Former Twins Justin Morneau, Carlos Gomez and Michael Cuddyer each took steps forward in National League fan voting for the 2014 All-Star Game on July 15 at Target Field.
Morneau moved up one spot, to No. 2, at first base while Gomez is No. 5 and Cuddyer No. 12 in outfield voting, according to the latest results announced Tuesday.
The most significant jump was made by the Dodgers' Yasiel Puig, who went from No. 5 among outfielders to No. 1. Puig was followed by Charlie Blackmon of Colorado and Giancarlo Stanton of Miami.
Gomez moved up one spot and is fewer than 44,000 votes behind Stanton for the final starting outfield spot. Cuddyer was No. 14 last week. He missed a month of the season because of a strained hamstring, but has been hot since returning, lifting his average to .318 entering Tuesday.
Morneau moved ahead of the Braves' Freddie Freeman at first base, but he is more than 122,000 votes behind leader Adrian Gonzalez of the Dodgers.
The top vote-getter for the NL is Colorado shortstop Troy Tulowitzki, with more than 1.4 million votes, followed by St. Louis catcher Yadier Molina with more than 1.2 million votes and Philadelphia second baseman Chase Utley with 974,196.
The AL and NL teams will be announced during the weekend of July 5-6.
Dennis Brackin
