In advance of the 2019 MLB All-Star selection show on Thursday (7 p.m. ET on ESPN), ESPN.com asked six of its contributors -- Bradford Doolittle, Buster Olney, David Schoenfield, Sam Miller, Tim Kurkjian and Jeff Passan -- to select the players they think should be on the rosters for the Midsummer Classic on July 9 in Cleveland.

Below are our starters, based on the experts' votes, and all of the other players who got votes as reserves or pitchers. We also asked some of our contributors to answer questions about their selections.

For a complete list of their individual picks, click here.

American League

Starter voting:

Catcher: Gary Sanchez, New York Yankees (5 votes) (Robinson Chirinos received one vote; Sanchez was chosen as a reserve on that ballot)

First base: Carlos Santana, Cleveland Indians (6)

Second base: DJ LeMahieu, New York Yankees (5) (Whit Merrifield received one vote; LeMahieu was chosen as a reserve on that ballot)

Third base: Alex Bregman, Houston Astros (4) (Matt Chapman received two votes; Bregman was chosen as a reserve on those ballots)

Shortstop (tie): Jorge Polanco, Minnesota Twins (3) and Xander Bogaerts, Boston Red Sox (3) (Bogaerts and Polanco tied with three votes each)

Outfield: Mike Trout, Los Angeles Angels (6); Mookie Betts, Boston Red Sox (3); George Springer, Houston Astros (3) (Others receiving starter votes -- Max Kepler, Joey Gallo, Michael Brantley and Austin Meadows)

Designated hitter: J.D. Martinez, Boston Red Sox (4) (Daniel Vogelbach and Joey Gallo received one vote; Martinez was chosen as a reserve on one ballot)

Reserve voting:

C: James McCann, White Sox (4); Robinson Chirinos, Astros (2); Mitch Garver, Twins (1)

1B: Edwin Encarnacion, Yankees (1); C.J. Cron, Twins (1), Luke Voit, Yankees (1)

2B: Brandon Lowe, Rays (4); Whit Merrifield, Royals (3)

3B: Matt Chapman, A's (4); Hunter Dozier, Royals (2); Rafael Devers, Red Sox (1)

SS: Marcus Semien, A's (2); Francisco Lindor, Indians (2); Gleyber Torres, Yankees (1); (Note -- Bogaerts and Polanco each received three starter votes and three reserve votes)

OF: Tommy Pham, Rays (3); Byron Buxton, Twins (3); Trey Mancini, Orioles (4); Austin Meadows, Rays (2); Eddie Rosario, Twins (1); Joey Gallo, Rangers (2); Max Kepler, Twins (3); Michael Brantley, Astros (1)

DH: Daniel Vogelbach, Mariners (5)

Pitcher voting:

Lucas Giolito, SP, White Sox (6)

Justin Verlander, SP, Astros (6)

Mike Minor, SP, Rangers (6)

Jake Odorizzi, SP, Twins (5)

Charlie Morton, SP, Rays (6)

Brad Hand, RP, Indians (6)

Jose Berrios, SP, Twins (6)

Ryan Pressly, RP, Astros (6)

Matthew Boyd, SP, Tigers (3)

Ken Giles, RP, Blue Jays (5)

Shane Greene, RP, Tigers (4)

Gerrit Cole, SP, Astros (4)

Chris Sale, SP, Red Sox (3)

John Means, SP, Orioles (2)

Lance Lynn, SP, Twins (1)

Marcus Stroman, SP, Blue Jays (1)

Aroldis Chapman, RP, Yankees (2)

What do you make of the pitching staff in the AL?

Well, I suspect the actual AL pitching staff may be worse than the one I selected. I included Chris Sale and Gerrit Cole on my team, for example, based on their history and dominant peripheral stats this season. But they aren't among the ERA leaders, and depending on how the mandatory team reps are filled, we could see guys like John Means or Marco Gonzales on the team. Throw in some down years/injuries from pitchers like Blake Snell, Corey Kluber, Luis Severino, Carlos Carrasco and even Sale's 3-7 W-L record, and the cream of the AL pitching crop is a lot thinner. -- David Schoenfield

Who should be the starting pitcher for the AL?

