Wednesday, July 20, 2022

The worst All-Star game ever

Thank you MLB and Fox for utterly destroying the Major League Baseball All-Star game.  

At one time the Mid Summer Classic was far and away the best All-Star game of any major sport.  Why?  There was real competition.   You had the best hitters facing the best pitchers.  In other sports it’s somewhat of a joke because either there’s no defense (NBA final scores are always 148-142) or it’s after the regular season (NFL) so it’s a complete afterthought.  

In baseball you also had the novelty that other than the World Series, there was no interleague play.  If you wanted to see Whitey Ford face Willie Mays you had to watch the All-Star game.   As a fan, there was a real sense of pride watching players from your team.  

Today there’s none of that.  

One of the great things about attending an All-Star game was for the first and only time you would get to see the other teams in your league wearing their home uniforms.  That was very cool.  

For reasons that only involve making money, MLB has done away with teams wearing their own uniforms.  Now it’s glitzy white uniforms with unreadable gold letters and piping for the home team, and black for the visitors.   Sorry Seattle fans — next year you don’t get to see pinstripes.  

It used to be fun to look out on the field and see all the different caps and colors.  But MLB feels it can sell more merchandise this way.  Really?  Who’s going to buy one of these crappy All-Star jerseys?   Now you look out on the field and don’t know who anybody is. Players are identified by their uniforms the same way superheroes are.  It matters.

You also don’t know when there are changes, but that gets into the broadcast, which I’ll discuss in a moment.  

When the All-Star game in Milwaukee had to be declared a tie by Commissioner Bud Selig (because there were no pitchers left), there was a big uproar.  So MLB took steps to fortify that the game “meant something.”   World Series home field advantage hung in the balance (as if this was a big incentive to Mariner, Pirate, and Padres players).  Or the audience.  That proved to be hollow and was disbanded.  

So now MLB (probably at the insistence of Fox) has gone the other way.  Players are now allowed to talk to the announcers during the game.  What that means is the game is now just a picnic softball game.  If the players clearly don’t care what happens, why should viewers?   Now Fox will argue that this allows fans to actually go “into” the game, but it doesn’t.  When there’s something at stake, when these players are really concentrating, there’s a level of intensity.  That is obliterated.  So any modicum of suspense has been sacrificed for a gimmick.

And the Fox broadcast was all gimmicks. Cameras in helmets, cameras on the ground.  The novelty of that wears off in ten seconds.  

For a young player, making the All-Star squad is a BIG deal (maybe the highlight of his career or life), especially if you’re from a city that rarely gets national attention.  In the past, each player was highlighted.  This year, a few players were highlighted if they happened to come up to bat at convenient times.  But if the announcers were talking to players in the dugout while the action was going on and it was their one at-bat — too bad.  Their name might get mentioned after they made out.  Instead, we’re hearing cliches and nonsense from players we don’t really give a shit about.

And that was nothing compared to a segment where David Ortiz went into the AL dugout (DURING an inning) supposedly “interviewing” players.  Instead, it was “Hey man, what’s up?”  “How are you, bro?”  “My man, you having fun?”  Utter drivel, and again, this was during the action.   It was the nadir of any All-Star segment.   

Oh wait, maybe it wasn't.  Maybe cutting away from the action to let some guy plug his podcast for five minutes was.  Unconscionable. 

Since Joe Buck has departed for ESPN, Fox has anointed Joe Davis as their number one baseball play-by-play guy.  Davis is the TV voice of the Dodgers.  He’s very affable but generic.  He has a comfortable relaxed style, which suits the pace of baseball but works against the big moments.  And All-Star games and World Series games live on big moments.  

I will say this:  my heart went out to him at one point.  He muffed a play — calling it a catch when it really dropped in for a hit.  As a former MLB announcer I can tell you — we all make mistakes (God knows I have).  That it happened to Joe on a national telecast was unfortunate.  I’m sure the Twitter haters are ripping him for it.  They have no idea what it takes to do that job.   To his credit, Joe moved on and did not let it affect the rest of the broadcast.  

The telecast itself was very shoddy.  Most of these players are unknown to the general public.  Joe and John Smoltz kept referring to them by their last names.   This isn’t a regular season game.  You’re introducing these unknowns to a national audience.  Identify them by first and last name and identify them again and again and again.  

Hardly any attention was paid to the defensive alignments, and when it was there was a tiny graphic and Joe rushed through the last names.  “Stanton, Rodriguez, Torres.”    This is not Joe’s fault, it’s the director/producer.  They should have singled out each player, announced his name and what team he plays for (especially since they’re not wearing their uniforms).  All-Star games features a dizzying amount of changes.  Each new player deserves to be on camera and introduced.  Half the time Joe would say “pop up to (whoever) who is now in the game.”    

All of these gimmicks and disregard for the players shows an incredible lack of respect for the game.  This is the Major League Baseball All-Star game.  It is not "Battle of the Network Stars."  The attraction is seeing the very best players in the game compete at the highest level.  But Fox or MLB for that matter, has no faith in the product.  For numerous stretches the game itself was merely an imposition.  Why watch the game when you can see Big Papi prattle on about nothing in a dugout with players you don’t know and who all look the same anyway due to the uniforms?  

