Two members of the host New York Yankees and five Boston Red Sox teammates are currently in the lead in the first American League balloting results for the 79th All-Star Game, to be played on Tuesday, July 15th at Yankee Stadium, it was announced today.

Both members of the left side of the Yankee infield, shortstop Derek Jeter and third baseman Alex Rodriguez, are atop their positions. Jeter, an eight-time A.L. All-Star, has garnered 523,187 votes, while Rodriguez, an 11-time A.L. All-Star, has drawn 429,238 votes. Red Sox designated hitter David Ortiz, an A.L. All-Star in each of the last four seasons, has received the most votes among all American Leaguers with 556,567. Outfielder Manny Ramirez, an 11-time A.L. All-Star, has the next highest total with 539,122 votes. The right side of the Boston infield is currently intact as both Kevin Youkilis (419,813 votes) and Dustin Pedroia (384,648) vie to make their first appearances in the Midsummer Classic. Teammate Jason Varitek, a two-time All-Star, has drawn 288,464 votes, which is the top figure in a crowded race behind the plate, where three others have more than 200,000 votes.

The other A.L. leaders are outfielders Ichiro Suzuki (284,763 votes) of the Seattle Mariners and Vladimir Guerrero (274,827) of the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. Magglio Ordoñez of the Detroit Tigers is fourth among A.L. outfielders with 236,890 votes, followed by Bobby Abreu (233,147) of the Yankees and Josh Hamilton (229,711) of the Texas Rangers.

The 2008 American League and National League All-Star Teams will be unveiled on Sunday, July 6th on the 2008 MLB All-Star Game Selection Show Presented by Chevrolet, televised nationally on TBS following the weekly Sunday MLB on TBS match-up. The American League All-Star Team will have nine starters elected via the fan balloting program, while the National League All-Star Team will have eight fan-elected starters. The pitchers and reserves for both squads - 23 for the N.L., 22 for the A.L. - will be determined through a combination of "Player Ballot" choices and selections made by the two All-Star managers - American League skipper Terry Francona of the Boston Red Sox and National League manager Clint Hurdle of the Colorado Rockies - in conjunction with Major League Baseball.

Immediately following the announcement of the American League and National League All-Star rosters, fans will have the opportunity to select the final player for each League's 32-man roster at MLB.com. The Monster 2008 All-Star Final Vote will provide fans the opportunity to cast their votes from a list of five players from each League over a four-day period. For the fourth year, fans will be able to vote for their Final Vote selections on their mobile phone. Both winners of the Monster All-Star Final Vote will be announced after the voting has concluded on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, fans once again will have the opportunity to participate in the official voting for the 79th All-Star Game's Ted Williams Most Valuable Player presented by Chevrolet via the Monster All-Star Game MVP Vote on MLB.com.

The 79th Major League Baseball All-Star Game, being held at Yankee Stadium in its final season, will be televised nationally by FOX Sports, in Canada by Rogers Sportsnet and Sportsnet HD and televised around the world by Major League Baseball International, with pregame ceremonies beginning at 8 p.m. (EDT). ESPN Radio will provide exclusive national radio coverage that will also be available on XM Satellite Radio, while MLB.com will provide extensive online coverage.