Utley tops all-star votes

Phillies second baseman Chase Utley is in line to make his fourth straight start for the National League in next month's All-Star Game.

And he might do it as the league's leading overall vote-getter.

Utley moved into the lead, overtaking St. Louis slugger Albert Pujols, when the latest batch of NL results was announced yesterday.

Utley had amassed 2,273,355 votes. Pujols, the leader at first base, had 2,158,036.

The Phillies have six more games on their current homestand, and they lead the NL with an average attendance of 43,658. These numbers would suggest that Utley could extend his lead in in-stadium fan voting this week.

Two other Phillies are in line to win starting berths for the NL. Raul Ibanez leads all outfielders with 1,897,905 votes, and Jimmy Rollins leads at shortstop with 1,216,007 votes.

Ryan Howard ranks second to Pujols at first base with 1,147,227 votes. Shane Victorino is fifth among outfielders.