Fans will again help decide All
MINNESOTA -- You can help decide the Ted Williams Most Valuable Player presented by Chevrolet during the 85th All-Star Game on Tuesday night at Target Field, and here are some fun facts about this 12th annual privilege:
* Derek Jeter is the only possible two-time MVP winner among your choices. He won the award after going 3-for-3 to lead the American League in 2000 at Turner Field in Atlanta, becoming the first Yankees player to be named All-Star MVP. Can he duplicate Mariano Rivera's farewell-season honor of last summer?
Jeter could become only the fifth player to win it twice. The others were Willie Mays (1963, '68), Steve Garvey ('74, '78), Gary Carter ('81, '84) and Cal Ripken, Jr. ('91, 2001).
* Current clubs that never have had an All-Star MVP include the Astros, Blue Jays, Cardinals, D-backs, Rockies, Tigers and White Sox.
* Baltimore has had the most All-Star MVPs with six: Brooks Robinson (1966), Frank Robinson ('71), Ripken ('91 and 2001), Roberto Alomar ('98) and Miguel Tejada ('05). The Dodgers, Giants and Reds tie for second with five apiece, followed by the Red Sox with four.
* This is the 50th anniversary of the Phillies' last All-Star MVP -- Johnny Callison in 1964. Could Chase Utley become the next one? The Cubs (Bill Madlock) and Mets (Jon Matlack) had co-MVPs at the 1975 All-Star Game, but none since, so they are due as well. Royals fans, it's the 25th anniversary of Bo Jackson's All-Star MVP nod, the team's last one at this game.
* There's a Kirby Puckett statue right outside this All-Star Game site, and it's also a reminder that he was the Twins' only All-Star MVP back in 1993, when he homered and doubled at the brand-new Oriole Park at Camden Yards in Baltimore. Can a Minnesota player win it at home on Tuesday?
* It was originally called the Arch Ward Memorial Award in honor of the man who conceived of the All-Star Game in 1933. The award's name was changed to the 'Commissioner's Trophy' in '70, but that name began being used in '85 instead for the presentation of the World Series hardware. In 2002, it was renamed as the Arch Ward Trophy for Ted Williams Most Valuable Player, in honor of the former Red Sox great who had died earlier that year. So Ward's name is still involved with the honor.
They started choosing All-Star MVPs in 1962, the fourth and final year of two All-Star Games per season. Both were Los Angeles players that year -- Maury Wills for the Dodgers and Leon Wagner for the new Angels franchise. Fans had no say in that MVP matter, but you do now.
The 85th All-Star Game begins at 8 p.m. ET on FOX and will be streamed live for the first time via MLB.TV, and starting in the sixth inning, you can help decide this one exclusively on MLB.com via the 2014 All-Star Game MVP Vote.
By the sixth inning, some strong candidates will have emerged. The voting will continue until the MVP is announced immediately following the end of the game. The online fan vote again will count for 20 percent, with the other 80 percent coming onsite from the Baseball Writers' Association of America and the announcers from the All-Star Game's three broadcast rights holders: FOX Sports, ESPN Radio and MLB International.
It is the final and important step in a remarkable run of fan participation in this All-Star Game. First there was the vote for starters with the All-Star Game MLB.com Ballot Sponsored by Experian, as the largest All-Star balloting program in sports resulted in the naming of starters as part of the roster selection. Then came the All-Star Game MLB.com Final Vote Sponsored by Experian, resulting in the addition of White Sox pitcher Chris Sale and Cubs first baseman Anthony Rizzo to fill the 34th and final roster spots for the game.
These are the players who have won the award since the fan vote was factored in:
'I wasn't expecting that,' Rivera said last year. 'It was amazing -- a scene that I will never forget.'
Signups are underway for , and for the first time a subscription means you will be able to watch a live stream just as you would any regular out-of-market game during the season. That also will be the case with the coming World Series, by the way. FOX will televise the Midsummer Classic, and MLB.TV subscribers will be shown how to access the live stream.
The 85th All-Star Game will be televised nationally by FOX, in Canada by Rogers Sportsnet and RDS, and worldwide by partners in more than 200 countries via MLB International's independent feed. ESPN Radio and ESPN Radio Deportes will provide national radio coverage of the All-Star Game. MLB Network and SiriusXM will also provide comprehensive All-Star Week coverage. For more information, please visit allstargame.com.
Mark Newman is enterprise editor of MLB.com. Read and join other baseball fans on his MLB.com community blog. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
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