Now you might say, well I’m just ‘old school’ and this is the new game.  Okay, well consider this — the Dodgers lead the Majors in attendance practically every year.  Most attendance records were set by the Dodgers.  It was a lovely clear day with temperatures in the high 70’s.  The All-Star game hasn’t been at Dodger Stadium in 42 years. Did you notice how many empty seats there were?   The “new school” ain’t working.  Bring back the real ALL-STAR GAME.  Or "get off my infield grass."

UPDATE: Last night's  All-Star Game averaged a 4.2 rating and 7.51 million viewers on FOX, down 7% in ratings and 10% in viewership from last year (4.5, 8.32M) and the lowest rated and least watched All-Star game ever.  It used to get 50 shares and 20 million viewers.  As baseball fans know -- numbers don't lie.

85 comments :

Brian Phillips said...

FRIDAY QUESTION: The nightmarish version of writer's block: A screenwriter is sleeping next to his wife and wakes loudly and quickly enough that it wakes her up, too.

She says, "What's the matter, dear?
He replies, "IT JUST CAN'T BE DONE IN FLASHBACK!"

Do you have "aha!" moments when you are not writing, but are in the middle of a script?

D, McEwan said...

Because it was held in Los Angeles this year, the local news went All-Star-Happy, and treated it like hard news, so it intruded for a couple days into my trying to watch ACTUAL news! (I always fast-forward through the sports reports, or switch channels.) Consequently I became unwillingly aware that the title "All-Star" is a lie. There were no stars at all. Just baseball players. I've seen more "stars" on a Burke's Law repeat.

Now those "Hollywood All-Star" games my parents used to take me to 60 years ago, they had "Stars." I saw Soupy Sales at bat!

Anonymous said...

Right in your observation, But you sort of missed the point, Ken.
The All-Star game is simply of manifestation of what has happened to the game.
It is no longer important who wins any game. Salaries are high, TV money is high - who cares who wins?
Maybe the World Series. Maybe.
Individual accomplishments, which usually means home runs is the key now.

When the All-Star game ended in a tie people missed the point.
In the earlier days of the All-Star game they were trying to win. You wouldn't bring in your good lefty for one batter unless the game was on the line because you had many future batters and innings to think about. You couldn't run out of pitchers because you would lose if you did.
Now bring him in for one batter, one pitch.
Who cares if you run out of pitchers? We'll call it a tie.
In the regular season we'll put a runner on second in the 10th to get the game over.
Winning the game isn't that important. Get it over, so we can see some home runs tomorrow.

Bunting, base running, position specific fielding, strategy? not that important anymore.
The White sox run into an 8-5 triple play that's never happened in the history of the game
Why? Because major leaguers can't tun bases like Little Leaguers and coaches can't coach.
not important.
Players are bigger and stronger so let's just play wall ball with 105 mph fastballs and batters swinging for the downs.
Good for ratings.

Baseball isn't about winning. it's about views. And views are about different things that winning.
The All-Star game is a perfect embodiment of that.

It's a different game of baseball. That will lose its popularity.
And Manfred is clueless.

Mark said...

Totally agree. Tuned in to see my Guardians play but found the telecast unwatchable.

N. Zakharenko said...

I was expecting you to comment on the All Star Celebrity softball game, featuring talent such as David Letterman ...er... Bryan Cranston.

whynot said...

I agree with all of your critiques except for one thing: the All-star game was NEVER anything important. None of the players have ever wanted to be there, so why should I? Nobody is "concentrating", trying to get a hit, figuring out how to cover the bases - none of that. You're romanticizing it WAAAY too much.

cd1515 said...

So many great observations here and all of them are 100% on target.
It’s indicative of how baseball is ruining the game itself.
I used to watch full games almost every night, and I now haven’t watched one in three years.

Mike Barer said...

I don't remember the All Star game being this late in the season. I remember the game being a huge deal and now, I haven't watched it in years. I would have watched a little this year because our Julio Rodriguez made the squad, but I had a dinner engagement.

DwWashburn said...

I gave up on the ASG about thirty years ago. Amazingly, about half the things you detail here are the reasons I quit.

The home field advantage gimmick was just reason #417 why Selig was the worst commissioner in the history of the game. Interleague play has killed the ASG and is killing the WS. And next year's new rule that says a team HAS TO play all 29 teams during the season is going to not only make ASG and WS even more irrelevant, it's going to dilute the regular season too. Imagine 1/3 of your regular season games being played against the other league.

The front office keeps saying that these changes are designed to get young people involved in the game. What they're really designed to do is destroy traditional rules and mores while having 60 year old men try to guess what 20 year olds want. Result -- young people don't come and established fans begin to leave.

Glenn said...

I'm probably the one guy in America who didn't mind that the game used to have stakes (i.e. home field advantage in the World Series). I get why it could be seen as unfair, but at least the game (kind of) meant something.

Unknown said...

You are too kind to Joe Davis. I find him very boring on Dodger broadcasts, and he seems like a replicant of Joe Buck. Impossible shoes to fill, but he's gone totally generic.

Astroboy said...

