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Miguel Cabrera passed by Yonder Alonso in AL All-Star voting

A first-time All-Star may unseat an 11-time All-Star at first base in the American League. Oakland Athletics first baseman Yonder Alonso has overtaken Detroit Tigers superstar Miguel Cabrera in the latest AL All-Star voting update.

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While Alonso’s rise is shocking, it’s not undeserved. The 30-year-old is hitting an incredible .310/.401/.655 over 197 plate appearances. His 16 home runs is already nearly double his previous career-high. Alonso’s 2.3 fWAR is also a career-high, and tops among all AL first basemen.

Alonso’s hold on the top spot is tenuous, however. Fewer than 5,000 votes separate him from Cabrera. While Cabrera is hitting just .268/.374/.408, a down season by his standards, he has name recognition and could still pass Alonso before voting concludes.

Yonder Alonso is the surprising leader at first base in the AL All-Star voting. (AP Photo)
Yonder Alonso is the surprising leader at first base in the AL All-Star voting. (AP)

The other big development in the latest update is the rise of the Houston Astros. Carlos Correa jumped Cleveland Indians standout Francisco Lindor at shortstop. George Springer passed Michael Brantley for the third spot in outfield voting. Jose Altuve held firm as the leader at second base, while Brian McCann shot up to second in catcher voting.

For now, the other leaders remain the same. Miguel Sano, Nelson Cruz and Salvador Perez maintained their leads at their respective positions. New York Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge continues to lead all AL players in total votes, which shouldn’t come as a surprise after his recent power display. Los Angeles Angels superstar Mike Trout, though still injured, resides in that second outfield slot.

If Alonso can hold his lead, he wouldn’t be the only surprising All-Star starter. Over in the National League, Cincinnati Reds shortstop Zack Cozart soared past Los Angeles Dodgers star Corey Seager in the latest update.

Should Cozart make the team, he’ll win a donkey. Seriously. Perhaps someone on the Athletics should make a similar deal with Alonso. It seems to be working for Cozart.

Voting is starting to come down to the wire. The next AL update will be issued Monday, June 19. Major League Baseball will make one final update after that, but has not announced the date. Fans can vote for their favorite players on MLB.com’s website through June 29.

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Chris Cwik is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at christophercwik@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Chris_Cwik