MLB All Star Voting 2021: Predictions for AL and NL Starting Rosters

Fifty-one position players are eligible to be voted into the 2021 MLB All-Star Game as starters. 

The list of potential starters was trimmed down on Sunday following the first phase of voting. The second phase begins on Monday and lasts through 2 p.m. ET on Thursday. 

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Ronald Acuna Jr. were the top vote-getters in their respective leagues. They each had over 2.5 million votes from Phase 1. 

The Phase 1 votes do not carry over into Phase 2, so every vote cast from Monday to Thursday will be the only ones counted to determine the starters, who will be revealed on July 4. 

Three players at catcher and each of the infield positions are still alive in the voting process, as are three designated hitter candidates from the American League.

Since there are three starting outfield spots, nine players from each league at that position are still in the hunt to start at Coors Field on July 13. 

MLB All-Star Voting Finalists

Starter Predictions

American League

DH: Shohei Ohtani, Los Angeles Angels

C: Salvador Perez, Kansas City

1B: Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Toronto

2B: Marcus Semien, Toronto

SS: Bo Bichette, Toronto 

3B: Rafael Devers, Boston

OF: Mike Trout, Los Angeles Angels

OF: Byron Buxton, Minnesota

OF: Aaron Judge, New York Yankees

In the American League, the starters could differ from the top vote earners because of injuries. 

Mike Trout and Byron Buxton are both on the 10-day injured list and are not expected to play in the All-Star Game if they are voted in. 

The fans can still vote in Trout and Buxton to be starters. They were first and third, respectively, in Phase 1's AL outfield voting, so they should be in contention to be named to the starting lineup. 

Which players actually start in the outfield on July 13 is still up in the air. Each of the other seven finalists presents an intriguing case.

Aaron Judge should get in on his popularity as a slugging member of the New York Yankees. He could be partnered by Houston's Michael Brantley and Adolis Garcia from Texas. 

Brantley leads the AL in batting average, and he has been on a tear at the plate with 31 hits and 15 RBIs in June. 

Garcia entered Sunday as one of four AL hitters to bash 20 home runs. Guerrero, Shohei Ohtani and Matt Olson are the others. 

Ohtani and Guerrero should be locks to start at designated hitter and first base because of their fantastic seasons. That would leave Olson as a potential reserve behind Guerrero at first base. 

First base is the deepest position in the AL. Guerrero, Jose Abreu and Yuli Gurriel are the vote finalists, while Olson and Jared Walsh deserve consideration for their power numbers. 

Guerrero could start alongside a few of his teammates in the infield. Marcus Semien led second basemen in AL voting in Phase 1, and Bo Bichette was second to Boston's Xander Bogaerts at shortstop.

Semien ranks inside the top 10 in the AL in home runs, doubles and hits. Bichette ranks in the top 12 in hits, doubles and RBI. 

Bichette owns the advantage over Bogaerts in home runs and RBI, while the Boston shortstop carries the edge in batting average and OPS. Since the numbers are so even, Bogaerts and Bichette could be involved in the closest starter vote. 

Salvador Perez could have one of the larger runaway victories since garnered the third-most votes of any player in Phase 1. The Kansas City catcher is a six-time All-Star and he would be the most experienced starter on the field if the votes continue to flow in for him and Trout is announced as a scratch.

National League

C: Buster Posey, San Francisco 

1B: Freddie Freeman, Atlanta

2B: Ozzie Albies, Atlanta

SS: Fernando Tatis Jr., San Diego

3B: Kris Bryant, Chicago Cubs

OF: Ronald Acuna Jr., Atlanta

OF: Nick Castellanos, Cincinnati

OF: Jesse Winker, Cincinnati 

The sight of Ronald Acuna Jr. and Fernando Tatis Jr. batting first and second in the NL lineup at Coors Field should excite any baseball fan and terrify whoever starts on the mound for the AL.

Acuna and Tatis should be locks to make the NL starting lineup, and it is just a matter of how many votes they receive in the process.

The Cincinnati Reds outfield pairing of Jesse Winker and Nick Castellanos should start alongside Acuna in the outfield. 

Castellanos and Winker are first and second in the NL in batting average, third and fourth in OPS and in the top 20 in home runs. 

Mookie Betts and Bryce Harper should make a push for the starting positions because they are two of the most popular players in the game, but the numbers support the pair of Reds players landing in those spots. 

Freddie Freeman's recent surge at the plate and Atlanta's regional fanbase in the southeast could push him over Max Muncy. Freeman entered Sunday with three multi-hit games in the last week. 

There is a potential feel-good story blooming at second base with Pittsburgh's Adam Frazier listed alongside Ozzie Albies from Atlanta and Gavin Lux of the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Frazier will probably lose out to Albies, but he could make the voting process close if he receives respect for his numbers. He is third in the NL in batting average and is second to Castellanos in hits. 

Unfortunately for Frazier, he can't get into the starting lineup on numbers alone and could be at a disadvantage to Albies' popularity among Atlanta's fanbase. 

Buster Posey should be rewarded for the San Francisco Giants' hot start. The catcher has been a vital part of the group that was the first to reach 50 wins. 

Kris Bryant would bring some All-Star Game experience to the NL lineup, and given all the power throughout the potential order, the Chicago Cubs third baseman may end up batting seventh or eighth in Colorado.

Statistics obtained from MLB.com.