Happy Natalie Wood's Birthday, Ken!

Anonymous said...

Joe Davis. Nice guy. Nice everything. But so so boring. So vanilla. So mechanical. Like a computer program. Siri doing baseball play by play.

ventucky said...

Kw=en, when it comes to your ideas about rule changes, I rarely agree. Limiting pickoff attempts as an example. But I agreed with 100% of what you complained about in this blog. Especially the uniform aspect, and Joe Davis. He has a speech impediment, or some kind of conscious verbal affection, that drives me crazy. Every time he says the word "two", it sounds like he is spitting. And other syntaxes anomalies. Don Orsillo seems to be the best current play by play caller, and he is funny as shit also!

Tim Lones said...

Hi Ken
I honestly meant to watch parts pf the All-Star Game last night but until 9:48 PM ET, I completely forgot it was on. Seeing the uniforms they wore, I am kind of glad I missed it. Was only interested in how the Cleveland Guardians players did. I see Jose Ramirez had two hits, Emanuel Clase got the "Save" and Andres Gimenez made the highlight play of the game. I too miss seeing the "team" uniforms you don't usually see but with Interleague play that isn't even an issue anymore.

Eric said...

Agree with everything here, Ken, including the earlier comments. Two other points:

1) If this year's game had ended in a tie, they would have gone to a home run hitting contest after nine innings (and Davis, at one point, got excited about the prospect). What drivel!
2) More generally, what is this type of coverage supposed to do for the game? If someone, as a non-fan tunes in and says, "Cool, they're interviewing players during the game," they're going to be really disappointed when they tune in a regular game (and there will be no reason ever to go to a game). So what does this style of coverage accomplish?

Dave Mackey said...

Horrible. I hope God doesn't strike me down, but I tuned out after the final score had already been established (no scoring after the fourth inning, I think).

VincentP said...

I was arguably at the last real All-Star Game, at the Vet in Philly in 1996. The following year, limited interleague play was instituted, and beginning next year everyone plays each other at least three times, meaning 46 of the 162 games are against the other league. I don't see it any differently than the Capitals and Alex Ovechkin playing a game in Winnipeg each year... and if the Nationals deal Juan Soto to the American League by the off-season, he'll return to D.C. no later than 2024 (and he won't be booed there; he's no Bryce Harper). I agree some of the gimmicks are silly but by now, the All-Star Game is mainly meant for casual fans.

Michael said...

First, I am a fan of Our Young Man, as I call Davis (in honor of Red Barber referring to him on the air as "Young Scully"), and I think he does a great job on Dodger games. He has done well at other things. But there was nothing he could do about last night, because the gimmicks were the telecast (by the way, Joe Buck has talked about how he has wanted players interviewed on the field, too). Throw in that Davis has to work with an analyst who hates baseball, and he's not going to be as good as he is on Dodger games (and by the way, he's just fine on big moments and big games there).

Where I will be a little more vocally disputatious is this: the idea of introducing players to an audience that doesn't see them. Between interleague play (boo) and all of the cable telecasts, and especially fantasy leagues and all kinds of internet opportunities, the players are a lot more familiar to most viewers than they were when there was just the NBC Game of the Week and some local TV. Before the game, critics were saying, don't treat fans like they've never heard of these people, while others were saying, tell us all about them. You can't win.

Anonymous said...

Eh, as a diehard, not-young baseball fanatic, I enjoyed the All-Star game for the first time in years. I did find it fascinating to watch the pitcher/catcher dynamic (had no idea they called for actual arm-slots, like “sidearm fastball”), and my girls, who despise baseball, actually started asking about the game. Which is a miracle of sorts.

Anonymous said...

Growing up in the 60s and 70s I always got the impression that players wanted to be there and played to win.

McTom said...

I read this article before the game and was looking forward to hearing the results. But yep, they spent a whole lot of money to deploy a lot of new tech to make the game much, much worse.
https://www.sportsvideo.org/2022/07/19/fox-sports-preps-for-a-nicely-noisy-mlb-all-star-game/

Anonymous said...

@whynot
What you say is wrong about the players never wanting to be there.
I worked in MLB in the early 1970's - I guarantee you most players wanted to be there and were trying hard to win the game.
Especially with the losing streak the American League had.
Look up Pete Rose/Ray Fosse. An example of where a player may have been trying a little too hard to win. But they weren't going through the motions. Players were proud to be there and competing. Maybe because they are making so much money today it doesn't mean as much, I don't know.
Before my time Ted Williams hit an extra inning home run to win the game. You think he was going through the motions?
Babe Ruth hit the first home run in the All-Star game.
Carl Hubbell struck out Ruth, Gehrig, Foxx, Simmons and Cronin all in a row - one of the greatest pitching demonstrations ever.
You think they weren't trying?

Anonymous said...

This is all coming down to ending the National League and American League conferences. There will eventually only be the MLB with 4 divisions. Teams will be local, East Coast, Mid West, Southern and Western Divisions only.
Teams play in there division only. Playoffs are between divisions and brackets till it comes down to two teams for the World Series.
Less travel expense, more local interest and more money in the MLB pockets. That is we’re it is headed, little by little over each season as they make adjustments to end up there. The ASG will become a thing of the past.
Why they do it this way is beyond me. Just make the switch and get it over with.

