Two Under-the-Radar A's All-Star Candidates

Over the weekend, Lawrence Butler hit his 10th home run of the year in Kansas City and helped lead his team to a sweep of the Royals. In the leadoff spot, Butler has been a key piece of the offense and a spark plug to start off the game.

He's tied for the league lead in doubles and his soaring home runs have brought a lot of fan excitement to Sutter Health Park. Lately, he's been able to find his stride and now has a rhythm with the rest of the lineup, and provided star-worthy moments during the last homestand.

Blossoming Butler

Lawrence Butler talked about his emergence as one of the best young hitters in MLB in this podcast clip on the Underdog MLB Show. His "love for the game" and "raw emotion" as he describes just comes naturally to him, and he mentions that anything you see him do on the field is unplanned and simply the way that he goes about playing baseball.

The personality of Lawrence Butler is certainly unique, and he makes his mark on every game he plays in. His passion shines through in his clothing choices, his at-bats and in the outfield. A's fans have been treated to many of his home runs at Sutter Health Park this year, and will continue to enjoy watching him round the bases for the green and gold.

Butler's goal for this season has been to play his way to the All Star Game in his home city of Atlanta, Georgia. While he currently isn't a leading vote-getter, perhaps the League will find a way for him to make the trip.

A Case for Clarke

After Clarke's unreal catch in Anaheim, former Angels star outfielder Torii Hunter gave high praise to the young A's star. "This has to be one of the best catches I've ever seen, and I've seen my share of home run robberies," he commented in a social media post.

This kind of excitement and style is perfect for the MLB All-Star Game, and would certainly draw a lot of attention and viewership for the league. The post of the catch in Anaheim currently has 13.4M views on X. If MLB wants to continue to grow the game and gain more young fans, it's important for them to acknowledge and celebrate their young stars.

The one caveat with Clarke in particular is that he made his MLB debut on May 23, and while his defense has been truly special, his bat hasn't quite gotten going. He's not likely to make the team this year, but certainly keep an eye out for him when Gold Gloves are being handed out.

How Voting Works

Each MLB All-Star roster is made up of 32 players—20 position players and 12 pitchers. There are two voting phases. The current voting period ends on Thursday, June 26 at noon ET. During this time, fans can vote for the All-Star starters -- eight position players and one designated hitter--for each league.

Voting is allowed five times every 24-hour period. Each day, after submitting a fifth vote on the ballot, fans will be given the option to be redirected to the mobile game PRO SPIRIT for the opportunity to vote for a sixth time.

The player with the most overall votes in each league is automatically named a starter and bypasses the second phase of voting. The top two vote-getters at each position (and the top six outfielders, reduced if the league's top vote-getter is an outfielder) in each league advance to Phase 2 (June 30-July 2).

Cast your ballot here!

The 2025 MLB All-Star Game will take place at 8 p.m. ET on Tuesday, July 15 at Truist Park in Atlanta.