Minnesota Twins: All Star Game voting update

With the 2019 All-Star Game quickly approaching, let’s take a look at some of your favorite Minnesota Twins players and where they stand in comparison to the rest of the field.

Jorge Polanco

Leading all American League shortstops in votes, Jorge Polanco may be a bit of a surprise to most of major league baseball, just not to this Minnesota fan base. Having easily the best season of his young career thus far, Polanco is slashing a remarkable .333/.393/.569 in 61 games for the AL Central leading Twins this year.

A versatile switch-hitting shortstop, Polanco has been showing solid amounts of power in the past couple years at the plate. He currently has 10 home runs on the year with 34 RBIs, considering he has 33 home runs in his entire 6 year career, he has definitely added some pop at the plate (though in 2014 he only had 8 plate appearances). Locking this rising young star up for the next 5 years at $25 million seems like a steal for the Minnesota Twins front office.

C.J. Cron

An outstanding off-season addition by the Twins and consistent playing time for the team has led to C.J. Cron having an amazing year at the plate. Second in ASG voting for AL first basemen, C.J. was waived by the Tampa Bay Rays last year only to be claimed by the Minnesota Twins. With Joe Mauer retiring, this was a necessary move especially with the incumbent first baseman being unproven former Yankee first baseman Tyler Austin.

Cron is a 30-plus home run type of hitter at the plate and is well on his way to that mark this season. Adding to the power-surge for the Minnesota Twins line-up this year, Cron is more than deserving of All-Star Game consideration with his .882 OPS and 14 home runs through 58 games. It would be fun to see Cron earn a spot on the roster after being dumped by the Rays this past off-season.

Eddie Rosario

One of the more deserving players on the team for representing the 2019 Minnesota Twins, Eddie was in my eyes, the biggest snub of the 2018 ASG. Though his average isn’t where it was at this time last year, Eddie is still slashing a very solid .272/.307/.851 through 61 games played. He currently leads the team in home runs, runs-batted-in, and runs scored at 19, 52, and 44  respectively.

Not always thought to be a power hitter at the plate, Rosario has some of the quickest hands in the game leading to surprising power to all parts of the field. Being a leader on the team and one of the most consistent contributors from the past few years, Rosario is more than deserving of representing the club at this years Midsummer Classic. Currently 6th in outfield votes, Eddie needs to remain in the top 9 to advance to the next round of voting in this years format.

Honorable Mention

Byron Buxton and Max Kepler are both having fantastic years for the Minnesota Twins in one of the best all around outfields in baseball. Kepler is currently in 10th place with Buxton right behind him in 11th, remember, they need to both finish in the top 9 to get to the next round of voting.

Kepler was having his recent share of struggles until he broke out for a 3 home run game off Indians ace Trevor Bauer. Buxton has 21 doubles on the year which is good for 2nd in the MLB behind Josh Bell of the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Jonathan Schoop, another fantastic off-season pick-up for the Twins, sits in 4th place for second basemen with Jason Castro sitting in the 3rd spot for catchers in AL voting. Nelson Cruz has cracked the top three as well and has a solid chance in representing the Minnesota Twins as a designated hitter for the American League all-stars.

Make sure to do your part and get your favorite Twins to Cleveland for the 2019 MLB All-Star Game. With the Twins having a breakout season, I’d be surprised if they didn’t send at least a few players to represent one of the best teams in baseball.