consecutive years since Ichiro Suzuki of the Seattle Mariners took top billing three years in a row from 2001-2003. Utley, who was the National League’s leading vote-getter throughout the entire balloting process, tallied 3,889,602 votes. The 29-year-old will be the N.L.’s starting second baseman for the third consecutive year. Rodriguez’s teammate, nine-time All-Star Derek Jeter, has won his fourth starting assignment at shortstop, finishing second in the A.L. with 3,737,437 votes. The Yankee tandem will start alongside one another in the Midsummer Classic for the fourth time in the last five years. Ranking third in the A.L. is Texas Rangers outfielder Josh Hamilton, whose 3,708,709 votes have produced a starting berth in the All-Star Game in just his second Major League season. Select Read More to see details on the 2008 All-Star selections, including final balloting results from fan voting, as well as final ballot results from the Player Ballot which includes starting pitchers, reserves via votes from players, managers, and coaches.
Four members of the Boston Red Sox won their positions, including first baseman Kevin Youkilis (2,858,130) and second baseman Dustin Pedroia (2,492,698), both of whom held on in extraordinarily tight races with Justin Morneau (2,801,307) of the Minnesota Twins and Ian Kinsler (2,458,455) of the Rangers, respectively. Boston designated hitter David Ortiz, who is currently on the disabled list, is among the A.L.’s balloting winners for the fourth consecutive year and is now an All-Star for the fifth straight year with 3,554,209 votes. Red Sox outfielder Manny Ramirez has been named to the A.L. All-Star team for the 12th time – including his ninth election by fans – with 3,428,577 votes. Hamilton and Ramirez will be joined in Terry Francona’s A.L. outfield by eight-time All-Star Ichiro Suzuki (2,012,912) of the Seattle Mariners. Suzuki, last year’s Ted Williams All-Star Game MVP presented by Chevrolet after he hit the first inside-the-park home run in Midsummer Classic history, has been elected to start for the seventh time in his Major League career. Behind the plate for the home side will be two-time All-Star Joe Mauer, who becomes the first catcher in Twins’ history to be elected to start in the All-Star Game. The National League All-Star starters include three members of the Chicago Cubs and four players who will be debuting in the Midsummer Classic. Geovany Soto (3,096,135 votes) will be just the second fan-elected starting rookie catcher ever, joining Sandy Alomar, Jr. of the Cleveland Indians in 1990, and the first fan-elected Cubs catcher since balloting returned to fans in 1970. The Cubs also will send outfielders Alfonso Soriano (3,353,977), an All-Star for the sixth straight year, and Kosuke Fukudome (2,994,935), the first-year Major Leaguer who will become just the third Japanese position player to start in the All-Star Game, joining Ichiro and New York Yankees outfielder Hideki Matsui (a replacement in the A.L.’s starting lineup in 2003). Overall, Fukudome is the eighth Japanese native to make the Midsummer Classic. Fukudome, who was among the N.L.’s leading outfielders from the outset of balloting, edged out Cincinnati Reds veteran Ken Griffey, Jr. (2,907,746), the most popular player in the history of All-Star balloting. Soriano and Fukudome will play alongside Ryan Braun of the Milwaukee Brewers in Clint Hurdle’s starting outfield. Braun, who was as low as 10th among N.L. outfielders on June 3rd, capped a remarkable surge by not only joining the starting lineup in the final stages of balloting but also finishing as the leader at the position with 3,835,890 votes, second only to Utley’s total among all N.L. players. The 2007 N.L. Rookie of the Year is the first Brewers outfielder ever elected by fans to start in the All-Star Game. Joining Utley in the infield will be Chipper Jones of the Atlanta Braves, Major League Baseball’s leading hitter, who won balloting at third base for the fourth time overall and the first time since 2001. It will be the sixth Midsummer Classic for Jones, whose 3,722,211 votes ranked third in the N.L. behind Utley and Braun. Across the diamond, five-time N.L. All-Star Lance