The good news: Milwaukee Brewers slugger Ryan Braun will be a starting outfielder for the National League in next week’s All-Star Game. His nearly six million votes made him the most popular choice in the N.L., and the fifth-most popular overall (the American League tends to get more voters because of the Yankees and the Red Sox).
Better news: Braun, who is in the N.L. top five in batting average and RBI, is putting together a career year and, on top of that, is in the midst of an impressive 22-game consecutive hitting streak. (He is, er, halfway to the, er, National League record. Joe DiMaggio’s 56 remains immortal.)
The bad news: Braun has missed three straight games with a calf injury (which doesn’t affect the hit streak). Get well soon! The All-Star Game is next Tuesday in Phoenix.
Yasher Koach, Ryan Braun [Kaplan’s Korner]
Braun Misses Third Straight Game [MLB.com]
Marc Tracy is a staff writer at The New Republic, and was previously a staff writer at Tablet. He tweets @marcatracy.