Justin Verlander. He has allowed a lot of home runs -- 21 in 114.2 innings -- but most of those have been solo shots and he's 10-3 with a 2.67 ERA and .157 batting average allowed. Plus, he obviously has the star power you associate with an All-Star Game. He should get his second All-Star start -- and hopefully fare better than in 2012, when he allowed five runs in the first inning. -- Schoenfield

National League

Starter voting:

Catcher: Yasmani Grandal, Milwaukee Brewers (3) (Willson Contreras received two votes and J.T. Realmuto one; Grandal was chosen as a reserve on two ballots)

First base: Freddie Freeman, Atlanta Braves (4) (Josh Bell received two votes; Freeman was chosen as a reserve on both of those ballots)

Second base (tie): Mike Moustakas, Milwaukee Brewers (3) and Ketel Marte, Arizona Diamondbacks (3) (Marte and Moustakas tied with three votes)

Third base: Nolan Arenado, Colorado Rockies (5) (Anthony Rendon received one vote; Arenado was chosen as a reserve on that ballot)

Shortstop: Javier Baez, Chicago Cubs (4) (Paul DeJong and Trevor Story each received one vote)

Outfield: Cody Bellinger, Los Angeles Dodgers (6); Christian Yelich, Milwaukee Brewers (6); Ronald Acuna Jr., Atlanta Braves (5) (Charlie Blackmon received one vote; Acuna was chosen as a reserve on that ballot)

Reserve voting:

C: J.T. Realmuto, Phillies (3); Willson Contreras, Cubs (3)

1B: Josh Bell, Pirates (4); Pete Alonso, Mets (5); Anthony Rizzo, Cubs (1); Rhys Hoskins, Phillies (2)

2B: Jeff McNeil, Mets (3) (Note -- Moustakas and Marte each received three starter votes and three reserve votes)

3B: Anthony Rendon, Nationals (5); Kris Bryant, Cubs (5); Brian Anderson, Marlins (1); Manny Machado, Padres (1)

SS: Trevor Story, Rockies (3); Paul DeJong, Cardinals (4); Fernando Tatis Jr. (2); Dansby Swanson, Braves (1)

OF: Charlie Blackmon, Rockies (4); Austin Riley, Braves (1); Alex Verdugo, Dodgers (1); Hunter Renfroe, Padres (2); Juan Soto, Nationals (3); Bryce Harper, Phillies (1)

Utility: Max Muncy, Dodgers (4)

Pitcher voting:

Hyun-Jin Ryu, SP, Dodgers (6)

Zack Greinke, SP, D-backs (6)

Max Scherzer, SP, Nationals (6)

Kirby Yates, RP, Padres (6)

Luis Castillo, SP, Reds (6)

Will Smith, RP, Giants (6)

Josh Hader, RP, Brewers (5)

Mike Soroka, SP. Braves (4)

Jacob deGrom, SP, Mets (4)

Walker Buehler, SP, Dodgers (4)

Cole Hamels, SP, Cubs (3)

Clayton Kershaw, SP, Dodgers (3)

Caleb Smith, SP, Marlins (3)

German Marquez, SP, Rockies (2)

Trevor Richards, SP, Marlins (1)

Chris Paddack, SP, Padres (1)

Felipe Vazquez, RP, Pirates (2)

John Gant, RP, Cardinals (1)

Kyle Hendricks, SP, Cubs (1)

Stephen Strasburg, SP, Nationals (1)

Sandy Alcantara, SP, Marlins (1)

Who should be the starting pitcher for the NL (and why)?

