NEW YORK (AP) — New York Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge and Philadelphia Phillies first baseman Bryce Harper were elected Thursday to start in the July 16 All-Star Game at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas.
A few hours later, Harper limped off the field with an apparent left hamstring injury after making the final out of Philadelphia's 7-4 loss to the Miami Marlins. He will undergo imaging Friday.
Judge led the major leagues with 3,425,309 votes in the first round of fan balloting and was picked for his sixth American League start in seven All-Star Games, though he missed last year because of a sprained right big toe. He also was the leading vote-getter during the first phase in 2022.
He became the 11th player to lead the majors in votes on multiple occasions since fan balloting resumed in 1970, joining Ken Griffey Jr. (five times); Rod Carew (four); Ichiro Suzuki (three); and Hank Aaron, José Bautista, Johnny Bench, Albert Pujols, Cal Ripken Jr., Alex Rodriguez and Ozzie Smith (two each).
Harper topped the NL and was second in the big leagues with 3,277,920 votes. He was chosen for his eighth All-Star Game, seventh as a starter. His previous All-Star appearances came as an outfielder and designated hitter.
The pair were selected under rules that began in 2022 and give starting spots to the top vote-getter in each league in the first phase of online voting, which began June 5 and ended Thursday. Two finalists at every other position advanced to the second phase, which runs from noon EDT on Sunday to noon EDT on June 30. Votes from the first phase do not carry over.
An individual can vote once per 24-hour period.
Remaining starters will be announced on June 30. Pitchers and reserves will be revealed on July 7.
Six players each from the Baltimore Orioles and Philadelphia Phillies advanced to the second phase.
“Six players? That is really cool," Orioles manager Brandon Hyde said in Baltimore. "I mean, two-thirds of the position players on the field are finalists. They’re all so well-deserving. I hope they get a ton of votes and we send all six.”
In the final days of the initial voting, Philadelphia's Kyle Schwarber overtook Atlanta's Marcell Ozuna for the second spot among NL designated hitters behind Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani.
Schwarber exited Thursday night's game in the ninth inning after experiencing left groin tightness.
Baltimore's Ryan O'Hearn moved ahead of Yankees slugger Giancarlo Stanton for second among designated hitters in the AL behind Houston's Yordan Alvarez. O'Hearn had been fourth, also trailing Cleveland's David Fry.
AL finalists:
Catcher: Salvador Perez, Adley Rutschman
First Base: Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Ryan Mountcastle
Second Base: Jose Altuve, Marcus Semien
Third Base: José Ramírez, Jordan Westburg
Shortstop: Gunnar Henderson, Bobby Witt Jr.
Outfield: Steven Kwan, Anthony Santander, Juan Soto, Kyle Tucker
Designated Hitter: Yordan Alvarez, Ryan O’Hearn
NL finalists:
Catcher: William Contreras, J.T. Realmuto
Second Base: Luis Arraez, Ketel Marte
Third Base: Alec Bohm, Manny Machado
Shortstop: Mookie Betts, Trea Turner
Outfield: Nick Castellanos, Teoscar Hernández, Brandon Marsh, Jurickson Profar, Fernando Tatis Jr., Christian Yelich
Designated Hitter: Shohei Ohtani, Kyle Schwarber
AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb
Philadelphia Phillies first baseman Bryce Harper laughs during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the Baltimore Orioles, Sunday, June 16, 2024, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)
New York Yankees' Aaron Judge runs the bases after hitting a two-run home run during the first inning of a baseball game against the Atlanta Braves, Saturday, June 22, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — Hurricane Beryl is forecast to strengthen into a powerful Category 4 storm as it approaches the southeast Caribbean, which began shutting down Sunday amid urgent pleads from government officials for people to take shelter.
Hurricane warnings were in effect for Barbados, St. Lucia, Grenada, and St. Vincent and the Grenadines.
“This is a very serious situation developing for the Windward Islands,” warned the National Hurricane Center in Miami, which said that Beryl was “forecast to bring life-threatening winds and storm surge … as an extremely dangerous hurricane.”
Early Sunday morning, Beryl was located about 465 miles (750 kilometers) east-southeast of Barbados. It was a Category 2 storm with maximum sustained winds of 100 mph (155 kph) and was moving west at 21 mph (33 kph).
