Infante gives Royals eighth leader in All-Star voting

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — After last week’s American League All-Star voting revealed seven Royals were leading at their positions, there seemed to be a backlash in the national media and among some fans of other teams.

How did voters respond?

By giving the Royals an eighth leader.

Second baseman Omar Infante, slumping in the batter’s box, rallied in the ballot box to overtake the Astros’ Jose Altuve on Monday, when the third AL All-Star voting update was released.

If Infante’s lead holds up through two more voting updates and when the final balloting ends July 2, he’ll cash in a salary bonus worth $250,000.

Not bad for a player who brought a .204 batting average into Monday’s game at Milwaukee.

The latest balloting did not go unnoticed in Cleveland. The Indians’ Twitter account looked to promote their guy, Jason Kipnis, posting pictures of stat sheets that have Kipnis leading the American League in several categories, with Infante ranking at or near the bottom.

Infante could become the third All-Star to carry a batting average below .200 into the starting lineup.

In 1981, Dodgers second baseman Davey Lopes was hitting .169 and Yankees outfielder Reggie Jackson was at .199 when the All-Star Game resumed in a season that had lost seven summer weeks to a strike. Jackson told The New York Times that he didn’t deserve to be in the game, “but I got people who voted for me,” he said.

Infante completes an all-Royals infield that leads in the voting. Eric Hosmer at first base, Alcides Escobar at shortstop, Mike Moustakas at third base and Salvdor Perez lead, along with designated hitter Kendrys Morales and Lorenzo Cain among outfielders. Alex Gordon is third in the outfield voting.

Angels outfielder Mike Trout would be the only non-Royals player to start if the team were selected today.

Of the seven Royals who led the voting after the second update, five increased their leads.

None increased more than Perez. His 7,202,292 votes lead all American League players and are nearly 4 million more than Stephen Vogt of the A’s.

Royals manager Ned Yost, who will manage the American League, said Sunday that defense keeps Infante in the Royals’ lineup despite three hits in his last 35 plate appearances.

In the first year that All-Star balloting is completely an online process, Royals fans have taken full advantage of a system that allows 35 votes from one email address. Voting continues through 10:59 p.m. July 2 at MLB.com.

An executive from Major League Baseball told The Star last week that there was no evidence of foul play or voting irregularities, simply enthusiastic Royals fans.

This story was originally published June 15, 2015 at 6:37 PM with the headline "Infante gives Royals eighth leader in All-Star voting."