NEW YORK — A team known for sausage races more than pennant races made quite an all-star splash.
The Milwaukee trio of Ryan Braun, Prince Fielder and Rickie Weeks won fan elections to start in the National League lineup, sending a mini-Brew Crew to join the usual slew of Yankees, Red Sox and Phillies at baseball’s glitter-fest.
“It means the Milwaukee Brewers have arrived on the national scene,” Braun, the top NL vote-getter, said Sunday.
Derek Jeter and Alex Rodriguez are among six Yankees on the AL roster for the All-Star Game on July 12 in Phoenix. Once again, New York had the most players picked.
Philadelphia, having built the best record in the majors on pitching, provided aces Roy Halladay, Cliff Lee and Cole Hamels. Adrian Gonzalez and David Ortiz led a Boston quartet. The World Series champion Giants added four arms.
The small-market Brewers celebrated their largest haul of all-star starters. Milwaukee often draws a lot of attention for its in-game dash of meat mascots — the team, however, has made the playoffs just once since 1982.
“A lot of times — and I know the fans are a huge part of what we do — but sometimes the fans vote for who they like and the superstar that’s been there before and may not even be having a good year,” Brewers manager Ron Roenicke said. “It’s nice to see our guys voted in, and those are the top three guys at their positions.”
Fielder and Weeks were among several players who overcame voting deficits in the final week. Mets shortstop Jose Reyes, Dodgers outfielder Matt Kemp and Detroit catcher Alex Avila also rallied late to earn starting spots.
Toronto outfielder Jose Bautista, the reigning home run champion, drew a record 7.4 million votes. He became the first Blue Jays player elected to start since Carlos Delgado in 2003.
