Three SF Giants finalists to be All-Star Game starters

As the MLB regular season continues, the All-Star Game between the American and National League moves closer. With the best record in the league, the SF Giants should be well represented at the midsummer classic. After MLB released the finalists to be starters at this year’s game, three Giants remain in contention: catcher Buster Posey, shortstop Brandon Crawford, and outfielder Mike Yastrzemski.

While Crawford has probably been the most valuable player on the Giants, combining his stellar defense with a .861 OPS and 16 home runs, Posey is the only Giant slated to start if voting had ended in the previous round. Posey has been spelled at catcher quite a bit, missing 25 games thus far in the season, but he’s hit 12 home runs and mashed an elite .326/.412/.554 triple-slash. Yastrzemski started the season off slowly but has rebounded well over the last month. Still, his .227/.332/.472 line with 10 home runs leaves a bit to be desired, especially compared to other outfielders around the league.

Three SF Giants players (Buster Posey, Brandon Crawford, and Mike Yastrzemski) have reached the final stages of All-Star Game voting.

Posey was the leading vote-getter among National League catchers in Phase 1 of voting, Crawford finished third among NL shortstops, and Yastrzemski secured the ninth (and final) spot among outfielders. However, all votes have been reset in Phase 2, meaning it’s anybody’s game at every position if a fanbase gets their ballots cast.

Posey will be competing against familiar foes for All-Star eligibility: Willson Contreras of the Cubs and Yadier Molina of the Cardinals. The three of them have started in nine of the last 11 All-Star games at catcher for the NL. Molina and Contreras are both having respectable years, but none stack up against Posey. Molina is hitting .254/.306/.423 with seven home runs. Contreras has 13 big flies and a .227/.321/.425 triple-slash.

Crawford will have to top a pair of big names at shortstop for the starting spot: Javier Baez and Fernando Tatis Jr. Baez is hitting just .228 with a .267 on-base percentage this season, but he’s also hit 18 home runs. Tatis, on the other hand, has dealt with injuries and defensive struggles but leads the league in home runs (25), stolen bases (16), slugging percentage (.697), and OPS (1.074).

Yaz will have the most competition, with nine players eligible for three spots in the outfield: Ronald Acuña Jr. (Atlanta), Jesse Winker (Reds), Nick Castellanos (Reds), Mookie Betts (Dodgers), Bryce Harper (Phillies), Joc Pederson (Cubs), Juan Soto (Nationals), and Chris Taylor (Dodgers).

The SF Giants deserve to have multiple players make the National League All-Star team this year. However, if Buster Posey, Brandon Crawford, and Mike Yastrzemski are going to have an opportunity to start, fans will have to cast their ballots before 2:00 pm EST (11:00 am PST) on Tuesday to give their favorite players a shot.