Latest All-Star Game voting update paints bleak picture for KC Royals

With the end of the first stage of fan voting for this season's All-Star Game well in sight — Phase 1 ends Thursday, June 26 at Noon ET — it's become apparent via Major League Baseball's Monday voting update that the Kansas City Royals' chances of landing a starting spot for any of its nine non-pitcher candidates are slim and none. Only Bobby Witt Jr. appears to be positioned to advance to Phase 2, where the bulk of each league's starters will be determined.

The top Phase 1 vote-getters in each league snare automatic starting berths at their positions. The top two finishers at every other non-pitching spot move on to Phase 2, with the winners there landing starting jobs. (The process is different for outfielders — per voting rules established by the game's collective bargaining agreement, six outfielders advance to Phase 2, but if an outfielder garners more Phase 1 votes than any other player, only four outfielders qualify for the second stage of fan voting).

So, just how bleak is Kansas City's All-Star picture?

Bobby Witt Jr. is the only KC Royals player with a realistic shot at Phase 2

Witt is the lone KC candidate who appears headed for the Phase 2 runoff. He's maintained the runner-up spot to A's rookie Jacob Wilson he occupied at the first balloting update, but now trails Wilson by 252,207 votes. Fortunately, Witt leads Houston's Jeremy Peña, who's in third, by over 260,000 votes.

Does Witt have a chance to overtake Wilson? Probably not. Despite a recent slump, Witt is slashing .286/.343/.490 with 10 homers and 40 RBI through Sunday; while Wilson is on par with Witt in home runs with nine and RBIs with 40, his .349/.390/.493/ line is far better. That suggests Witt's best path to the American League roster is through selection as a reserve (more on that in a moment).

The most deserving KC Royals player is far behind in Phase 1

Somewhat surprisingly, third baseman Maikel Garcia probably deserves an AL spot more than Witt. Garcia is only two homers and four RBI behind Witt, but his .312 average and .372 OBP are better, and his is .487 SLG is only a whisker behind Witt's .490.

Unfortunately, Garcia's seventh-place position among third-sackers doesn't bode well for him, especially considering he trails leader José Ramírez of Cleveland by more than 1.5 million votes, and runner-up Alex Bregman of Boston by over 390,000.

KC Royals C Salvador Perez and 1B Vinnie Pasquantino are well behind

These two Kansas City fan favorites have virtually no chance of reaching Phase 2. Pasquantino is in sixth place with slightly more than 176,000 votes, a tally far short of leader Vladimir Guerrero Jr. of Toronto, who has almost 1,193,000 votes, and the Yankees' Paul Goldschmidt, who's garnered over 1,118,000.

And Perez's 10th All-Star berth, which would move him within three of Hall of Famer George Brett's franchise-leading 13, will probably have to wait for another year. Perez's nearly 231,000 votes are good enough for only eighth place, well behind Seattle's Cal Raleigh, whose 1.9 million-plus total leads the AL backstop pack, and Toronto catcher Alejandro Kirk's second-place total of just over 758,000.

What about Kansas City rookie Jac Caglianone?

Caglianone is on the AL ballot at designated hitter. That he's not in the top 10 at the position reflects reality — he's yet to play his 20th major league game, and his .203/.250/.344 line through 64 big league at-bats just doesn't rise to All-Star level.

Like Caglianone, Kansas City's other candidates — second baseman Michael Massey and outfielders Jonathan India, Kyle Isbel, and Drew Waters — weren't in the top 10 at their positions as of Monday.

What's next for the KC Royals' All-Star candidates?

Phase 2 of fan voting begins June 30 at Noon ET and ends July 2 at Noon ET. After that, a hybrid process involving players, managers, coaches, and the Commissioner's Office will determine the balance of the All-Star Game rosters, including pitchers.

And what of former Royal Ryan O'Hearn, who led the balloting for AL designated hitter after the first update? He's still in front with over a half-million vote lead over New York's Ben Rice.

Fans can cast their online ballots at this link. The All-Star Game is scheduled for July 15 at Atlanta's Truist Park.