Salvador Perez leads voting as five Royals in position to start for AL All-Stars

The most popular player in the American League — at least according to the first round of fan voting for the 2015 All-Star Game — crossed his arms inside the visitors’ clubhouse at Yankee Stadium. Salvador Perez has played in two editions of the Midsummer Classic, and he started behind the plate last July. But this summer in Cincinnati, he could anchor a starting lineup dominated by his teammates.

“Hopefully I can see Hosmer at first base, Moustakas at third base, Esky at shortstop,” Perez said before Tuesday night’s game against the New York Yankees. “Alex Gordon, Cain. So it’s going to be more exciting.”

The scenario sounds like a fantasy. A continued influx of votes from fans can make it a reality. Major League Baseball released the preliminary results of the balloting, which will continue for another month, and Royals headlined the group.

Perez led all American League players with nearly 1.45 million votes. Lorenzo Cain ranked second overall with nearly 1.38 million votes. Mike Moustakas, Alcides Escobar and Alex Gordon all projected to start. Eric Hosmer ranks second at first base, as does Kendrys Morales at designated hitter and Omar Infante at second base.

In the last two seasons, the Royals sent Perez, Gordon and closer Greg Holland to the game. All three were chosen by their peers, not by the fans. Holland may not make it back in 2015, but setup man Wade Davis harbors another solid case.

As manager of the defending American League champions, Ned Yost already knows he will be in the dugout July 14. While he cautioned against excessive celebration before the polls close, he admitted he was thrilled about the potential situation.

“Sal’s leading everybody? Sal’s got the most votes out of everybody?” Yost said. “I was interested in Cain leading the outfielders. I thought that was cool. Esky is huge for me, because I think Esky’s been deserving for the last couple of years. So I just pray that all those numbers stay there. Moose, it’s great.”

Moustakas has rebounded from a miserable 2014 regular season to become one of Kansas City’s most reliable hitters. Escobar lacks the on-base ability of a traditional leadoff hitter, but scouts continue to rave about his defense. And Cain has become one of the most exciting all-round players in baseball.

Cain appeared bemused by the voting. He tried his best to bat aside questions about it, until reporters reminded him that he had received more votes than stars such as the Los Angeles Angels’ Mike Trout, the Pittsburgh Pirates’ Andrew McCutchen and Giancarlo Stanton of the Miami Marlins.

“It’s nice to see people voting for you, I guess,” Cain said. “I’m not used to getting voted for.”

Then he burst out laughing. Escobar greeted the news with solemn gratitude. Like Perez, he relished the idea of the Royals occupying a sizable portion of the starting lineup.

“For me, that’s a great opportunity, because I’ve never been an All-Star,” Escobar said. “I’ll just continue to work hard. That’s my dream, man, to go to one All-Star Game.”

How strange is it to see Royals at the top of All-Star voting?

Last year, Perez became the first Royals starter since 2000, when Jermaine Dye was voted into the starting lineup.

Perez was second in the voting last year but got the starting nod when the top vote-getter, Matt Wieters of the Orioles, couldn’t play because of an injury.

The Royals have had three players chosen to the All-Star team each of the last two years. Before then, it had been since 1988 when at least three Royals were on the team.

Voting for the 86th All-Star Game, which is July 14 in Cincinnati, is online only and continues through 11 p.m. July 2 at MLB.com.

AL All-Star Game voting

The Star’s Blair Kerkhoff contributed to this report.

To reach Andy McCullough, call 816-234-4370 or send email to rmccullough@kcstar.com. Follow him on Twitter: @McCulloughStar.

This story was originally published May 26, 2015 at 1:52 PM with the headline "Salvador Perez leads voting as five Royals in position to start for AL All-Stars."