Anita Bonita said...

Disclaimer: I was part of CBS's MLB crew, working alongside Jack Buck and Tim McCarver. Granted, I was on the air last night at WCBS (home of the Mets!) during most of the ASG ... but I'm usually on the air during other sporting events, and I can generally follow along just fine. Not this time. This isn't the same game I spent years covering, and it's certainly not the same broadcast.

Rob Hoffmann said...

And it wouldn't be hard for FOX to do a traditional broadcast on FS1, if they could be convinced there's ratings in it...

One thing worth noting - to the comment that said "Imagine 1/3 of your regular season games being played against the other league." The NFL does that now. 5 of a team's 17 games are against the other conference, 6 are in the same division. The 2023 MLB schedule will hit about the same percentages.

William C Bonner said...

The All-Star game has happened?

The NFL Pro Bowl was messed up when they moved it to the slot before the Superbowl. The game itself was never significant because in a competitive pro football game there's always the risk of a player getting hurt. When it was after the Superbowl, players that may have been in the Superbowl would show up. More importantly, when it was after the Superbowl, you knew you weren't getting any real football for half a year, so it was a bit entertaining. Now it's just filler TV on the week before the Superbowl.

Tom said...

The All-Star game has always been about PR and commerce (the first one was dreamed up by a Chicago Tribune sportswriter as a tie-in to the 1933 World's Fair), but we just didn't notice it when we were kids. I still remember details of the 1967 and '68 games, proving the old adage that the greatest year for baseball was the year you turned 10.

Paul G said...

Having been at the game yesterday, I will say that it was very close to a sell-out. As is often the case, traffic jams around the stadium make it very difficult for fans to make the first few innings if they neglected to leave several hours early. By the third inning or so only the seats in the farthest reaches of the Reserve level were vacant. Given the insane costs of the tickets, this is a testimony to LA baseball fans. Second, I believe that the prospect of the home run derby walk-off was keeping many people in their seats as the home NL team's bats went quiet. I am a senior citizen lifelong Dodger fan and was looking forward to some derby action because...yes, the game does not matter. The point of the ASG is to show off the stars. On Joe Davis, to be sure he is no Vin Scully (who is?) and his voice is often unremarkable. But I think we can all agree that compared to the ESPN crew he is Red Barber, Scully, and Mel Allen combined.

Stephen J. Marmon said...

Totally agree. Uniform change was stupid and the miked up players were a total waste, with nothing to add to the game.

Jeff said...

I can't stand any of these "enhancements" that distract from the game being played. Do they think there are people out there that say "I hate baseball but I watch any game that has the player mic'd"?

Howie Levine said...

I agree with almost everything Ken talked about. Guys like Mays, Mantle, Aaron use to play the entire game. Koufax pitched two inning or more. There was some real intensity in the game (Pete Rose !!!!!!). Still, the MLB All Star Game if far better than the other All Star Games. As far as the crowd was concerned, The concourse behind the seats and all the other spots where the fans can freely go were packed. Fans on the sun side of the stadium simply choose to get out of the burning sun and go to the other spots of the stadium where viewing and TV is never too far away.

cjdahl60 said...

I agree with everything you say. I know I'm old school (and old), but the FOX-ification of baseball just ruins it for me. I don't care about mic'd up players, David Ortiz in the dugout, or the behind the scenes stuff. Show me the GAME.

And the emphasis on new and ugly uniforms/caps/bats for every occasion to supposedly increase merchandise sales is ridiculous. Spending big bucks for a one-off jersey or cap? No thank you.

With all of the contrived showmanship on the broadcasts, I think that MLB is losing more current fans than gaining new/younger ones.

Scott said...

Working in Pasadena, I heard the fighter jets from the flyover zooming back and forth for about twenty minutes--that's as close as I got to paying attention to the game this year.

Mike Chimeri said...

I initially planned on DVRing both the Home Run Derby and All-Star Game so I could skim through them the mornings after. A sleepless Monday night made me check the MLB app to see how the Derby went. Dissatisfied, I deleted the recording, then decided to cancel the ASG recording. Obviously, I made the right decision.
I checked the app in the morning (after ten hours of Melatonin-aided sleep) and saw that not only did the AL win again!, but all the runs came in one inning. I watched video of the tying and go-ahead home runs, and of the final out, then got on with my morning. Wanting to see your Wednesday post, I came here about an hour ago and read your post. That also confirmed I made the right decision. I was intrigued by the in-game on-field interviews last year, but as you said, it takes away the players' concentration. Having players wired for sound (as NFL Films would say) only works if the telecast leaves them alone and lets viewers hear the best moments captured from the mic in a highlight reel.

Maybe it's because I don't watch sports often enough these days, but I generally like Joe Davis. Nonetheless, I don't think he's good enough to be a network's lead sports announcer. Kevin Burkhardt is already the lead NFL announcer for Fox after Joe Buck's departure; why not switch him out of the studio host role for MLB coverage? Otherwise, I like Ventucky's idea about Don Orsillo.

