How to make the All-Star Game a better show

4 comments

July 13, 10:25 PM

by David Bush, S.F. Baseball Examiner

 

 

Jim Leyland (left) and Tony La Russa 

The All-Star game, its allure diluted by interleague play and saturation television coverage, needs an update.

Seeing players from each league go against one another formerly was an experience limited to the Midsummer “Classic” and the World Series. It was rare, and just seeing the top players under any circumstance again was limited to the Game of Week, the All-Star Game and the postseason. Now they are hard to avoid on the tube. The magic is gone in that respect..

And then there’s the grumbling. Players who are selected but don’t get into the game complain. Albert Pujols last year is the latest example. And after A.L. manager Jim Leyland had to maneuver last year with double switches in the ninth inning at AT&T Park in order to have a representative lineup should the National League have tied the score, he said that managing in the game was “no fun.’’

An event designed as a celebration should not engender such bad vibes, and I have some ideas on how to make it better.

Leyland suggested that the designated hitter be used in every All-Star game, not just those in American League Parks. Although I am no fan of the DH, I’m with Leyland on this one. Pitchers seldom, if ever, bat in the game anyway, so why not use the DH? This gets one more player into the starting lineup, and would enable the managers to plan how to use their pitchers without worrying about the batting order.

Also the rules about re-entering the game should be adjusted. I know purists will scream at this one. Baseball is distinct from other sports in a lot of ways, and one of the most important is that once a player is out of the game, he’s out of the game. It is what makes baseball strategy so intriguing. But this is an exhibition, not a real game. The rule has already been amended slightly so that a catcher can return to the game in the event of injury. It wouldn’t be that much of a stretch to designate at least a player or two (this could be done any number of ways) as a “replacement’’,  meaning they could play, be removed, and still be available if needed. National League manager Tony La Russa said he didn’t use Pujols because he had to save a player in case of extra innings. This has always been “a fans’ game”, but with the fans now having more of a say in picking a roster, they should be entitled to see the players they voted in. A “re-entry’’ rule would make this easier.

Baseball shouldn’t fret so much if the All-Star Game winds up a tie. If it’s even after nine, maybe settle it with another home run hitting contest. Give everybody still in the lineup one swing, and the team with the most homers wins. If a shoot-out is good enough for soccer, baseball shouldn’t be so proud. This way managers won’t have to worry about holding back pitchers in case of extra innings, and nobody will get embarrassed by running out of players.

And they should drop the silly rule that the champion of the league winning the All-Star game gets home field advantage in the World Series. What nonsense. One should have nothing to do with the other. And with interleague trading taking place after the All-Star break, it is not impossible for someone to be the hero of the All-Star game get traded to the team that wins the other league’s pennant, and suffer the consequences of his own deeds. If baseball doesn’t want to go back to giving each league the World Series home field in alternate years, then award it to the team that has the best regular season record. That would make for some intrigue down the stretch.

I expect baseball to adopt or even consider none of these changes. They make too much sense.

Yankee Stadium, New York, Tuesday, July 15, 5 p.m. (PDT). TV: Fox Network

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