As good as Scherzer has been, and he seems to be getting better with each start lately, Ryu's first half demands to be rewarded. It's not just that he leads the NL in wins and ERA, it's that he's doing so with a 9-1 record and a surreal 1.27 ERA. Having 90 strikeouts and only six walks doesn't hurt, either. -- Schoenfield

More questions and answers

Who were the toughest omissions for you?

In the NL, pitchers Mike Soroka and German Marquez. Soroka has been terrific, but he got squeezed out to make room for a Marlin and I went with Clayton Kershaw as my final pitcher. He is, after all, Clayton Kershaw, and he has a 3.07 ERA. Marquez remains underrated and his .523 OPS allowed on the road suggests he's one of the best around, with Coors Field inflating his overall numbers. Kris Bryant and J.T. Realmuto have good cases and if Fernando Tatis Jr. hadn't missed 34 games he may have been a lock, given his triple-slash line.

In the AL, I guess I could have gone with Marcus Stroman instead of Ken Giles as the Blue Jays rep, but I took Lance Lynn as my final pitcher since he leads AL pitchers in FanGraphs WAR and ranks seventh in Baseball-Reference WAR. Jake Odorizzi has a strong case as well, although he averages barely five innings per start. The crowded shortstop field means no Carlos Correa (who is injured anyway), Marcus Semien, Adalberto Mondesi, Elvis Andrus or Gleyber Torres. -- Schoenfield

In the AL, it was Rafael Devers. He deserves to be in there, but it was either him and Kansas City's Hunter Dozier, and I needed a Royal. In the NL, there was really a numbers problem among position players, and I think Javier Baez deserves to and likely will be on the roster. He fell short in my formula, but if Trevor Story is unable to go, Baez will slide in anyway. If only we didn't have to include a Marlin. -- Doolittle

Which team would you pick if you had to pick a winner?

Well, there's little doubt that the NL will have the stronger roster from 1 through 32. This isn't surprising given the NL has a big edge in interleague play and all the weak teams at the bottom of the AL standings. Plus, the AL is overcrowded with talent at some positions (especially shortstop) while weak at others (first base), creating a roster where all the best players don't actually make the team. -- Schoenfield

By the metrics I used to compiled the roster, it's the NL by a hair. So I'll go with that. After all, the AL only has one Mike Trout, while the NL has both Christian Yelich and Cody Bellinger. -- Doolittle

A brand new 12-team Fed Cup Finals will take place on clay in Budapest in Hungary, in April of next year.

As BBC Sport reported in March, 20 teams will have the chance to be crowned world champions each year, with eight qualifying ties taking place in February.

The winners of those ties will join this year's finalists Australia and France, hosts Hungary and one wildcard nation in the inaugural Finals.

There is an $18m (£14.2m) prize fund.

Of that, $12m (£9.5m) will go to the players, and the other $6m (£4.75m) to their national associations.

Not everyone is happy with the new format though, with former world number one and French Open champion Simona Halep saying she "won't play any more".

"To play home and away is the best feeling," she said in Eastbourne this week.

"Away, you have to manage the emotions and the pressures. If the Fed Cup is going to change, I won't play any more because I like the format that it is now. I love it actually. So if there is a change, it will be tough to play."

Under the current format, the champions need to negotiate three home or away ties. From next year, they will play no more than one.

Billie Jean King won the competition eight times as either a player or captain. Now a global ambassador for the Fed Cup, she had this response to Halep in an interview for BBC Sport.

"First of all you have to think beyond yourself," King said.

"I'd ask her - would you rather have 5,000 people watching you, or 23,000? What's better for the sport? I don't think there's any question this new format has the potential to be more successful for our sport."

Great Britain will contest a five-match qualifying tie at the end of the first week of February, having secured promotion to the World Group by beating Kazakhstan in London in April.

Potential opponents then include Japan, Romania, the United States, Germany, Spain and the Czech Republic.

If Anne Keothavong's side are successful, they will feature in the Finals at the Laszlo Papp Budapest Sports Arena from 14-19 April.

