Still not a fan of MLB All-Star week

Monday night marked the annual Major League Baseball Home Run Derby and Tuesday was the All-Star Game. For those who know me, I cannot stand these antiquated traditions.

I was weary of writing this column due to fear of repetition, but I looked into it and the last time I harped on this was in 2018. Six years later, I am still every bit as unenthused as I was the previous writing.

I am not a fan of All-Star games in general. The players are going half speed, it’s not competitive, the athletes typically care more about the awards like MVP and the prizes rather than the win. I swear, back in the 1990s when I was a budding sports fan, it was not like that. Players just had that edge and wanted to win, even if it was just a fun exhibition.

Now, there was a time that the MLB All-Star festivities, specifically the All-Star game itself, were the best of the bunch. The winner earned home field advantage in the World Series and it sure felt like something was on the line. It was an event that I truly looked forward to when July rolled around.

Same with the home run derby. Players used to knock down the door to get an opportunity to participate, including the very best players in the game. Sammy Sosa, Mark McGwire, Ken Griffey Jr., Barry Bonds. Now, many of those top players decline the invite and fans are stuck with guys that sometimes aren’t even power hitters.

They also have tweaked the format a few times which I can’t stand. Between brackets, the number of outs. Just go back to the old system and leave it at that. Each batter gets 10 outs, then the top two guys get an additional 10 outs in the championship round. Much better than this mess of a product.

I love the sport of baseball and its history. There is nothing like it, and even though the NFL has dominated the US sports scene for the past two decades, I still consider baseball to be America’s Pastime. I have to admit, though, the MLB has become the most unwatchable product in professional sports.

I love covering our local teams. I would much rather watch two high school teams go at it in a local rivalry matchup than I would the Red Sox and Yankees at this point. This generation of players doesn’t have that fire, the professional game is too analytical, and things like the All-Star Game continue to decline and the league feels the best course of action is to tweak the rules, rather than move on and try something else.

The NFL introduced the Pro Bowl Games, which is essentially a bunch of positional competitions that players run through for the weekend. I did not tune in and do not plan on tuning in any time soon, but at least the NFL has enough self awareness to understand that the Pro Bowl no longer worked as a game. It was touch football, at best.

I refused to watch the Home Run Derby on Monday. I just could not bear the thought of it. When looking at the field, it was perhaps the least impressive I have ever witnessed. Again, the league’s top power hitters were nowhere to be found. Not that the guys participating where bums, they are all great players, but the days of seeing those aforementioned legends drilling 20 home runs without breaking a sweat are long gone. It’s a shame.

My advice to the MLB would be to reinstate the home field advantage rule for the All-Star Game and find some new incentive for true power hitters to get involved in the derby. I can stomach the new format of the derby as long as we are getting the big bats that the event deserves.

I remember in the late 90s, early 2000s, my formative years as a young sports fan, I would be giddy with excitement on the Monday and Tuesday of All-Star week. I would give anything to feel that joy again and to have another summer sports event to look forward to. There are so few events going on this time of year, and although many fans still tune in, this one here does not. Take me back to 1999.