Adrian Gonzalez wants Yasiel Puig to win NL All-Star fan vote

The Los Angeles Dodgers have one player on the NL All-Star team, and they have the possibility of getting a second player added to the squad.

Both first baseman Adrian Gonzalez and outfielder Yasiel Puig are among the five finalists for the final spot. The other finalists in the fan vote are Washington Nationals shortstop Ian Desmond, Atlanta Braves first baseman Freddie Freeman, and San Francisco Giants outfielder Hunter Pence.

Whoever determined the NL fan vote finalists didn’t do the Dodgers any favors, because they’re making the team’s fans choose between two of their players. But Gonzalez wants Puig to make it.

“For me, personally, I want Puig to go,” Gonzalez said Sunday, per Dodgers reporter Ken Gurnick. “I’m voting for Puig.

“That’s what the fans want to see,” said Gonzalez, who was wearing a Puig 66 shirt while being interviewed. “It’s from the heart.”

Gonzalez, a four-time All-Star, says he wants Puig to get the experience of playing in an All-Star Game. He admits he wouldn’t throw his support behind Puig if he hadn’t already been to one.

Let’s look at the statistical comparison of the finalists (all stats prior to Sunday’s games).

– Gonzalez .296/.349/.485, 13 home runs, 8 errors
– Freeman .307/.384/.466, 9 home runs in 74 games
– Pence .269/.314/.462, 13 home runs, 13 stolen bases
– Desmond .284/.326/.506, 15 home runs, 10 stolen bases
– Puig .407/.435/.683 8 home runs, 4 stolen bases in 31 games

If you are basing the vote on who is most deserving to go, I would choose Desmond. If you’re asking me who I think will win the vote, it’s Pence, because Giants fans are intense when it comes to online votes.