Buster Posey heads to fifth All-Star Game

The fans have spoken: Buster Posey will start his fourth MLB All-Star game, fifth overall, this year as the San Francisco Giants’ lone representative in Miami.

Posey has been a constant threat in a listless lineup, and his effort thus far have him ranked, yet again, with the best of them. His .339 average leads the majors, his .416 OBP ranks fourth in the NL and his 3.0 WAR ranks 10th overall, sixth in the NL.

In the Giants’ extra-inning win over the Pittsburgh Pirates, as the All-Star voting’s final hours ticked off, Posey highlighted his spot as the best defensive catcher in the league with an improbable out on Andrew McCutchen‘s swinging bunt. The 30-year-old has a 5.1 defensive WAR, according to Fangraphs.

The reigning Gold Glover will not be joined by any fellow teammates for the first time in his career; San Francisco will not send multiple Giants to the All-Star game for the first time since Barry Bonds went it alone in 2007 at AT&T Park.

Joining Posey on the National League starter squad: Washington’s Ryan Zimmerman (1B), Washington’s Daniel Murphy (2B), Colorado’s Nolan Arenado (3B), Cincinnati’s Zack Cozart (SS), Colorado’s Charlie Blackmon, Washington’s Bryce Harper and Miami’s Marcell Ozuna (OF).

St. Louis catcher Yadier Molina was voted in as a reserve behind Posey. Clayton Kershaw and Max Scherzer are likely candidates to be his battery mate at first pitch.

According to ESPN, Posey will be the first catcher to make three consecutive starts at the All-Star game since Mike Piazza made six straight from 1994-99.

Shayna Rubin is SFBay’s San Francisco Giants beat writer. Follow @SFBay and @ShaynaRubin on Twitter and at SFBay.ca for full coverage of Giants baseball.