Let the whining begin. Oh, you know the routine, every year, 'official' sports writers just say the fans don't get it and the dang fans just keep voting in old favorites, instead of this year's wunderkind or players who "deserve it more."
Guess what? We buy the tickets, build the stadiums, support the advertisers, and support the TV networks who broadcast the games. We, the fans, pay for the game.
If we want to vote for proven or popular players year after year after year, we have the right to do so.
But the voting does need tweaking and not in the way most 'official' sport writers want it changed, which is to just let the 'official' baseball beat writers and game managers, coaches and players vote.
Nope. Here are the ways to change the all-star game to make it must-see:
1. Get rid of the AL vs. NL scenario. Does any baseball fan really dwell on whether the AL or the NL will win the all-star game? No, baseball fans want to see all the great players even if some are in the twilight of their careers. Don't separate the balloting into AL and NL rosters.
What's the point except for the trumped up and obviously idiotic rule to reward World Series home field advantage to the All-Star game winning league? That's just unfair and stupid.
Allow fans to vote for a roster of players without separating the players into AL and NL rosters.
2. Let's get it on. If 'official' baseball writers and other insiders, like managers, coaches, and players, think they know more about baseball than fans, let the fans choose their starting lineup by popular vote.
The players may be NL or AL players. The players who get the most votes at each position via fan balloting are the starters for the fans. Then the insiders get to vote. (Why do the fans get to choose their players first? Because we pay for the game.) It's the fans' roster versus the 'insiders' roster. Bring it on....
3. Changing the issue of home field advantage should be easy. Use the tie breaker rules from a variety of sports. Start with overall record. Then head-to-head, road record, etc., etc. It would be easy to come up with rules for deciding who has home field advantage in the World Series.
There are lots of issues to be tweaked but voting for players shouldn't be limited to whether they play in the AL or NL. Year after year, deserving players are eliminated from All-Star consideration because they play a position which has a lot of great players in the same position in the same league that year.
That is why I propose the fans versus the 'insiders' all-star game. The All-Star game should start with voting for the best 22 players at each position no matter whether they play in the American or National league.
The 11 players with the most votes from the fans at each position start and play for the fan team. (The 11 player roster would include eight field position players plus three pitchers.) The 11 players with the second-most votes from the fans at each position are "free-agent" all-stars.
The 'insiders' can choose to take some or all of the 11 "free-agent" all-stars voted in by the fans or they can choose a player they vote in as more deserving. If the 'insiders' don't choose a fan-designated "free-agent" all-star, that player automatically stays on the fan team.
Can you imagine the TV "free-agent" selection show, in which the 'insiders' decide whether to select one of the 11 "free-agent all-stars" selected by the fan voting or select another player? Oh, this would be a great reason to tune into the all-star game coverage a few hours early!
Of course, the idea needs reworking. More pitchers, more players needed.
(Why 22 players selected by the fans? Eight position players for each team and three pitchers for each team.)
5 comments Last one added 11 months ago — Leave a Comment
Joe G about 1 year ago
Interesting idea here, I'd love to see it happen. Sometimes it seems like the writers forget that there are fewer All-Star slots than there are players deserving of a berth in the game, and just throw a huge fit about it.
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Andrew Kneeland about 1 year ago
I agree with Joe. Very good points, and they might be worth a try. Good work!
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Johnny Green about 1 year ago
No problem with the home field thing, that's how it used to be decided, before Bud's bastard tie game. Your strategy is a little too complicated; keep it simple. Fans vote for anyone they want, picking 9 players per ballot, one at each position (forget the DH, anyone can fill that). You can name players out of position, but it might hurt you. The FANS All-Star team will consist of the top 25 vote-getters, the first 14 position players, and the first 11 pitchers.
The insiders then vote on whoever is left. They have a week to choose, they can pick whoever they want. I feel like the players and managers can field a competent enough team.
Most importantly, the players then have a challenge of fielding a good enough team to beat the collective darlings of the fans. The winning World Series team's manager would take the player's team, and the loser would take the fans team. They pick their own coaches.
Edit your letter, and mail it in!
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Sam Wenk about 1 year ago
Janean, interesting idea and good article. The TV idea could make it more appealing to the casual fan as well....
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Damien Nichols 11 months ago
3 pitchers, are you kidding? This year they each went through like 10 pitchers each and ran out. Please at least pretend to know a little about sports before you try to write about them. About the fans vs sports writers game.... We will let you know how it goes down and how much fun we had since you will not be playing. Since you either have to be a FAN or a SPORTS WRITER to play. If you were either a fan or a real sports writer, you would know more about the games and have a realistic non-pms'ing view. So..... those of us that play, will let you know how it goes.
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