Michael, your remark about "an analyst who hates baseball" made me search Google for john smoltz hates baseball. Below a result that confirmed your remark (and that he's anti-COVID vaccine, which I never knew), I saw a 2018 column that refuted the belief. Again, since I don't watch sports as often as I used to, I have nothing against John Smoltz...at least not since his retirement from baseball, meaning he's no longer someone the Mets have to face several times a year.

Getting back to the ASG result, despite my right-leaning political views, I am a socialist when it comes to sports. Dynasties ruin the game. I prefer parity. It's not fun watching the same team win the same championships every year, or advance deep into the playoffs every year. I admit that coach affability helps counter my hatred of the perpetual winners. I wish Bill Belichick had Joe Torre's personality, or even Geno Auriemma's. Bill is fine when talking to players and coaches, or telling stories in documentary interviews, but well, we all know his standoffish nature in press conferences.

Chuck (MostAmuzed) said...

If a game is on FOX, I don't watch. Actually, I've seen few Cubs games this year because of what the owners did to all the best players last year. Traded them. To "rebuild". They're about to slide into last place and they deserve it.

I've commented previously in these comments about players and coaches being interviewed during gameplay. A ball was hit to a player being interviewed and he messed up the play. Should have been an easy out. Those calling the game made no comment about it. Nor did the player.

Then there was that Al Michaels lovefest where an entire inning (or half?) was ignored. Sure, praise Al all you want. But do it between innings.

Oh, and now they're even slipping in commercials during at-bats, smooshing the game screen over to the side so Flo can sell insurance in 10, apparently much needed, seconds.

So no, I did not watch any of the All Star Game. And to someone else's comment above; the ASG used to be very important - to me when I was a kid.

Kevin B said...

I actually thought the mic'd up players talking was the most interesting part of an otherwise very boring game. The All-Star game is an "exhibition" right, so none of it *really* matters. I agree that the season-long interleague play took away the novelty of seeing Judge and Kershaw face off for the first time. But that was ruined a long time ago now.

Once they started paying these guys hundreds of millions of dollars and they became expensive properties to protect rather than win-at-all cost competitors, the game changed.

The fact that the Home Run Derby on a cable network usually beats the actual game in the ratings speaks to why FOX has turned to gimmicks.

I do agree that the uniforms are garbage and they should wear something that resembles their actual teams colors.

Anonymous said...

I’m a daily watcher of baseball….I am taking these 3 days off from the game and as I knew, I missed NOTHING. And Joe Friday, err Joe Davis is vastly overrated.

Jeff Boice said...

I agree with you- there's no point to the game anymore. In the real old day before free agency, it was something to anticipate because of all the unfamiliar pitcher-batter matchups (Don Drysdale facing Harmon Killebrew and Carl Yastrzemski).

There's never was much point to the all star games in any of the other sports-no defense.

VHS Village (Formerly The Beta Barn) said...

I'm not into baseball, so I have a Friday question.

Sometimes when I'm watching what turns out to be a mediocre comedy, I will think of a funnier punchline than some of the ones in the movie. Do you ever do this? When you watch a comedy and there's a good setup but a crappy payoff, do you find yourself coming up with a better punchline in your head?

Matt said...

Could you say “get off my lawn” any louder.

What has ruined all-star games is simple. The athletes make so much money that they won’t play hard because that risks injury. Which is the proper decision for the player. Baseball still has the best all-Star game because you can play casual baseball without risking injury.

But keeping it interesting is a challenge.

Anonymous said...

You can see those boring ass home uniforms every day. Outside of the cardinals, Yankees and dodgers they all suck anyway. And the player interviews in game were awesome. Should be done daily.

Anonymous said...

One of the thing I liked about past all-star games was the old timers game. But then I’m over 50, and I don’t matter. Now back to David Ortiz.

Pat Howard said...

your right Ken

DSull said...

Or the All-Star game mattered back then because you were a kid.

If I were ten years old, I might think it was pretty cool to see my favorite player explaining the action on the field. Some of the conversations were inane, sure, but some were pretty insightful. And the players were way less guarded than in the usual post-game interviews.

This game never had any stakes. And baseball needs to experiment with the broadcast so that people actually watch the games. A high profile game like this is a great time for feedback. Some things work, others don't. But if they don't try, baseball will just be a dead sport in a few years time.

Kevin FitzMaurice said...

Kudos to the organist, who played "La Vie En Rose" when Seattle's Ty France was at bat.

stephen catron said...

I gave up on all AllStar games years ago. They have lost all their meaning and entertainment value.

Anonymous said...

Go on YouTube and watch the 1979 Allstar Game. You will see the difference. This is the first all star game where not only didn’t I watch, I did not even watch highlights.

Graham said...

@whynot: Vehemently disagree. Who are you to say players “never wanted to be there?” Tell that to Pete Rose, when he bowled Ray Fosse over at home plate to win the ‘72 ASG. Or Tori’s Hunter robbing Barry Bonds of a HR in ‘02. Or Pedro Martinez striking out the side in order to start the ‘99 ASG. All these players cared, along with many, many others. Ken isn’t romanticizing- he’s telling it like it is.

Mike Bloodworth said...

