It's Not All Bad...

[Kingdom]

Finer Points in Pittsburgh


If it reads like a book, or fits like a glove, then, it..

It’s lame and fans don’t know what the hell they’re doing, is the glove or rather the gloves that commonly fit Major League Baseball’s all-star game. I’ll be honest, I find it flawed, too flawed to ever really fix actually. And I would rather see the homerun derby than the game itself. The future’s game prolly tends to strike the interesting chord more often, if only because you know the kids are out there busting their ass to prove something to anyone willing to watch. Stereotypically, we don’t say that about the big leaguers anymore. I’m sure most of you are well aware of the past, Pete Rose taking people out with slides, pitchers going well over 2 innings pitched, marathon extra inning games that were not called a tie by the commish (I remember Crime Dawg’s mammoth shot in the early 90’s when he was representing the braves, that was classic for me). We’re reduced to the usual batch of players that end up skipping the event, even after they are either voted in or selected by the all-star manager. We’ve had excuses like Juan Gonzalez stating he would not play since he was not voted in. There’s the fact that pitchers who pitch the last day will drop out, and then the most common one- I want to take a break and spend time with my family. Hey, I’m not going to judge you for wanting to spend time with the family, more power to you. It’s not my point. And to try and combat all of this, Selig says the game now matters. It decides home field advantage in the World Series. That idea is pretty lame to me, and why it’s lame is because, what if the N.L. rep had 90 wins, while the A.L. rep broke the single season record for wins? Say, they had a hella-lofty 136 wins. I’m sorry, but a 46 game difference coinciding with the probability that the N.L. team got their asses handed to them by the A.L. in interleague play is grounds to kick Selig's idea in the testicles. It’s also lame because the game hasn’t mattered for the last two seasons (see back to back sweeps for the A.L.).

That’s what a growing majority feel about the game now. But, it’s not all about that. No, see, what happens is, there’s always going to be that all-star that people will never forget. There’s going to be the underdog that finally makes it big and there’s always going to be a special moment when Goliath battles Goliath. Granted, the A.L. routinely, at least in my lifetime, beats the N.L. So it has been one-sided. It can still be fun. What is fun? To me, fun is seeing Torii Hunter rob Barry Bonds of a homerun (coincidentally it was that infamous tie game). We take what Hunter does for granted, because he seemingly robs a player of a homerun weekly. But then he goes and does it against the record breaking slugger. That was magical. Then Bonds ran out to meet Hunter and just picked him up and threw him up over his shoulders. BONDS WAS ACTUALLY SMILING DURING ALL OF THIS. Now that’s something you rarely see. Years ago, Pedro Martinez got to start for the American League. For the next two innings, he proceeded to strike out the whole damn stadium. Or at least it seemed like that. Six k’s in two innings, and got the MVP. Imagine, a great pitcher dominated great hitting. But something like that is lost in the shuffle, because fans for example, vote in the wrong players. That they do. Should that take away from something beautiful to watch? Of another awe-inspiring moment happened when ARod shifted over to third to let Cal Ripken Jr. play shortstop for an inning. I know Chan Whore Park served him up an easy longball, but I remember ARod’s jesture more so. Another intriguing moment happened during Ichiro’s first season, he was voted in as a starting outfielder. On the mound for the N.L. was Randy Johnson. And the Big Unit was still elite at the time. The miniscule Ichiro facing off against a future hall-of-famer for the first time, and Ichiro drag bunts his way on base. Johnson never moved so fast off the mound but it didn’t matter. No one was going to catch the later to be named rookie of the year and most valuable player. But like I said, it’s a wash.

We try placing too much value into what fans do or don’t do, what Selig unfortunately has done or hasn’t done soon enough, thinking that the world does revolve around who is voted into or picked to be in this event. It’s always been about fun, and it has always been about the best that season playing against the best. It's the damn game we love guys, it's baseball. Really, it should never affect the World Series. It should never be about hostility. It's a break that allows us to enjoy competitive baseball in which there are really no losers. You’re upset that several Yankees were voted in, some maybe not deserving to be in the game at all. Take solace in the fact that a journeyman in Gary Mathews Jr. is making his first ever trip to the all-star game.. as an all-star. Take note of the youth movement, that Scott Kazmir, Alexis Rios, Francisco Liriano, Jonathan Papelbon, Robinson Cano, Grady Sizemore, Bobby Jenks, Joe Mauer, Jose Lopez, Brian McCann, Jose Reyes, David Wright, Miguel Cabrera, Chase Utley, Ryan Howard, Freddy Sanchez, Brandon Webb, and Matt Holliday are all… reppin’ their teams in the game. Many of us on the forums are as old as these guys, if not older. Oh yeah, Nomar is back folks. He’s back.

Finally, at the beginning of the season, there was this player that ended up being named a starter for his club. Maybe, only because his competition went MIA and his only attribute at the time was a hard-nosed approach to the game. When searching for this guy online, most sites listed his player photo …as nothing, or an X. He pretty much didn’t exist before 2006. But now, how can you forget all-star second baseman Dan Uggla? Let alone overlook. Let’s not let what we hate discount what is already there to enjoy.


In conjunction with Senator McKain in covering the all-star game.

Picture credit: Missionhockey21

[Dry1313]

Great Write-Up. I sort of agree with this, it's the sentiment of the game I love. The guy who beats out the infield hit, the 5-4 2B who makes a full out diving catch and guns the guy out at first, all of that stuff. I' not interested in who wins, it's more about the situations that arise, but not in the typical "awe, that's cuddly" way. Just deferring respect. Like Ted Williams in the Fenway All-Star Game, even all decked out in the dot-com parapheneila his son had dressed him in, and relegated to a wheelchair, one of my favorite moments is seeing all these larger then life characters turning back into kids at the site of this larger than life Hall of Famer. Shit like that is what the game is about.

[missionhockey21]

You hit on a few good points Zito. First off, I am getting really sick of players not embracing the respect they are getting with their selection. This is their JOB. If I was nominated for being the best at something along with others at wherever I work, you better believe I would show up. It's true that they don't see their families often and I imagine that's tough for both them and their loved ones. But honestly, to take a plane ride to make an appearance, tip your hat and leave... that's not much to ask. I want to see the players I voted in making that effort to come out and show that they appreciate the fans. I've never heard (it could of happened though) a premier player begging the fans to vote for someone else as they will not attend. In other words, I think many players want the respect and the claim to an All-Star selection, but not the work that comes from their end. Obviously there are exceptions to the rule, like a family emergency, but any fan would understand in that case.

And it's sad to see many stars over the years take this honor for granted and sour the fans of view of players in general. If you look at someone like David Wright or Robinson Cano or any of the first-timers really, you could tell they were loving every minute of it. I think often times we try to look for the negative aspects in the ASG's (and there are many) but as baseball fans, we need embrace what there is still left to love even if some players could careless. Even if the game was lacking last night and the team I picked to win blew it, seeing Michael Young grind it out for a triple to win it or excited Freddy Sanchez making a couple great defensive plays for his fans in Pittsburgh or Brad Penny bringing heat we haven't seen in years (if that), that's what I'll take away from last night.

Oh and Uggla for starting 2B next year.
Great article Zito.
+rep

[Kingdom]

Manny being the big vote getter and not at least even showing up was such a piss job. Props to Ozzie selecting a guy he's had bitter words with to replace him.

[Fishercat]

Manny being the big vote getter and not at least even showing up was such a piss job. Props to Ozzie selecting a guy he's had bitter words with to replace him.

Christ, he's injured. Shut up about it.