MLB All-Star Voting Results 2015: Twitter Reacts to Final Leaders and Selections

In the end, outrage was averted, as the plucky fans of the defending AL champion Kansas City Royals only ended up voting in four of their starters, all of them at least moderately deserving of the distinction.

Still, the Royals fanbase put in yeoman efforts getting their boys into the big game. Royal fans like Kim McReynolds typified the community-wide effort to boost the voting for Royals starters: 

The K.C. push helped contribute to a new record for All-Star voting, and Toronto third baseman Josh Donaldson became the highest vote-getter ever:

"

#MLB: 3B Josh Donaldson sets All-Star Game voting record (14,090,188), 1B M. Cabrera, 2B J. Altuve elected AL starters -via ESPN

— Joe Carrillo (@playdeepcf) July 5, 2015"

Still, there will still be a lot of Royal blue in the American League starting lineup in Cincinnati. Royals shortstop Alcides Escobar, catcher Salvador Perez, center fielder Lorenzo Cain and left fielder Alex Gordon were all selected by the fans. Blair Kerkhoff of the Kansas City Star commented on the outcome: 

As the backbone catcher of a pennant-winning team, Perez is a deserving selection, even as he gets the nod over Stephen Vogt of the A's, although the San Francisco Chronicle's John Shea tweeted out the common consensus that Vogt will be named as a backup:

Perez is an experienced field general and has enough pop in his bat to potentially help his manager, Ned Yost, capture home-field advantage for the World Series.

The top vote-getter in the National League race was Washington Nationals outfield phenom Bryce Harper. Harper was noncommittal about participating in the Home Run Derby in a quick interview during the broadcast, per Baseball Tonight. 

The natural storyline to develop during ESPN's special selection show was the emergence of baseball's young superstars. National League leader Harper earned his second start and third selection at just 22 years of age. 

In the American League, the Angels' Mike Trout was voted on for his fourth start at just 23 years of age. It's understandable that Harper and Trout are being viewed as the second coming of Mickey Mantle and Willie Mays. This tweet from Sportsfeedia.com pointed out that Trout and Harper, along with power-hitting first baseman Paul Goldschmidt of the Arizona Diamondbacks and DH Nelson Cruz of the Seattle Mariners, are the only four hitters entering the break with averages of .300 and at least 20 home runs:

"

"I'll see how I feel, I'll see how it goes. I'll let everyone know in the next couple days." -Bryce Harper on if he will be in HR Derby.

— Baseball Tonight (@BBTN) July 5, 2015"

The Washington Post's James Wagner already has a nice piece out putting Harper's unique career into historical perspective. Entering the break with a staggering slugging percentage of over .700, Harper seems to be hitting his stride at 22.   

The two young superstars even inspire the same kind of debates as Mantle and Mays did in the 1950s, but enhanced by our new age of social media, with fan Chris Garcia looking to start a little debate with any game Nationals fans out there on the Twitterverse:

The final lineup for each team was as follows:

American League	National League
1B: Miguel Cabrera, Tigers	Paul Goldschmidt, Diamondbacks
2B: Jose Altuve, Astros	Dee Gordon, Marlins
3B: Josh Donaldson, Blue Jays	Todd Frazier, Reds
SS: Alcides Escobar, Royals	Jhonny Peralta, Cardinals
C: Salvador Perez, Royals	Buster Posey, Giants
LF: Alex Gordon, Royals	Matt Holliday, Cardinals
CF: Lorenzo Cain, Royals	Bryce Harper, Nationals
RF: Mike Trout, Angels	Giancarlo Stanton, Marlins
DH: Nelson Cruz, Mariners

In any year, the All-Star voting is going to stir up a bit of controversy, as fans, out of either ignorance or defiance, insist on voting for their starters, regardless of merit. This was an aspect of the fan voting that we complained about 30 years ago.

Fan Zach Romano spoke for a lot of fans when he tweeted:

Still, it could have been a lot worse this year. The Kansas City fans' enthusiasm almost got carried away, and we nearly saw seven or eight K.C. starters, including Omar Infante. All things considered, it turned out better than it might have. 

That's always a victory for All-Star voting.

At the end of the night, Major League Baseball was able to send out a tweet boasting of a new voting record:

The league will be happy to take that kind of fan engagement, no matter how much hardcore fans complain about ignorant votes being cast.  

Reserves, pitching staffs and replacements for injured starters will be announced Monday night.