Baltimore Orioles have six finalists for MLB All-Star Game

BALTIMORE - The Baltimore Orioles have six finalists who could start in next month's Major League Baseball All-Star Game in Arlington, Texas.

Phase 1 of the All-Star voting ended Thursday with three Orioles' in first place and two in second place.

The second phase of voting starts on Sunday, June 30. The top vote-getter among position players and top two among outfielders will be named All-Star Game starters.

• Orioles catcher Adley Rutschman leads his position with 2,791,952 votes. As of Thursday evening, he is batting .295 with 14 home runs and 53 RBIs.
• Shortstop Gunnar Henderson leads all American League shortstops with 2,664,120 votes. Henderson is batting .293 with 26 home runs and 57 RBIs.
• First baseman Ryan Mountcastle leads voting at his position with 2,296,697 votes. He is batting .277 with 11 home runs and 40 RBIs, as of Thursday.

These Orioles finished second after the first phase:

• Jordan Westburg (1,483,679 votes) trails Cleveland Guardians' Jose Ramirez in third base voting. Westburg is batting, as of Thursday, .288 with 13 home runs and 48 RBIs.
• Ryan O'Hearn (1,222,497 votes) trails Houston's Yordan Alvarez at designated hitter. As of Thursday, O'Hearn is batting .286 with 10 home runs and 33 RBIs.

Third place on the ballot:

• Anthony Santander (1,478,034) is third on the outfield ballot behind New York Yankees' Juan Soto and Cleveland's Steven Kwan. The top two in the second phase will be a starter after Yankees' Aaron Judge was selected. Santander is batting .228 with 21 home runs and 53 RBIs.

The All-Star starters will be announced on July 3.

New York Yankees' Aaron Judge and Philadelphia Phillies' Bryce Harper were named starters because they were the top vote-getters in their league after Phase 1.