The multi-purpose indoor complex, which is named after Hungary's triple Olympic boxing gold medallist, will stage the Finals until 2022.

Ties will consist of two singles matches, and one doubles. There will be four groups of three teams, with the winners of each group progressing to the semi-finals.

The WTA were keen for the Finals to be played on clay, as the event is sandwiched between two important clay court events in Charleston and Stuttgart.

The Fed Cup, which was founded in 1963, is the largest annual international team competition in women's sport.

The Davis Cup - the men's equivalent team competition - has already undergone significant reform.

A $3bn (£2.4bn) 25-year partnership has been agreed with Kosmos, the investment group founded by the Barcelona defender Gerard Pique.

This November, 18 teams will compete for the title and $20m (£15.8m) of prize money in the inaugural finals in Madrid.

There will be some eye-watering sums on offer for the women, too. Each team will share $500,000 just for reaching the Finals, with the winning team dividing $3.2m (£2.5m) between the players.

The International Tennis Federation, which runs the Fed Cup, is also promising an additional $4.9m (£3.9m) for nations competing below the elite level of the competition.

Questions about the financial viability of the event remain, but ITF President David Haggerty says Budapest might even make a profit.

"It's government funding, as well as local sponsorship," Haggerty told BBC Sport.

"The government has made a decree and set this money aside. There are ways that they will be able to break even or perhaps make a profit.

"But I think it's bigger than that. I think that Budapest is one of the top three sport capitals in the world: sport is important to their culture, and what they do. They have ambitions as we know from the Olympics (bid) in the past."

South African scrum-half Nic Groom says the lure of joining "a club on the rise" convinced him to swap Super Rugby side Lions for Edinburgh.

Groom was a key player for Lions after joining a year ago and previously made 100 appearances for Stormers and Northampton Saints.

He is Edinburgh's seventh new signing for the upcoming campaign.

"Nic has been a standout in Super Rugby and the English Premiership," said Edinburgh head coach Richard Cockerill.

"That experience in the number nine jersey is obviously key, but Nic's ability to snipe and create opportunities in and around the fringes brings a different dynamic to our squad."

Groom, 29, professed himself "really excited" by the move to Edinburgh.

"I've been keeping an eye on their results from South Africa and it's definitely a club on the rise. I can't wait to play my role in the seasons to come."

Scotland's record cap holder Ross Ford has confirmed his retirement from playing and will now help coach the country's best young talent.

The hooker, who won his 110th and final cap in 2017, left Edinburgh this summer after 197 appearances in 11 years.

Former British & Irish Lion Ford, 35, will put his experience to use in the Scottish Rugby academy.

"There's a lot of talent here so if I can help them develop, hopefully they'll go on to big things," he said.

Ford began his career at Border Reivers and played in the World Cup in 2007, 2011 and 2015, as well as going on the 2009 Lions tour.

England boss Eddie Jones will coach the Barbarians against Fiji at Twickenham in November, just two weeks after the World Cup final.

The game will be the first international match staged in the UK following the World Cup, and is expected to feature some of the stars of the tournament.

"It's a huge honour to be invited to coach the Barbarians," Jones said.

"The club perfectly embodies the values and traditions of the sport."

Jones said 2019 is a "massive year for international rugby" and that he is "looking forward to returning to Twickenham after a successful World Cup campaign to coach a Barbarians team containing some of the stars of the tournament".

Jones is contracted by the RFU until 2021, but will be briefly seconded to the Barbarians before the match with the Fijians on 16 November.

It had been thought Jones would only stay in his role after the World Cup if England reached the semi-finals or beyond.

However, new RFU boss Bill Sweeney recently stated his intention to keep Jones even if England under-perform in Japan.

England's World Cup training camp started earlier this week, with Gloucester fly-half Danny Cipriani among those to be added to the group on Friday.

Jones then names his final World Cup training squad on 4 July, and his final 31-man World Cup party in mid-August.