Berkman (3,373,696) of the Houston Astros has won fan balloting for the first time in his career and will be the visiting side’s starting first baseman. At shortstop, Hanley Ramirez (2,326,285) of the Florida Marlins has earned his first All-Star berth and becomes just the second player in franchise history to win his position in fan balloting. The only other Marlin to be a fan-elected starter was Gary Sheffield, who was the N.L.’s third baseman in 1993. Ramirez held off 2007 All-Star J.J. Hardy (2,207,730) of the Brewers, four-time All-Star Miguel Tejada (2,025,995) of the Astros and Ryan Theriot (2,003,743) of the Cubs for the starting position. Fans now have the opportunity to select the final player for each League's 32-man roster at MLB.com. Now in its seventh year, the Monster 2008 All-Star Final Vote will provide fans the opportunity to cast their votes from a list of five players from each League over a four-day period. For the fourth year, fans will be able to vote for their Final Vote selections on their mobile phone. Both winners of the Monster All-Star Final Vote will be announced after the voting has concluded on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, fans once again will have the opportunity to participate in the official voting for the 79th All-Star Game’s Ted Williams Most Valuable Player presented by Chevrolet via the Monster All-Star Game MVP Vote on MLB.com. The 79th Major League Baseball All-Star Game, being held at Yankee Stadium in its final season, will be televised nationally by FOX Sports, in Canada by Rogers Sportsnet and Sportsnet HD and televised around the world by Major League Baseball International, with pregame ceremonies beginning at 8:00 p.m. (EDT). The 2008 All-Star Game will be preceded by FOX’s coverage of the “2008 All-Star Game Red Carpet Parade Presented by Chevy” along Sixth Avenue in Manhattan at 7:00 p.m. (EDT). ESPN Radio will provide exclusive national radio coverage of the 2008 All-Star Game that will also be available on XM Satellite Radio, while MLB.com will provide extensive online coverage. For the sixth consecutive year, the outcome of the All-Star Game will have an impact on postseason play, as the winning League in this year's All-Star Game will have home-field advantage in the 2008 World Series. N.L. Player | Club | Votes | All-Star | | Selections | Elections | C Geovany Soto | CHI | 3,096,135 | 1st | 1st | 1B Lance Berkman | HOU | 3,373,696 | 5th | 1st | 2B Chase Utley | PHI | 3,889,602 | 3rd | 3rd | SS Hanley Ramirez | FLA | 2,326,285 | 1st | 1st | 3B Chipper Jones | ATL | 3,722,211 | 6th | 4th | OF Ryan Braun | MIL | 3,835,890 | 1st | 1st | OF Kosuke Fukudome | CHI | 2,994,935 | 1st | 1st | OF Alfonso Soriano | CHI | 3,353,977 | 7th | 5th | A.L. Player | Club | Votes | All-Star | | Selections | Elections | C Joe Mauer | MIN | 2,885,246 | 2nd | 1st | 1B Kevin Youkilis | BOS | 2,858,130 | 1st | 1st | 2B Dustin Pedroia | BOS | 2,492,698 | 1st | 1st | SS Derek Jeter | NYY | 3,737,437 | 9th | 4th | 3B Alex Rodriguez | NYY | 3,934,518 | 12th | 11th | OF Josh Hamilton | TEX | 3,708,709 | 1st | 1st | OF Manny Ramirez | BOS | 3,428,577 | 12th | 9th | OF Ichiro Suzuki | SEA | 2,012,912 | 8th | 7th | DH David Ortiz | BOS | 3,554,209 | 5th | 4th | 
Select the image above to see final All-Star Game voting for 2008 (PDF) All-Star Game Pitchers and Reserves Announced via Player Ballot In addition to the starters who were elected by the fans, pitchers and reserve players were named to the All-Star Game rosters by the Player Ballot – a vote of the players, managers and coaches – and by the All-Star Game managers in conjunction with Major League Baseball. National League position players who have qualified for the 2008 All-Star Game as a result of Player Balloting include catcher Russell Martin of the Los Angeles Dodgers; first baseman Adrian Gonzalez of the San Diego Padres; second baseman Dan Uggla of the Florida Marlins; third baseman Aramis Ramirez of the Chicago Cubs; shortstop Miguel Tejada of the Houston Astros; and outfielders Matt Holliday of the Colorado Rockies, Nate McLouth of the Pittsburgh Pirates and Ryan Ludwick of the St. Louis Cardinals. National League pitchers who have earned