Well...it is. But it shouldn't be.
Major League Baseball announced that fans may begin casting their vote for their favorite MLBer, sending them to Phoenix for the 2011 All-Star Game.
Let me guess, the players voted in will include Albert Pujols, Derek Jeter, etc.
I'm bored already.
Maybe Chase Utley will make the team too, despite not playing a single game this season. He's on the ballot. Leave these things up to the fans and anything's possible.
I find the All-Star Game to be one big fan fest, rather than a place for MLB to showcase their best talent.
Let's get some fresh faces in there.
I for one, would like to see Ike Davis make the All-Star team.
Davis is hitting .316, fourth best in the National League, third in RBIs behind Prince Fielder and Ryan Howard, and tied for second in home runs behind Pujols.
While he may not be at the top of the chart when it comes to fielding statistics, if you've watched Davis play first base, you know he's got the potential to be a future Gold Glove winner.
He has good range at first base and has got a canon for an arm.
At the end of the day, is he the best first baseman in the league? No.
But neither are half of the other "big names" who the fans vote to make the All-Star team year in and year out.
If it's not a popularity contest, make up the team via stats and leave voting out of it. If it's about which players do fans identify as wanting to see, then fine, let us vote for pitchers too and force them to play.
ReplyDeleteIt should be about stats, not names. Obviously, there will be players I think should be going, but fan voting should be done away with.
ReplyDeleteThe biggest issue for me is that it seems MLB wants two things for the All-Star Game:
ReplyDelete1. For it to be a popularity contest
2. For it to count
But those two can work against each other; it's counterproductive.
Re: Ceetar, Kelly
ReplyDeletePersonally, I wouldn't mind doing away with fan-voting. Something like player/coach voting might be neat.
But a lot of fans would oppose that idea and may even stop watching because of it, whereas the three of us will probably watch regardless.
I think a fair way might be to let the fan votes count as 50% and the players/coaches votes count at 50%. Thoughts?
Fan votes need to count. The All-Star Game is a game that's about making a connection between the fans and the game. Why take that away entirely? The half & half idea there might be a way to go.
ReplyDelete