Shohei Ohtani received the most votes among American League players for the first time as the Los Angeles Angels two-way star earned an automatic starting spot in the All-Star Game on July 11 in Seattle.
Ohtani received 2,646,307 votes during the Phase 1 ballot, Major League Baseball said Thursday, and will be the starting designated hitter for the AL as he makes his third straight All-Star appearance.
"I would like to thank all the fans that voted for me, this is a huge honor," Ohtani, who leads the majors with 24 home runs, said in a statement. "I will use this as motivation and will continue to give it my all on the field."
The overall highest vote-getter, Ronald Acuna Jr. of the Atlanta Braves with 3,082,600 votes, will feature as one of the three starting outfielders for the National League.
Ohtani, batting .292 with 58 RBIs in 74 games as a batter, earned around 540,000 more votes than the AL's second-highest vote-getter, Toronto Blue Jays shortstop Bo Bichette.
Ohtani has been selected both as a DH and pitcher for the past two years, playing the dual role in 2021 and just as a batter in 2022.
The voting results for pitchers will be announced on July 2. Ohtani is 6-3 with a 3.13 ERA from 15 games this year, leading both leagues with a .179 batting average against.
The All-Star Game will return to Seattle for the first time since 2001, when Japanese great Ichiro Suzuki received the most overall votes in his rookie year playing for the Mariners.
