Ibañez makes the leap to #2; Philly rocks the vote!

Congrats to Raul Ibañez for making the leap to #2 in NL All Star OF voting. Totally deserving, too. MLB is breathing a wee bit easier with Manny falling a spot as a result of the Ibañez crush.

Ibañez has jumped from sixth place among N.L. outfielders last week to the second spot this week with 817,849 votes. Now in his 14th Major League season and his first in the N.L., Ibañez (.332, 17 HR, 46 RBI, N.L.-bests with .684 SLG, 128 TB) is seeking his first career invitation to the Midsummer Classic. The only N.L. outfielder with more votes than Ibañez is Ryan Braun (.316, 9 HR, 32 RBI, .428 OBP) of the Milwaukee Brewers with 908,745. Rounding out the National League outfield is seven-time All-Star Alfonso Soriano (.246, 12 HR, 25 RBI) of the Chicago Cubs with 775,319 votes, while Carlos Beltran (N.L.-best .352, 6 HR, 31 RBI) of the New York Mets ranks fourth with 741,875. Beltran placed third in the first N.L. update.

Many of you still think I actually believe Manny should be a starter due to some fan-crush, pro-steroids, pro-Dodgers thing... which is the furthest from the truth. If you haven't yet read my rationale for all of this, just have a read.

Thanks.

And get voting!