Ballott Stuffing for the All-Star Game

.312 batting average, nine home runs, 41 RBI, 60 runs, 9 stolen bases.

.332 batting average, 14 home runs, 53 RBI, 79 runs, 23 stolen bases.

One of those players is starting in Major League Baseball's All-Star Game being played next week at Yankee Stadium. One is going to play, just not start. Not to say that both don't deserve to be there, they do, but one clearly deserves the honor of starting the game, and one clearly deserves to be his backup. 

The first line of stats belongs to Boston Red Sox's second baseman Dustin Pedroia. The other belongs to the Texas Rangers' Ian Kinsler. Anyone who follows baseball on a statistical, fantasy-owner level could easily figure out which stat line belongs to which player. And those same stat-crazy diehards would, nine times out of 10, vote for the correct player (in this case, Kinsler).

The problem lies in the fact that the most deserving player rarely starts in these games, and sometimes doesn't even get a selection at all. Fan and player voting, the suggestion of the ever omniscient Bud Selig, has created a system which rewards players more on notoriety than effort and output.

Pedroia deserves to be at the game, but not to start it. The same can be said for multiple players for both the American and National League squads.

By many experts' accounts, this year's selections have shed light onto the corrupted system that the MLB currently uses to bestow the honor of All-Star upon its players. Players being chosen to play in the All-Star Game based on past performance is not a new trend, but players starting and getting the majority of votes from fair-weather fans is killing the chances of small-market players to get the spotlight that they deserve.

A long list of non-deserving stars are on teams for both leagues. Strong cases could be made against Alfonso Soriano, Brian Wilson, Derek Jeter, David Ortiz (who won't be able to participate, but won the DH vote for the AL team), and Joe Crede.

The fact that Jason Varitek is on an All-Star team is a travesty. It's a slap in the face of the players that populate America's pastime.

The fact is that players hold grudges and fans are biased. Players are jealous and fans see names, not stats. Players take voting personal and fans vote-in players from their team that are undeserving. Both players and fans vote, in some cases, just to block out a rival team's player.

At times this system seems less like one that belongs to a prestigious brand of sport and more like one that a person could find occurring in a high school's prom-court vote.

This article is in no way a reaction to my favorite team getting the minimum player representative (one). I would be the first one to admit that the Mets don't deserve an All-Star if that player didn't earn the right to be there.

I was informed that an All-Star didn't imply that a player was fortunate enough to be on a good team, where average (or in Varitek's case, far, far below average) output combined with a winning environment to equal an All-Star berth.

All-Star implies that a player is the best of the best. Not over the past few seasons. Not when games were being played in October or November. Not in spring training or the offseason. But instead, the first three months of the 2008 season.

So, Mr. Selig, as is the case with everything in need of change in your league, the All-Star voting process is way behind the times. If you want fans to be involved, keep the "last spot on the team" voting.

But to have players who use personal vendettas as criteria and fans that use, well, who use God-knows-what as criteria is robbing deserving athletes of what is supposed to be an honor.

Anyone with any real knowledge of the process doesn’t hold All-Star appearances in any kind of high regard, and until the process is fixed, it won't be, either.

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