MLB released its second update in the All-Star Game fan voting, with a surprising leader in the American League. Toronto Blue Jays second baseman Ernie Clement leads all American League starters in votes, at 2.054 million.
It’s a surprise to see Clement as the leading vote-getter in the American League. Aaron Judge, Mike Trout, and Yordan Alvarez have dominated the circuit for years, but they trail the Blue Jays’ second baseman. It also speaks to how weak a year it’s been for his position.
The player who gets the most votes in the first phase of fan voting is automatically added to the roster. That date is coming up soon, as the results will be announced on June 25.
Ernie Clement Leads AL in Fan Voting
Ernie Clement is coming off one of the greatest postseason performances, collecting a record 30 hits. Now the Blue Jays’ everyday second baseman, he’s hitting .292 with a .751 OPS and a 106 wRC+.
That successful postseason run may be helping him at the ballot box. There is no clear second baseman to represent the league. Entering the year, Jazz Chisholm Jr. and Gleyber Torres were the likely favorites to start for the American League.
But Chisholm’s April slump and Gleyber Torres’ injuries have opened the door for Clement to secure an All-Star bid. In fact, the voting is rather lopsided in his favor at his position. The closest player to Clement’s 2.054 million is Ezequiel Duran of the Texas Rangers, who has 531K votes.
Clement currently holds an 80K vote lead over Alvarez. Given that the latter is in the running for the American League’s triple crown, it’s a very tenuous lead. Alvarez is looking like the frontrunner for the AL’s Most Valuable Player Award.
Blue Jays Dominating the Fan Vote
GettyVladimir Guerrero Jr. is one of six Toronto Blue Jays in the top two in the American League All-Star fan voting, as of the June 22 update.
Clement’s rise in the voting may also be tied to an enthusiastic Blue Jays fan vote. After all, the team was two outs away from a title in 2025 and is going all-in for 2026. Despite an ugly start to the season, they’re holding a Wild Card spot entering play on June 22.
A Blue Jay is in the top two at every infield position and designated hitter. That means something, as the top two players at each position will advance to the second phase of the voting. This is where those six players stand at the second voting update.
- Catcher: Alejandro Kirk 837K (2nd)
- First Base: Vladimir Guerrero Jr. 1.456M (1st)
- Second Base: Ernie Clement 2.054M (1st)
- Shortstop: Andres Gimenez 894K (2nd)
- Third Base: Kazuma Okamoto 1.282M (2nd)
- Designated Hitter: George Springer 806K (2nd)
In the outfield, both Daulton Varsho and Jesus Sanchez lurk just outside the top six. Varsho is 11K votes behind Seattle’s Randy Arozarena, with Sanchez 18K votes behind his teammate.
If Varsho passes Arozarena, that could mean the Blue Jays will have at least one player advance at each position. In that case, it becomes a two-player race in the voting.
However, if Clement lands an automatic bid at second base, it will reduce the number of races by one. There would be no runoff at second base in that situation.
There are fewer than 72 hours before the first phase of voting ends. There will be an announcement made by MLB regarding who advances Phase 2, and if Clement lands an automatic bid.
Blue Jays Infielder Takes Unexpected Lead in AL All-Star Voting