Final day of online voting recorded more than 41 million votes alone

All-Star Teams and Final Vote Candidates to be announced Sunday at 2 p.m. EDT on TBS

Fan voting for the 17 elected starters in the 79th All-Star Game, to be played July 15 at Yankee Stadium, ended last night with the record-setting conclusion of the Monster 2008 All-Star Online Balloting Program on MLB.com, the official website of Major League Baseball.

With the majority of the individual races going down to the wire undetermined, fans cast their final votes online at unprecedented rates, including more than 41 million votes in the final 24 hours of online balloting on Wednesday. That mark is 57% higher than the previous single-day record of 26 million set on the final day of online balloting in 2005.

Overall during the online balloting program, 214.7 million votes from 16.5 million ballots were cast at MLB.com and the 30 individual club sites, despite having seven fewer days in the voting cycle than in 2007. These record figures each represent increases of nearly 40% over the previous marks for total votes and ballots cast.

The 2008 American and National League All-Star Teams will be unveiled on Sunday, July 6 on the 2008 MLB All-Star Game Selection Show presented by Chevy, which will be televised nationally on TBS at 2 p.m. (EDT). MLB.com will provide the most comprehensive coverage of the All-Star Teams, including video and details of every player, immediately following the announcements.

Also after the conclusion of the show, fans will once again select the final player for each League’s 32-man roster via the Monster All-Star Final Vote exclusively online at MLB.com. Fans will also be able to cast votes via their mobile devices.

The Monster 2008 All-Star Final Vote will provide fans the opportunity to cast their votes from two lists of five players, one from each League, over a four-day period. National League All-Star manager Clint Hurdle of the Colorado Rockies and American League All-Star manager Terry Francona of the Boston Red Sox each will designate five players who will be the candidates for the Monster 2008 All-Star Final Vote. Balloting will continue until 5 p.m. (EDT) on Thursday, July 10. The winners will be announced exclusively on MLB.com shortly after the balloting closes.

“We’re excited to be once again sponsoring All-Star fan balloting programs on MLB.com — it’s a great opportunity to reach a wide range of people who are highly engaged and inspired,” said Joan Blackwood, Chief Marketing Officer, Monster. “Monster’s mission is to help people to align themselves with their true passions, and the All-Star Game is a natural fit for our brand as it’s a celebration of those whose passion and dedication have taken them to the top.”

Source: MLB.com

Texas HS Stars named to 2008 Aflac All-American High School Baseball Game Roster

Aflac announced today during an on-field presentation held at Rangers Ballpark that RHP Matthew Graham (Oak Ridge HS) of Spring; LHP Matthew Purke (Klein HS) of Spring; OF Everett Williams (McCallum HS) of Austin; OF/RHP Jacob Morris (Coppell HS) and C/IF Jonathan Walsh (Coppell HS), both of Coppell; and OF/LHP Slade Heathcott (Texas HS) of Texarkana have been selected to the 2008 Aflac All-American High School Baseball Game roster. The six stars were honored by Texas Rangers’ second baseman Ian Kinsler, who presented them with their official team jerseys.

The premiere high school All-American game in the country, the Aflac All-American Game will take place Saturday, Aug. 9 in Dodger Stadium and will be broadcast live on FOX Sports Net at noon Pacific Time.

“We’re excited to have named these outstanding ballplayers to the Aflac All-American roster at the tour stop in Texas and when they play the game in August, they will also be helping us in our fight against pediatric cancer,” said Al Johnson, 2nd Vice President, Advertising and Branding at Aflac.

The annual Aflac All-American High School Baseball Game showcases 38 of the nation’s top high school players in an East versus West matchup following their junior year. Aflac All-Americans are chosen by the experts at our official selection partner, Perfect Game USA, and in consultation with the staff at baseball’s most influential magazine, Baseball America.

As part of Aflac’s ongoing commitment to the fight against childhood cancer, all game proceeds from the 2008 Aflac All-American High School Baseball Game will benefit ThinkCure, the official charity of the Dodgers, which supports critical cancer research at City of Hope and Childrens Hospital of Los Angeles. Since 2005, the game has generated nearly $525,000 for charity.

Hall of Fame shortstop Ozzie Smith will return as this year’s honorary chairman, and in addition to promoting the game, will be on-site in Los Angeles for game week activities. This is the second consecutive year that Smith has served as honorary chairman. Past honorary chairmen have included Hall of Famers Reggie Jackson (2006), Cal Ripken (2004-05) and Stan Musial (2003).

“I wish this game existed when I was in high school, as it’s such a tremendous opportunity for these young men to show their skills in front of a nationwide audience and MLB scouts,” said Smith. “Aflac does a tremendous job promoting this game and working hard to support pediatric cancer research, and I’m proud to be a part of it once again.”

The Aflac All-American High School Baseball Game is considered the country’s marquee prep All-American event. All participants must have just completed their junior year of high school, be in good academic standing and display redeeming qualities off the field that embody the ideals of the sport of baseball, including discipline, determination and hard work.

For more information and tour stop photographs, visit www.aflacallamerican.com

Source: Aflac

MLB.com, the official website of Major League Baseball, earlier today launched major enhancements to its live pitch-by-pitch application, Gameday, highlighted by the addition of user-controlled 3-D capabilities.

Fans now have the unique ability to control their view by manipulating away from any of the three pre-defined positions of the batter-pitcher match-up in a variety of ways, such as zooming in or out, circling around the action along a full 360 degree rotation or tilting up or down, without stopping or delaying the real-time game action. The pre-set camera angles automatically adjust based on each batter’s and pitcher’s individual batting side and throwing hand, respectively.

Additionally, Gameday now identifies every pitch thrown during a game through a color-coded scheme as well as a mouse-over feature that allows fans to see the pitch type alongside detailed data referencing the trajectory, velocity and location during a pitching sequence from release to conclusion.

This unparalleled level of detail for every pitch thrown during each game is born from exclusive real-time pitch data generated directly from every Major League ballpark using the Pitch-f/x system. The new 3-D display was created through proprietary software developed in partnership with Plug-In Media of Brighton, England.

“We are excited to launch the latest enhancements to one of our most popular applications, Gameday,” said Dinn Mann, Executive Vice President, Content, MLB.com. “These developments give fans unprecedented individual control over their interaction with the game on the field and will further their insights of the live, batter-pitcher duels that make up the heartbeat of every baseball game.”

Source: MLB.com