All-Star honors stemming from the Player Ballot include starters Brandon Webb of the Arizona Diamondbacks; rookie right-hander Edinson Vólquez of the Cincinnati Reds; second-year right-hander Tim Lincecum of the San Francisco Giants; right-hander Ben Sheets of the Milwaukee Brewers; and right-hander Ryan Dempster of the Cubs. The All-Star relievers who topped Player Balloting are Brad Lidge of the Philadelphia Phillies; Kerry Wood of the Cubs; and Brian Wilson of the Giants. Hurdle had seven slots to use on the rest of the N.L. roster. He chose pitchers Aaron Cook of the Rockies; Dan Haren of the Diamondbacks; left-handed closer Billy Wagner of the New York Mets; and right-hander Carlos Zambrano of the Cubs. The position players chosen by the manager include catcher Brian McCann of the Atlanta Braves; shortstop Cristian Guzman of the Washington Nationals; and first baseman Albert Pujols of the Cardinals. The final National League roster spot, as decided by the Monster 2008 All-Star Final Vote, will be contested among outfielder Pat Burrell of the Philadelphia Phillies; outfielder Corey Hart of the Milwaukee Brewers; outfielder Carlos Lee of the Astros; outfielder Aaron Rowand of the Giants; and third baseman David Wright of the Mets. American League position players who are invited to the 79th All-Star Game as a result of Player Balloting are catcher Jason Varitek of the Boston Red Sox; first baseman Justin Morneau of the Minnesota Twins; the double-play combination of the Texas Rangers, second baseman Ian Kinsler and shortstop Michael Young; third baseman Joe Crede of the Chicago White Sox; outfielders J.D. Drew of the Red Sox, Grady Sizemore of the Cleveland Indians and Carlos Quentin of the White Sox; and designated hitter Milton Bradley of the Rangers. American League pitchers who have made the All-Star Game as a result of the Player Ballot include left-hander Cliff Lee of the Indians; Toronto Blue Jays right-hander Roy Halladay; Tampa Bay Rays left-hander Scott Kazmir; Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim teammates Joe Saunders, Ervin Santana and Francisco Rodriguez; closer Mariano Rivera of the host New York Yankees; and closer Jonathan Papelbon of the Red Sox. Francona had six selections to fill out much of the remainder of the A.L. roster, which included the five spots usually allotted to the A.L. manager when the All-Star Game is held in an A.L. park and an additional choice to fill the roster spot of Boston’s David Ortiz, the fan-elected starting designated hitter, who is on the disabled list and will be unable to play in the Midsummer Classic. Among these choices are infielder Carlos Guillen of the Detroit Tigers and catcher Dioner Navarro of the Rays. The pitchers include starter Justin Duchscherer of the Oakland Athletics and closers George Sherrill of the Baltimore Orioles, Joakim Soria of the Kansas City Royals and Joe Nathan of the Twins. The final American League roster spot, as decided by the Monster 2008 All-Star Final Vote, will be contested among outfielder Jermaine Dye of the White Sox; first baseman Jason Giambi of the Yankees; outfielder Jose Guillen of the Royals; third baseman Evan Longoria of the Rays; and second baseman Brian Roberts of the Orioles. Fans now have the opportunity to select the final player for each League's 32-man roster at MLB.com. Now in its seventh year, the Monster 2008 All-Star Final Vote will provide fans the opportunity to cast their votes from a list of five players from each League over a four-day period. For the fourth year, fans will be able to vote for their Final Vote selections on their mobile phone. Both winners of the Monster All-Star Final Vote will be announced after the voting has concluded on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, fans once again will have the opportunity to participate in the official voting for the 79th All-Star Game’s Ted Williams Most Valuable Player presented by Chevrolet via the Monster All-Star Game MVP Vote on MLB.com. 
Select the image above to see the final voting via Player Ballot for the 2008 All-Star Game (PDF) Source: Multiple press releases from Major League Baseball
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