In my previous story, I’ve discussed how Major League Baseball heavily favors and highlights two players: Shohei Ohtani and Aaron Judge. I’ve stated that there were other teams and players who deserve more recognition. Them playing favorites showed me that they’re biased towards the two aforementioned players. For this story, I’ll be discussing the MLB All-Star Game and why I no longer have interest in watching it. Sure, it’s all for fun, but I’m not a fan of the pomp and circumstances that goes with it.
The biggest gripe I have with the All-Star Game is fan voting. People do have a right to vote whoever they want to see in this annual event. However, players should be selected to be an All-Star based on certain factors, not on how popular they are. On a post on MLB’s Facebook page regarding this topic, many people in the comments section were saying that the voting process was nothing more than a popularity contest. This isn’t high school. I wholeheartedly agree with this, because I’ve suspected that this was the case for the longest period of time. One commenter on that post suggested that players should be selected based on stats such as OBP, batting average, OPS, and so on. This is actually a great idea that MLB should look into and consider. Voting for players solely on popularity shows an unfair advantage to those who actually deserve to be named an All-Star. The majority of votes that were casted were for Dodgers players. Let say that a rookie has performed exceptionally well but isn’t selected to be an All-Star. Fan voting is such a joke, because fans are more interested in a player’s popularity that their own talent. Last year, I took part in fan voting and it would be my last time doing this. I honestly don’t like the pageantry that comes with it.
The heavy Dodger presence, as many as eight players, in the fan voting has caused widespread backlash, calling the voting process a joke. Corbin Carroll of the Diamondbacks and Brandon Nimmo of the Mets were among the huge names that were absent from the ballot. I shared my frustrations with everyone else, and MLB needs to make huge changes on how players are selected to the mid-summer classic. There were players who got injured for a period of time, yet they receive a plethora of votes. Make it make sense. Alec Bohm of the Phillies was injured for weeks during the regular season last year, yet he was selected to be an All-Star. In this current situation, it’s a case of rules for thee, not for me. It’s a complete double standard and it proves that fake baseball fans and regular fans are drinking the Dodgers Kool-Aid. I’ll have a link to a recent article down below regarding this topic, but the continued selfish behavior and shenanigans of the Dodgers tells me everything I needed to know about them. My pure dislike of them has grown even bigger.
Last year’s event was at Globe Life Field, home of the Texas Rangers. I watched that entire All-Star Game and it was amazing. This was the first time in over 15 years that I’ve watched the annual event. I made an exception to watch this particular All-Star Game. Before that game, it was great to see legendary Rangers players such as Nolan Ryan and now Baseball Hall of Famer Adrián Beltré. Fast forward to this year, after realizing that the All-Star Game fan voting is corrupt and rigged, I decided I didn’t want to watch this annual event anymore. I know that fan voting is most likely here to stay, but unless changes are made to determine which players really deserve to be an All-Star, I won’t be tuning in. Unless people, specifically MLB, stop putting the Dodgers and the players on such a high pedestal, I will never watch another MLB All-Star Game ever again. I’m a baseball fan, but the way fan voting has been put in place was too much for me.
There are going to be a plethora of players who are extremely talented who will be overlooked and not considered of being All-Stars. I didn’t vote for any Rangers players, because of the lack of hitting and runs. I believed that none of those players were deserving of becoming All-Stars. Fans vote for players who didn’t deserve to be an All-Star and others who have performed exceptionally well are unfairly snubbed. For example, last year, Alec Bohm of the Philadelphia Phillies was selected as an All-Star, even though he was injured for most of the first half of the season. Fan voting, while it’s here to stay, should be restructured and like the commenter I mentioned earlier, it should be determined by a player’s individual stats. Pitchers should also be selected based on this factor.
If I were the Commissioner of Major League Baseball, I would change a few things about the MLB All-Star weekend. I would get rid of the All-Star Game and replace it with two Sandlot games, one where Baseball Hall of Famers would take part in this and another featuring actors and musicians. Next, I would do away with the Celebrity All-Star Game, because one thing I couldn’t stand was anyone I’ve never heard of before are considered “celebrities” or “stars”. That includes these so-called “influencers”. Finally, I would keep the Futures Game, because it was a way for fans to see talented prospects who might be in the big leagues soon, aka the stars of tomorrow. Oh, and I never understood the whole point of the MLB All-Star Game Red Carpet Show. First of all, we know who these players are. Unless they’re nominated for an award, this is unnecessary and not needed. One exception I’ll give a pass to is the ESPYs, which is a sports awards event, celebrating the achievements and accomplishments of athletes and sports personalities. MLB can keep the All-Star Game fan voting but make the process fair and bias free. There’s a lot of talent from players who are dying to receive an All-Star nod. Basing voting solely on a player’s popularity is unfair and corrupt. MLB needs to do better in this department.
What is your overall favorite MLB All-Star Game or moment from any year? Also, do you think fan voting for the All-Star Game should be a thing of the past and players should be selected based on individual stats? Finally, if you were the Commissioner of MLB, what changes would you make regarding the All-Star Game?
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