Two hurricane hunters were en route to the storm to gather more details about its intensity, according to the National Hurricane Center.
Beryl is expect to pass just south of Barbados early Monday and then head into the Caribbean Sea as a major hurricane on a path toward Jamaica. It is expected to weaken by mid-week but still remain a hurricane as it heads toward Mexico.
Forecasters warned of life-threatening storm surge of up to 9 feet (3 meters) in areas where Beryl will make landfall, with up to 6 inches (15 centimeters) of rain for Barbados and nearby islands.
Long lines formed at gas stations and grocery stores in Barbados and other islands as people rushed to prepare for a storm that has broken records and rapidly intensified from a tropical storm with 35 mph winds on Friday to a Category 1 hurricane on Saturday.
Warm waters were fueling Beryl, with ocean heat content in the deep Atlantic the highest on record for this time of year, according to Brian McNoldy, University of Miami tropical meteorology researcher.
Beryl marks the farthest east that a hurricane has formed in the tropical Atlantic in June, breaking a record set in 1933, according to Philip Klotzbach, Colorado State University hurricane researcher. If Beryl’s winds reach 125 mph, it would be the second earliest such storm in the Atlantic on record, surpassing Audrey in 1957, he said.
In addition, if Beryl reaches a Category 3, it would only be the third storm to do so in the Caribbean prior to August; Dennis and Emily both did so in July of 2005, according to Klotzbach.
“We have to remain vigilant,” Barbadian Prime Minister Mia Mottley said in a public address late Saturday. “We do not want to put anybody’s life at risk.”
Thousands of people were in Barbados for Saturday’s Twenty20 World Cup final, cricket’s biggest event, with Mottley noting that not all fans were able to leave Sunday despite many rushing to change their flights.
“Some of them have never gone through a storm before,” she said. “We have plans to take care of them.”
Mottley said all businesses should close by Sunday evening and warned the airport would close by nighttime.
Kemar Saffrey, president of a Barbadian group that aims to end homelessness, said in a video posted on social media Saturday night that those without homes tend to think they can ride out storms because they’ve done it before.
“I don’t want that to be the approach that they take,” he said, warning that Beryl is a dangerous storm and urging Barbadians to direct homeless people to a shelter.
Echoing his comments was Wilfred Abrahams, minister of home affairs and information.
“I need Barbadians at this point to be their brother’s keeper,” he said. “Some people are vulnerable.”
Meanwhile, St. Lucia Prime Minister Philip J. Pierre announced a national shutdown for Sunday evening and said schools and businesses would remain closed on Monday.
“Preservation and protection of life is a priority,” he said.
Caribbean leaders were preparing not only for Beryl, but for a cluster of thunderstorms trailing the hurricane that have a 70% chance of becoming a tropical depression.
“Do not let your guard down,” Mottley said.
Beryl is the second named storm in what is forecast to be an above-average hurricane season, which runs from June 1 to Nov. 30 in the Atlantic. Earlier this month, Tropical Storm Alberto came ashore in northeastern Mexico with heavy rains that resulted in four deaths.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration predicts the 2024 hurricane season is likely to be well above average, with between 17 and 25 named storms. The forecast calls for as many as 13 hurricanes and four major hurricanes.
An average Atlantic hurricane season produces 14 named storms, seven of them hurricanes and three major hurricanes.
This National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration satellite image taken at 3:10am GMT shows tropical storm Beryl, lower center right, as it strengthens over the Atlantic Ocean on Saturday, June 29, 2024. The storm could strengthen into the year's first hurricane before it reaches the Caribbean Sea early next week. (NOAA via AP)
This National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration satellite image taken at 4:50pm EDT shows hurricane Beryl as it strengthens over the Atlantic Ocean and churns toward the southeast Caribbean on Saturday, June 29, 2024. (NOAA via AP)
This National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration satellite image taken at 4:20pm EDT shows hurricane Beryl, lower center right, as it strengthens over the Atlantic Ocean and churns toward the southeast Caribbean on Saturday, June 29, 2024. (NOAA via AP)