As someone who is not a baseball fan I didn't have any plans to watch the All-Star game. And after this review I'm glad I didn't. Coincidentally, here in L.A. one of the PBS substations, 50.2 KOCE has been rerunning Ken Burns' "Baseball" documentary. While I don't care for the sport I do like the documentary and try to watch it every time it's replayed. There have been some amazing characters throughout the history of baseball. Even so I have never understood the devotion some people have for baseball. But who knows? Maybe if I had grown up during the early days of the game I might be as rabid a fan as Ken, et al. A game at the stadium is usually more exciting than watching it on TV. Although, there is something to to be said for the comfort of watching at home.

Maybe someday they'll fix the All-Star game. Then maybe I'll watch.

M.B.

Puck said...

FQ: I was listening to Conan O'Brien Needs a Friend, and Conan was talking to Stephen Merchant (co-creator of the British OFFICE) and the subject of MASH came up. Stephen mentioned that he was shocked when he came to the US and watched a rerun of MASH because it had a laugh track added in. I guess international airings didn't include the laugh track. He said that when he first watched it without the laughs, it was this brilliant, poignant comedy about laughing in the face of devastation and war. With the track, he just wanted to punch Hawkeye. It became a different show for him -- the nuance about what the show was saying about war and that period was lost. Do you agree? I know you've discussed the laugh track in the past, but do you think it makes it a different show that is thematically and tonally different from what the writers intended?

For reference, here's the episode: https://www.earwolf.com/episode/stephen-merchant-4/
The discussion about MASH starts at the 30 minute mark.

Tom B. said...

What do you mean there were no stars? They had Pewee Herman doing interviews. Other than that, it was a typical Fox, unwatchable telecast, full of extreme class ups, gimmicks and non game nonsense.

Mike Chimeri said...

I forgot to note that I was on a cruise to Atlantic Canada during the 2002 All-Star Game. I saw part of one inning on a TV in the bar (or wherever it was) on the way back to my room. I assumed the game would end with either league winning. I didn't know it ended in a tie until after I came home the following weekend. Having it decide home field advantage was a desperation play and robbed many a superior NL team of a rightful advantage because the AL won most of the time. They seem to always win nowadays, but outside of my prior dynasties rant, I don't care. Let them win as long as the league champion with the better record has home field advantage.

Tom B., David Ortiz was wearing a glen plaid suit and red bowtie?

Alan Gollom said...

I agree with you on the uniforms. UGLY!! What really ticked me off more than the game was the Home Run Derby. What a farce. Julio Rodriguez had 81 home runs yet lost to Juan Soto who had only 53. Leave it to MLB to design a competition in which the best person does not win. It was a disgrace. I'm surprised the NL didn't win the game since they had less runs.

James said...

What the All Star Game needs is The Capital City Goofball.

D. McEwan said...

I'm amused to see several people point out that, as an "Exhibition Game," it "doesn't matter."

Ah, NO baseball game "matters." Ever.

Jahn Ghalt said...

Paul G said...

compared to the ESPN crew (Dodger announcer Joe Davis) is Red Barber, Scully, and Mel Allen combined.

Tom said:

the greatest year for baseball was the year you turned 10.

That was pretty close to true for me, too, out "in the sticks". That year Chris Chambliss played as a college "mercenary" up in Anchorage - getting some "summer work" in before moving on to a long MLB career.

I have come to appreciate the Seattle Mariners announcing team Simms and Blauers, with the "young guy" (Goldsmith) joining Blauers more often in recent years.

They have a low-key presentation and do not talk too much - SUCH a contrast with nameless ESPN dudes who are VERY CONCERNED with HOW SMART they think they are. The mute button is essential for their games.

Was it Smoltz who "did color" with Buck for the playoffs last year? Is he the "hater"? I seem to recall that he was well-engaged - and liked his conjectures about how the fool the hitter.

Mike Chimeri said...

I have checked Google, and based on this poorly-cropped YouTube short (MLB couldn't even get that right), David "Big Papi" Ortiz did not match Pee-wee Herman's wardrobe. Visually, however, like Pee-wee and the inhabitants of his Playhouse whenever anybody said the secret word, it "scream[ed] real loud!"

By the way, I met Paul Reubens at New York Comic Con a few years ago. (I failed to match the goofy expression I saw him secretly make for the photos with those in line ahead of me.)

Militant Angeleno said...

Actually, empty seats are not always an accurate metric to measure stadium attendance.

Anyone in the stadium who is walking around the aisles/concourses/stairs/escalators/elevators, going to the restroom, in line at the food/beer stands, shopping for souvenirs, at the children's play area, at the bar area, perusing the team's museum/historic displays, or watching from a non-seated viewing area -- is creating an empty seat. Dodger Stadium recently underwent a $100 million remodeling/renovation specifically for this ASG (originally scheduled for 2020), and that renovation includes virtually all of the stadium amenities listed above. And nearly every MLB stadium today has those kinds of amenities in some form or another.

Was at the game and also watched the TV broadcast replay on FS1 later that night. A lot of the fun experiences at the stadium were overlooked/ignored/barely touched upon in the TV broadcast. The mic'ing up players was OK for an inning but they totally over-did it. It might be no coincidence that the game stopped being exciting after the 4th inning, which was when they started live-mic'ing players.

