Marlins’ Otto Lopez, others overlooked in All-Star fan voting
The Miami Marlins’ hot month has made them harder to ignore, but All-Star voters still found a way.
With Phase 1 of MLB All-Star fan voting now closed, several of Miami’s strongest candidates failed to advance to the final fan-vote round.
The most notable is shortstop Otto Lopez, who leads the majors in batting average and is the only player in baseball to have reached 100 hits this season. Despite that, Lopez ranked outside the top two in the latest public voting update, leaving the Marlins’ strongest All-Star case to be decided outside the fan vote as a reserve.
“He’s been a hitting machine since Day 1 of the season, and he’s played high-level defense,” Marlins manager Clayton McCullough said. “It’s hard to find somebody at that position who’s having a better year. He’s doing it on both sides, so he’s making a stronger case for himself each and every day.
Lopez wasn’t the only Marlin whose production failed to earn them a spot in the fan vote.
His double-play partner, second baseman Xavier Edwards, has put together one of the more well-rounded first halves among National League infielders, while designated hitter Liam Hicks’ 53 RBI are still tied for the seventh-highest total in baseball despite his recent stint on the injured list with a low back strain.
Still, neither cracked the top five at his position in NL fan voting.
Why the Marlins’ All-Star Cases Aren’t Over
Of the two National League shortstops who advanced over Lopez to Phase 2, the case for Washington Nationals shortstop CJ Abrams is much easier to explain. Lopez has him beat as a pure hitter, but Abrams has the power numbers with 17 home runs and 57 RBI to go along with a higher OPS.
Los Angeles Dodgers shortstop Mookie Betts is the tougher one to justify statistically.
Betts advanced to Phase 2 despite being in the midst of the worst offensive season of his career, hitting .230, more than 100 points below Lopez’s .340 batting average, with a .290 on-base percentage and .705 OPS, also well behind Lopez’s .374 OBP and .856 OPS.
As a former AL MVP and four-time World Series champion, Betts is understandably far more popular with voters than Lopez, who is just more than two years removed from being designated for assignment by the San Francisco Giants before being claimed off waivers by Miami.
While the fan vote might not work in Lopez’s favor, his All-Star case isn’t over.
After either Abrams or Betts are selected as the National League’s starting shortstop in Phase 2, the rest of the roster will be filled through the player ballot and selections made by the Commissioner’s Office.
That leaves Lopez with a strong case to still earn a spot as a reserve after the first half he’s put together.
Edwards and Hicks could also benefit from the final stage of the selection process
While former Marlin and current San Francisco Giants second baseman Luis Arraez remains one of baseball’s best pure hitters, Edwards is sitting in his rearview mirror in several key categories at the position.
Arraez is hitting .321 with 30 RBI and an .803 OPS, while Edwards is batting .293 with 28 RBI and a .799 OPS. Edwards’ .374 on-base percentage also ranks ahead of Arraez’s .358 mark.
“He’s one of my favorite players,” McCullough said of Edwards in an interview with MLB. “The baseball IQ. He brings everything, the defensive side, the switch hits, the base-running.”
While Hicks has been on the 10-day injured list since June 20, his run-driving production has still held up on the leaderboard.
With MRI results reportedly showing no structural damage, he could still have time to return and keep fighting for a reserve spot.
Still hope for Meyer
Miami’s most reliable pitcher this season, Max Meyer, is in a slightly different spot. Pitchers are not part of the fan vote and will instead be selected through the player ballot and the Commissioner’s Office.
The 27-year-old right-hander is tied for the second-most wins in the National League with nine and also ranks among the top 10 in ERA (2.80) and strikeouts (102).
“There’s some All-Star talk, and he should be getting it,” McCullough said. “He’s certainly pitched like an All-Star in this first half of the season. … You never know when it might click for an individual.”
After winning his first nine starts this season, Meyer tied former World Series MVP Liván Hernández for the most consecutive starts without a loss to open a season in team history.
Phase 2 of All-Star voting concludes at noon Thursday, with the starters and full rosters set to be announced July 4.
Once the fan-selected starters are decided, the rest of each league’s roster will be filled through the player ballot and selections made by the Commissioner’s Office, and the MLB must ensure that each team is represented by at least one player.