STOCKTON, Calif. — Tristan Guardino held off Mitchel Moles for his second career Hoosier Tire California Speedweek Non Wing victory, grabbing Wednesday’s event at Delta Speedway.

Guardino’s win is his first series triumph since July 9, 2016 when he was victorious at Lemoore Raceway. He was joined by Moles in Super 600 and Jade Avedisian in Restricted as winners at the seventh-mile dirt oval at the San Joaquin County Fairgrounds.

Guardino started the feature alongside Troy Morris III who was utilizing a backup engine in the 30-lap event. After a four-wide battle up front, Guardino prevailed with the lead. Fourth starting Moles advanced to second with the pair building up a strong lead ahead of 2018 champion T.J. Smith and Tuesday winner Caden Sarale. The top-two cars quickly found themselves seeing lapped traffic on lap 10. Morris drifted from his pole position to 13th position.

Ben Worth spun in turn three for a caution on lap 13. One lap later, a three-car skirmish involving Worth, Brandon Carey, and Carson Myrick brought out the red flag.

The following restart saw Sarale and Smith make slight contact, dropping Sarale back to sixth position behind 16th starting Austin Stone. Sarale took fifth back from Stone before the red flag flew for Chase Hyland flipping in turn one.

After the lap-20 red flag, Moles took advantage to try to crossover Guardino for the lead with Smith sticking his nose in there as well. Guardino swung back into the lead one lap later while a battle ensued behind him. Sarale tried to make the bottom lane work but eventually went upstairs for the closing laps.

Guardino paced Moles in a narrow run atop the cushion for the $1,000 victory with Smith topping Sarale for third. Stone rounded out the top five.

Jade Avedisian became the second female racer to win in the California Speedweek history when she topped the 22-car, 25-lap Restricted feature.

Tuesday night’s runner-up finisher Dawson Faria spun in turn one from the sixth-starting position and was hit by Emerson Vincent for a caution on lap one. The next attempt at the first lap was troublesome for Oklahoma’s Ryan Timms, the Dixon winner, when he had contact with Bryant Bell.

Delta point leader Logan Trevino jumped ahead with the lead by three car lengths before another caution for Washington’s Carson Borden spinning in turn three. Lane Taylor jumped upstairs and battled with Gauge Garcia and Izaak Sharp for third. Taylor cleared Garcia on lap four and turned his attention to Sharp for third.

Eli Bookout started tenth and started to challenge Garcia for fifth with quick time qualifier Reilee Phillips in lockstep with them as well. Lapped traffic entered the fray on lap 14 with the traffic running side-by-side in front of the leaders on lap 17.

Avedisian closed on Trevino in hot pursuit, making a dramatic move up onto the turn four berm to take the lead on lap 21. Trevino continued to put the pressure on Avedisian all the way to the finish. Avedisian topped Trevino, Sharp, Garcia, and Bookout for the top five after Taylor retired with a mechanical issue.

The Super 600 proceedings ripped the Speedweek standings wide open with Mitchel Moles grabbing his 19th win of 2019 and a much sought after first California Speedweek bear.

The start was a wild one as Ben Worth tumbled into turn one, collecting Nikko Panella, Keith Day Jr. and Mason Keefer as drivers jockeyed to avoid the incident.

Dixon winner Michael Faccinto was forced into the infield with mechanical problems and never completed a lap of the feature.
Faccinto’s troubles placed the Super 600 battle squarely on the shoulders of Moles and Dixon runner-up Jake Hagopian.

Colby Thornhill had a thrilling charge through the pack, passing both Brad Hannum and Texan Chase Randall to assume fourth from 14th on the grid. A caution on lap 12 for Cody Key spinning put Thornhill on top of Corey Day, with Thornhill grabbing third on the restart.

The drivers in the pack both looked high and low with Moles and Hagopian anchoring the top of the race track. A caution on lap 21 for Brandon Carey stopping in turn two erased a small lead Moles had built over Hagopian as they approached lapped traffic. Moles got a slight jump on Hagopian on the restart which allowed Thornhill to challenge Hagopian for second.

