Latest All-Star voting update reveals Astros' Jose Altuve scheme may be working

With the All-Star game approaching, it's a reminder that Jose Altuve is looking to become a 10-time All-Star. Of course, Altuve has been at the center of the Astros' reworked roster this season. Despite the reputation of being one of the American League's best second basemen, Altuve has played predominantly as a left fielder this season. It hasn't always been a comfortable look, but the Astros are getting by with him out there for now. It also would seem that their scheme for getting Altuve to the All-Star Game might be working.

Despite the majority of his playing time coming in left field this season, when the All-Star voting opened earlier this month, the Astros had Altuve listed as a second baseman. While it could have been semantics, the impression is that the Astros made that decision to create an easier path for Altuve to get to this tenth All-Star game appearance. It's working.

Major League Baseball released its first All-Star ballot update of the season on Monday, and Altuve is the third-highest vote getter at second base. Gleyber Torres is leading all American League second basemen with 535,079 votes, followed by Jackson Holliday with 449,093 votes, and Altuve with 446,787 votes. It's one of the closest races among the entire All-Star voting pool, and it would seem that Altuve's hot streak is occurring at the right time.

Jose Altuve's getting hot right as All-Star voting is ramping up

Since the calendar flipped to June, Altuve is slashing .300/.345/.500 with a 138 wRC+. Altuve's hot streak comes at a time when the Astros have needed it the most, but in terms of All-Star voting, it is once again putting him at the center of discussion for the American League's second basemen.

The ballot update also confirms that there would have been no path to the All-Star game had Altuve been listed as an outfielder. The leading vote-getter among all Major League players is Aaron Judge with over 1.5 million votes. After Judge, Tigers' Riley Greene is the next highest vote-getter among American League outfielders with 675,070 votes, followed by Mike Trout with 475,265, and Steven Kwan with 457,882.

There is still work to be done as Altuve isn't exactly a shoo-in just yet, but he has a much cleaner path to the All-Star Game as a second baseman.

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