Where Did the Fans Get it Wrong on All-Star Voting?

In less than two weeks, the brightest stars of the MLB will congregate at Truist Park in Atlanta for the 2025 All-Star Game.

On Wednesday afternoon, fan voting wrapped up and the final results to determine each league’s starters were revealed later that evening.

For the most part, fans got a lot right this year. MVP front runners like Aaron Judge and Shohei Ohtani were rightfully named automatic starters after Phase 1 ended. Then, their MVP counterparts in names like Cal Raleigh, José Ramírez and Kyle Tucker as well as surging stars like Pete Crow-Armstrong, Riley Greene and Jacob Wilson all got their well-deserved time in the limelight.

However, every year that fan voting has played a role in naming the All-Star rosters, there are always some names who are more than worthy of a starting role who are snubbed.

This year was no different, as whether it was names who didn’t progress past Phase 1 or finalists who were stopped short at the one-yard line in Phase 2, their were some extremely glaring omissions from the starting lineups on both the American League and National League sides.

Who Got Snubbed After Phase 1?

James Wood

The fact that All-Star starters have been revealed and the pool of Phase 2 finalists to select from did not include James Wood might be the biggest error fans made in this year’s voting.

Wood ranks in the Top 5 amongst hitters of any position in the National League in fWAR (T-5th at 3.5), wRC+ (T-4th at 156) and OPS (3rd at .938).

Then from a point of view less focused on the metrics, he’s quickly become one of the most fear inducing hitters in baseball, as made evident by his June 29 performance where the Angels intentionally walked him four times in the contest.

Kyle Tucker, Pete Crow-Armstrong, Juan Soto and Andy Pages were all statistically worthy recipients of their finalists nods. Who Wood makes a stronger case against though is both Teoscar Hernández and Ronald Acuña Jr.

The only reasonable explanation as to why Hernández cracked the finalists is that he happens to play for one of the most notable franchises in all of sports who because of that, have one of the largest and most passionate fanbases in the league getting behind him.

Because from a statistical standpoint he pales in comparison across the board to Wood.

Acuña Jr. is a different story. The fact the festivities are taking place in Atlanta will certainly make a great storyline. The problem is game time, and he doesn’t have nearly as much as anyone in the starting lineup.

He didn’t come back from injury until late May and has just 35 games under his belt in 2025. There’s no denying he’s been exceptional since returning, with a 1.076 OPS and 198 wRC+, but at the end of the day it’s still less than half a season of play.

Byron Buxton

With Byron Buxton it’s a lot of the same problems Wood experienced. He’s Top 5 in the American League amongst current hitters (omitting Rafael Devers) across all positions in fWAR (5th at 3.3), wRC+ (5th at 147) and OPS (3rd at .900).

The AL Picture looks different considering the that only four outfielders could be sent to Phase 2, due to Aaron Judge taking his rightful place a lead vote getter.

Also deserving of their respective places in Phase 2 of voting were Riley Greene and Steven Kwan. The issues lay with Javier Baez and Mike Trout.

Baez is undoubtedly a feel-good redemption story and very well be deserving of being an All-Star, but not as a starter over Buxton. And the stats more than prove that.

In the case of Trout, it’s somewhat similar to the Acuña over Wood scenario, where Trout’s long-standing history of being an all-time great continues to carry him in voting, even when his play on the field doesn’t match the player he once was anymore.

Trout, who’s played just 58 games due to injury this season, is slashing just .230/.344/.446 with a 118 wRC+ and 0.7 fWAR. Not bad numbers by any means, but not ones that constitute being an All-Star finalist over Buxton, and perhaps maybe not an All-Star at all.

Buxton’s spotty injury resume might be what held him back in the minds of voters, but he’s been healthy in 2025 and looked every bit like the top notch talent he’s always shown he can be in limited sample sizes up to this point in his career.

Jonathan Aranda

Shifting off outfield and over to first base, Tampa’s Jonathan Aranda has statistically been the best first baseman in the American League. However, he was not the one that joined Vladimir Guerrero Jr. on the final phase of the ballot.

Instead, it was Paul Goldschmidt, who’s been on a great redemption path with the Yankees this season after a lackluster overall campaign with Cardinals in ’24, but his numbers pale in comparison to that of Aranda’s.

At the end of the day though, the fact it’s a small market organization like the Tampa Bay Rays versus the goliath in the New York Yankees, and a breakout sensation like Aranda versus the former MVP in Goldschmidt, could’ve clearly been the difference maker.

That still doesn’t make it justified, as Aranda had a strong case to start over Guerrero, let alone being a finalist.

Brandon Lowe

Finally, we have Aranda’s teammate in Brandon Lowe, who probably has the easiest case for outrage as to why he wasn’t a finalist.

There was no doubting that Gleyber Torres, with the season he was having on the AL best Detroit Tigers, was deserving choice for the starting second base role. That’s not the argument here.

What is a travesty is the fact that it was Jackson Holliday instead of Lowe who went head-to-head with Torres in Phase 2.

Holliday is having a solid bounce back after a disappointing rookie campaign that didn’t live up to his top prospect hype. However, that’s the extent of it. It’s been a good bounce back, but not nearly an All-Star caliber performance, and certainly not one better than what Lowe’s been doing.

It seems Lowe fell victim to the fact that Holliday plays in a bigger market and has that recent immense prospect pedigree that may have made him more endearing to fans, whether he truly deserved it or not.

Who Was Stopped Short in Phase 2?

Steven Kwan

Moving to Phase 2 snubs, we start with Cleveland’s Steven Kwan, who’s been crafting another masterful season.

He’s Top 10 amongst AL outfielders in fWAR (6th at 2.4), wRC+ (T-9th at 122) and AVG (4th at .296).

Whether or not other outfielders deserved to make it in to the final four over him is an argument for a different day. But as we’ve discussed when talking about Buxton, the inclusion of Baez and Trout in Phase 2 was questionable and neither offered more upside than Kwan did.

Andy Pages or Juan Soto

Then there’s Andy Pages and Juan Soto, who each have unique cases to be starters for the National League side this season.

Pages is slashing .294/.330/.503 with 16 HR, 57 RBI, a 130 wRC+ and 3.0 fWAR. Soto is slashing .254/.394/.507 with 20 HR, 47 RBI, a 153 wRC+ and 2.4 fWAR.

The real issue here is that both these hitters have a full season under their belt, unlike Acuña. As mentioned earlier, a 198 wRC+ is phenomenal. However, the fact of the matter is that it’s been done over just 35 games.

Again there’s cases to be made for both Pages and Soto to be a starter, the point is though that it should be one of them operating in the outfield next Tucker and Crow-Armstrong over Acuña for the NL in this year’s All-Star Game.

What’s Next For the Odd-Men Out?

It’s hard to imagine that any of these listed names will not be making the trip to Atlanta for the All-Star Game on July 15. They’ll just have to wait a bit longer to get in the game.

However, time after time we sit here after the dust settles on the voting process and have to argue about was done dirty despite putting their best foot forward.

Fan voting certainly adds a unique personal aspect that undoubtedly keeps fans engaged, but it cannot be argued that it doesn’t come without it’s frustrations.