Tom B. said...

Ortiz wasn't the only one doing interviews, although his were the most annoying......

Anonymous said...

Graham, how right you are—That’s exactly what I was thinking of when an All-Star Game meant something-Pete Rose bowling over Ray Fosse at home plate.……I’ll never forget how a good friend of mine , a National League guy ,came over to my house hoping the Dodgers, Clem Labine , would strike out Mickey Mantle. Undoubtedly, free agency, where players go from one team to another led to where we’ve come today with the game meaning absolutely nothing, and what those in charge deem “entertainment” (what they had “Big Poppy” do was the pinnacle of stupidity and juvenile)….Sometimes so-called progress

Anonymous said...

Used to matter to a lot of people, Mr. McEwan

Anonymous said...

It sucked I watched. 5 min and threw up. Quit trying to do too much. Corporate America does that. Toooooo much crap

MikeN said...

I'm surprised you were awake to watch it. Having the games so late means the next generation doesn't care about major league baseball.

Eli Ganias said...

Also, because being in LA, it was still daytime for most of the game. With the shadows, it was hard to see anything, especially the AL players since they were wearing black uniforms.

austinspace said...

Oh for Pete's sake--the "Pee Wee Herman" referred to is sportscaster and sideline haunter Ken Rosenthal.

I watch the game to see MY heroes play, and don't really care about the rest. Julio Rodriguez is the real deal, folks--and you can't have him! The utter joy he brings to the game (and even the Derby, which he demolished) is one of the few things MLB should trumpet as loudly as possible as often as possible.

I feel like I'm in a room with a bunch of senior citizens. Ignore the gimmicks and listen to the fun the players were having. I LOVED the pitcher and catcher being mic'd up so we could be privy to what they were going to throw, and judge how successful they were in implementing each pitch. That alone made the game special to me.

For Pete's Sake (again)--it's just an exhibition!

Bronson said...

Ken you are right on the money. Long time readers of the blog know that you have a lifetime of interest and even participation in the baseball industry, so you are speaking from a position of respect and passion for the game. As I was reading all your examples it sort of hit me that the networks seem to be making changes that they think will appeal primarily to people who don't like baseball. As in, some genius in marketing said: "Baseball is boring and losing popularity. Instead of focusing on entertaining the die hard baseball fans, how can we appeal to people who don't really like baseball but may channel surf and stick around to see what David Ortiz has to say in the dugout... during the game..."

Bruce Peters said...

I think we're being way too harsh with @whynot. I have no idea who he/she is or how old he/she might be but if the person is under 55 I can see their point.

Most everyone is pointing to the '70 All Star Game with Pete Rose as their proof that players really want to be there. However in the decades that followed there have been countless players who either have refused to go to the game or have feigned an injury so that they can have the four or five days off. These players are conditioned for the full season and probably prize a four or five day "vacation" so that they can tackle the second half with renewed vigor and help their team get into the playoffs.

And if they get injured like Ray Fosse did in '70 they may have to miss either the season or possibly the remainder of their career. That would cost them millions and could cost their team a shot at the World Series.

Charles H Bryan said...

I agree with most of what you say, but I did enjoy the back and forth with the pitchers on the mound (who did seem genuinely happy to strike people out), even to the point that Smoltz was calling for pitches and giving scouting reports on batters. I wouldn't want to see that during a regular season or playoff game, but the ASG seems like a good place to have some fun with that. Otherwise, yes, the booth, the uniforms, that dumb Big Papi stunt all were crappy.

D. McEwan said...

"Anonymous said...
Used to matter to a lot of people, Mr. McEwan"


It's a children's game. Who wins or loses one truly doesn't ever matter. The "Lots of people" argument is irrelevant. Lots of people voted for Trump. A lot of people can be very, very wrong.

A larger group of people absolutely don't care.

Ed said...

Ken, ever since I read this article I've wondered what your response would be. Have you heard about the Savannah Bananas?

https://www.nytimes.com/2022/05/31/arts/dance/savannah-bananas-tik-tok-baseball.html?searchResultPosition=1

Anonymous said...

@D McEwan
Nice view of life you have.
What matters to you is important.
what matters to others isn't.
And Trump manages to creep into something that doesn't have anything to do with it.

Michael said...

Fellow Mike and company, you need to check the twitter feed "oldhossradbourn," where he claims to be the 19th century pitcher and does great stuff, including on how Smoltz complains about everything.

Actually, I don't think Smoltz really hates baseball, but I think of something that both Lindsey Nelson and Jack Buck (all rise for two of the greats) said in almost the same words: We played the game as amateurs who weren't very good, as opposed to MLBers who dealt with the ups and downs, so we still view the game romantically, while ex-players can't convey the romance. To make a comparison with someone on football, love him or hate him, Tony Romo is having fun analyzing the game. I don't get that sense from Smoltz. Frankly, I haven't gotten that sense from anyone since the crew of Scully and Garagiola--and Joe had done enough play-by-play to know that that is who has to run the show, not the analyst.