Moles pulled away for the $1,000 win with Thornhill getting second place ahead of the 2018 Speedweek champion Hagopian.

PEORIA, Ill. — Nick Hoffman makes it two wins in his 2019 DIRTcar Summit Racing Equipment Modified Nationals campaign as he claimed the big check at the Peoria Speedway on Wednesday night.

Point leader Tyler Nicely finished second to keep his point lead alive.

Nicely and Hoffman were on the front row of the 25-lap feature. On the start, Hoffman ran straight to the lead from the outside of the front row.

An early caution flew, forcing another restart, but it wouldn’t stop the North Carolina racer. “My car could run anywhere tonight” said Hoffman.

Seven green laps into the Feature and rain started to pour down onto the track. Officials sent the drivers back to the pits and waited out the storm cell.

Track prep crews ran the track in and packed it down to save the night. 30 minutes later, the action continued but Hoffman wouldn’t be challenged by the changing of the track conditions, or any of the competition behind him.

Hoffman ran away with the race from that point on and was never once challenged for the lead. Hoffman will pull double duty tomorrow in a DIRTcar Late Model and DIRTcar Modifieds.

Tyler Nicely and Kenny Wallace held their postions all throughout the race to complete the podium.

The finish:

Feature (25 Laps) – 1. 2-Nick Hoffman; 2. 25N-Tyler Nicely; 3. 36-Kenny Wallace; 4. 32-Donavon Lodge; 5. K19-Will Krup; 6. C40-Mike Chasteen; 7. 24H-Mike Harrison; 8. 292-Josh Allen; 9. 57-Trey Harris; 10. 148-Gabe Menser; 11. 99-Hunt Gossum; 12. 18-Jeffrey Ledford; 13. 27D-Beau DeYoung; 14. MB4-Marty Lindeman; 15. T6-Tommy Sheppard; 16. 7-Spencer Hughes; 17. J1-Roger Jackson; 18. 19B-Brock Bauman; 19. O5-Dave Wietholder; 20. 77-Ray Bollinger; 21. 25W-Allen Weisser; 22. 10K-Kelly Kovski; 23. 72A-Austin Lynn

LAFARGEVILLE, N.Y. — Veteran Can-Am Speedway master Tim Fuller was not to be denied a trip to victory lane in the 60-lap DIRTcar 358 Modified Series lid lifter Wednesday night at Can-Am Speedway.

The crowd was treated to an incredible duel between Billy Dunn and the race winner. Erick Rudolph, who started ninth, worked his way up through the field to finish in second. Meanwhile, Mat Williamson, rounded out the podium with another third.

Tim Fuller had not won a feature since last year and be picked the perfect time to shake the bad luck off. Fuller noted, “It’s been a struggle all spring and here in the summer.”

A $4,000 check will chase away anyone’s blues and Fuller had some important people to thank. “First and foremost thanks to St. Lawrence Radiology, Mike and Lauren Maresca,” Fuller said. “They fund this whole project here and they sponsored the race tonight. They are big DIRTcar supporters.”

Billy Dunn lead the race late in the tilt but a rear end failure ended his night on the backstretch with the caution flags unfurled. Just before that, Dunn and Fuller had a battle going that every race fan in attendance will remember.

Fuller and Dunn were wheel to wheel for at least five laps consecutively. Neither would give an inch, they raced hard and with serious professionalism. For the duel to end as it did, with a smoking, broken Dunn machine, was a shame.

Fuller described his tactics, “Machine Gun Billy Dunn had the fastest car. He found the bottom before I did. He was the car to beat before he blew up. I thought I could have a run at him on those long greens because I knew he had a little bit softer tire.”

With the No. 49 behind the wall, Erick Rudolph and Mat Williamson could smell blood.