Bob Zirunkel said...

Boy, did this comment hit home. In 1979, the year I turned 10, my family moved from the country - where we received two TV channels - to the big city - where we now had access to this wonder called cable. One afternoon I turned on the TV and came across major league baseball for the first time. I went nuts when Pirates catcher Ed Ott hit a grand slam against the Phillies to win the game. I instantly fell in love with baseball and decided the Pirates were my team. Of course, they won the Series in that greatest of years.

JayKogen said...

All great points and still the All-Star game was a goofy party. People walked around Dodger Stadium in their team colors from all over the league and aside from Houston which still gets hate for the cheating scandal all teams seemed welcome by the home crowd. It was certainly a meaningless game but it's been that way for a few years. It was more of a sweet pageant. There was a baseball convention, home run derby, and a game. Giant flags for no reason. Jets flying overhead for no reason. None of it meant anything but it was all a celebration of the game. And for me, that's always what the All Star game has always been, a big but pleasant nothing. Now that all teams have designated hitters, teams that used to be in the NL are now in the AL. And they play each other during the year anyway so... none of it matters. But again, it was a nice afternoon. My first and probably last All-Star game.

Bryan said...

I have to agree on all points Ken. I was talking to a friend about inter-league play just a few days ago. I don't like for the same reasons you don't. I used to love the All-Star game, loved it. But yes, that's in the past. The home uni's weren't ugly, but just looked generic, and the away uni's were pretty awful, but Nike loves selling jerseys. I however wouldn't buy one. As for the announcing, it sounds like every other team's play by play, they all sound alike. Could we clone Vin Scully please, I miss him...

David Arnott said...

Couldn't disagree more about the players being mic'd up. That was fantastic. Some absolutely great "inside" stuff. And it gave me exactly what I want from an all-star game: something I'll NEVER get from a regular game.

Those uniforms, though, were pretty bad. As was that Big Papi segment.

MikeKPa. said...

Can't disagree with a single point you made. I still remember Pete Rose bowling over C Ray Fosse at the plate on a bang-bang play. That they had dinner the night before didn't matter to Charlie Hustle.

Rob said...

I haven't watched much baseball in years, but I always wonder why they make changes like this that aren't going to rope in people who aren't fans and often irritate the hardcore and even casual fan.

I will say that as an Oriole fan living in Kentucky, it was nearly impossible as a kid to see the Orioles play on TV in a region where most teams were National League. Now, if I want to see them play, at least I'll get an opportunity near my home when they play the Reds. So I kind of like interleague games for that reason.

I really don't understand the uniform thing. You can create an all star uniform that is both a special edition AND represents the team fully. Put a damned star somewhere on it and some special borders on the logo or something.

Anonymous said...

This comment us why Fox did what they did. Young viewer, here. Old man yelling at clouds doesn't sound good.

D. McEwan said...

"Anonymous said...
@D McEwan
Nice view of life you have.
What matters to you is important.
what matters to others isn't.
And Trump manages to creep into something that doesn't have anything to do with it."


Trump has befouled everything in America. And Trump's horrific effect on America, his ongoing attempts to overthrow Democracy, does matter. Who wins a baseball game does not. It is a trivial amusement at best, and "matters" not one whit more than the Oscars "matter." I do enjoy watching the Oscars, but I'm not idiot enough to think they "matter," except to the millionaires to whom an Oscar may mean they can buy a third house, just as baseball only "matters" to millionaire players and team owners, where a championship may mean they can buy a third house.

If the outcome of every baseball game ever played had been the reverse of what they were, all the winners lost, all the losers won, it would have exactly zero effect on anything that matters.

At least I have the guts to sign my comments with my own name, Mr. "Anonymous" Coward.

ScarletNumber said...

@Mike Barer

The last time the ASG was scheduled for this late in the season was 1977 at Yankee Stadium, when the game was also July 19. Since then it has generally been scheduled for the second Tuesday in July. I don't know why they went with the third Tuesday this year. In 1969 and 72-74 they went really late on the fourth Tuesday in July.

Anonymous said...

“[Baseball] breaks your heart. It is designed to break your heart. The game begins in the spring, when everything else begins again, and it blossoms in the summer, filling the afternoons and evenings, and then as soon as the chill rains come, it stops and leaves you to face the fall all alone. You count on it, rely on it to buffer the passage of time, to keep the memory of sunshine and high skies alive, and then just when the days are all twilight, when you need it most, it stops.”
- A. Bartlett Giamatti
President of Yale, Professor of English Renaissance Literature

Unknown said...

I don't have cable and don't live close enough to our Fox affiliate to get it over the air. After reading your review, I'm counting my blessings.

roundeye11 said...

Indeed. The All-Star game is joyless and uninspiring any longer. My experience places the blame on Joe Torre treating it like a little league game where the only goal is to let everyone play. It always struck me as bizarre that Selig was blamed for the calamity of the AL running out of players (the classic shrug photo didn't help). Torre ruined the game more than anyone. All those Yankee WS appearances led to him getting the keys to the Mid-Summer Once-Classic and driving that beauty into every tree in the forest. Torre made the game a joke. What's happening now is just the continuing transgression of the game.