Rudolph stayed consistent for the whole 60 laps and made passes when the opportunity arose. He wanted to take a run at the No. 19 but Rudolph read the play well.

“I thought I had something for Fuller but then on that last restart, he proved me wrong. He just took off like he put it in another gear. He checked out. I’ll settle for second. Not a bad night for us,” said Rudolph.

Williamson finished third for the second night in a row.

“It was challenging,” he said. “The track is nice when it gets black like this. Early in the feature, it started to take rubber. We tightened up too much but we were really good on restarts.”

The finish:

Feature (60 laps) 1. Tim Fuller 2. Erick Rudolph 3. Mat Williamson 4. Michael Parent 5. Mike Mahaney 6. Ryan Arbuthnot 7. Bobby Herrington 8. Jordan McCreadie 9. Dave Marcuccilli 10. Ronnie Davis 11. Corey Wheeler 12. Danny Johnson 13. Chris Raabe 14. Ryan Bartlett 15. Carey Terrance 16. Steve Bernier 17. Yan Bussiere 18. Kyle Dingwall 19. Jeff Sykes 20. Tyler Meeks 21. Scott Webb 22. Billy Dunn 23. Nick Webb 24. Lance Willix 25. Tim Sears Jr. 26. Mike Maresca 27. Pat Ward. 28. Tom Conklin 29. Chad Brachmann 30. Todd Root 31. Robbie Bellinger

PEORIA, Ill. — The 19th Summer Nationals visit to Peoria Speedway was a stellar one as fans packed the stands on Wednesday night.

Twenty-six DIRTcar late models checked in for the $5,000-to-win round one make-up race for the DIRTcar Summer Nationals.

Brian Shirley claimed the VP Racing Fuels Checkered flag once again as he won from the outside front row. Shirley now ties Shannon Babb for the most wins at Peoria Speedway with four wins apiece.

Brandon Sheppard and Shirley sat on the front row of the 40-lap feature. Sheppard started off strong on the bottom until Shirley got a grip on the outside and powered to the lead. Bobby Pierce worked to the runner-up position with Frank Heckenast Jr. following in third.

At the beginning of the race, Pierce ran the cushion and was catching Shirley, but the top faded and the track became bottom dominant. Shirley checked out by a straightaway until he caught lapped traffic. Pierce and Heckenast caught the leader but couldn’t capitalize quick enough. Shirley got around Bob Gardner, a strong lapped car standing in his way, after forcing him out of the low groove.

Shirley then jumped to a healthy straightaway lead once again until he got behind Allen Murray. Pierce knew it was closing time as he tried to make room under Shirley, but it wasn’t enough, as the “Smooth Operator” settled for a back-to-back second-place finish.

Hackenast charged to third and completed the podium after starting sixth. He appeared to have the fastest car on the racetrack, getting around Jason Feger for fourth and Sheppard for third in the early going. But once he reached the rear of Pierce’s Hoker Trucking No. 32, Heckenast ran out of room on the low side to get a nose underneath.

Nonetheless, a strong effort put forth and another top-three for the “Hell Tour” veteran.

The finish:

Feature (40 Laps) – 1. 3S-Brian Shirley; 2. 32-Bobby Pierce; 3. 99JR-Frank Heckenast Jr.; 4. B5-Brandon Sheppard; 5. 25-Jason Feger; 6. 2-Mike Chasteen; 7. 18-Shannon Babb; 8. 84-Myles Moos; 9. 28-Dennis Erb Jr.; 10. 25W-Allen Weisser; 11. 24-Ryan Unzicker; 12. B12-Kevin Weaver; 13. 18J-Chase Junghans; 14. 2M-allen Murray; 15. CJ1-Rusty Schlenk; 16. 4G-Bob Gardner; 17. 31AUS-Paul Stubber; 18. 87-Walker Arthur; 19. 25H-Chuck Hummer; 20. T2-Todd Bennett; 21. 75-Billy Drake; 22. 2K-Zackary Kuhel