2007 All Star Game thread

[Birdsonbat]

Re: 2007 All Star Game thread

I feel bad for the NL contenders. You cannot let Rowand bat in that situation, I don't care what the defense might look like had the game been tied. I figured SteakgrowsonDmitri would bat before Pujols, but me and my friends were expecting it each time the inning was extended. Tony sucks.

[steveeee]

Re: 2007 All Star Game thread

one of the best hitters in the game on the bench.. the only Cardinal at the All Star game.. and you don't bat him with the bases loaded 2 outs in the 9th...

I think Tony wants to get booed out of St. Louis.. there has to be a reason.. maybe Albert hurt himself last night in the HR Derby?

I didn't see him in the dugout..


Managed like an Exibition game once again.. I'm sick of the American League always winning.

Tony probably rested Albert for the 2nd half of the season.. lol

[Chip Douglass]

Re: 2007 All Star Game thread

Yeah, that sucks for all of the contending NL teams.

[skitch]

Re: 2007 All Star Game thread

I didn't get to watch because of work, and after looking at the highlights, I'm pissed!

This actually looked to be a great ball game.

I found it amazing that the only two people not to play were Albert Pujols, who definitely could have been used by his own manager in place of Rowand to end the game, and Michael Young, the MVP of last year's ball game.

[fowess]

Re: 2007 All Star Game thread

Come on BBTN crew. Let us know how pissed Albert is.

[Birdsonbat]

Re: 2007 All Star Game thread

SAN FRANCISCO -- Albert Pujols was angry about being left on the All-Star bench and the St. Louis slugger took aim at the National League manager -- who just happened to be Tony La Russa of his own Cardinals.

"It's the All-Star Game. He can do what he wants," Pujols said Tuesday night. "He does whatever he wants. If I wasn't expecting to play, I wouldn't have come up here."

Pujols, the NL MVP in 2005 and key to the Cardinals' win in the World Series last year, said La Russa didn't talk to him the entire game.

Pujols could only watch when Aaron Rowand flied out with the bases loaded to end the American League's 5-4 win.

"If he wants to get upset, he can get upset," La Russa said. "Whatever he wants to do, he can do. It's America. That wasn't the most important thing tonight."

With the 32-man rosters, it's not uncommon for few players to be left out. The AL used 27 players, while the NL used 28.

Pujols and Texas shortstop Michael Young -- last year's All-Star Game MVP -- were the only position players who didn't get into the game. Ever since the 2002 event ended in an extra-innings tie, managers have tended to hold a hitter back just in case.

La Russa said he indeed was saving his star player in case the game went long.

"Once we lost [Miguel] Cabrera and [Freddy] Sanchez, he was the guy we were going to use to protect ourselves in case we kept playing because of Albert's versatility," La Russa said. "I think we had the right guy at bat."

A six-time All-Star, Pujols finished about 770,000 votes behind starting first baseman Prince Fielder. He played left field regularly in 2002 and '03 and also saw time at third base in 2001 and '02.

Pujols said he was getting his body loose the whole night.

"I was ready to go since the game started," Pujols said.

Pujols is mired in a career-worst home run slump -- 22 games and a career-worst 74 at-bats. He is tied with Chris Duncan for the team lead with 16 homers and his last homer was off Kansas City's Jimmy Gobble on June 14.

The more I think about this, the more it gets to me. I did not think it would be possible to despise La Russa more than I did. I was wrong. If it were Randolph managing the team, are we watching Aaron Rowand bat for NL home field advantage in the WS?

[dkgojackets]

Re: 2007 All Star Game thread

La Russa said he indeed was saving his star player in case the game went long.

Why not play your star player and give the game a chance to get long?

[chippered]

Re: 2007 All Star Game thread

I dont see why Albert didnt hit in that situation. The guy can play a crap load of positions, so your not really hurting yourself that much if you end up tying it. La Russa was even saying earlier that he was saving Albert until late in the game in case he needed him to hit and he'd still be fine, becuase he would be able to play third, short, or second. Craziness I say!

[nyisles16]

Re: 2007 All Star Game thread

Wow didn't know that Ichiro hit the first inside the park homerun for both himself and the All-Star game. Sign with the Giants Ichiro, and you can run do more!

god - nothing worse than hearing good ol' Jeanie shout out about him being a FA at the end of the season.. of course, if she happened to listen AT ALL during the telecast, she would have heard he was close to re-upping with the M's (5 yrs, $90 mil rumored)..


PS- Tony, you are not a "genius" now... Rowland batting with Albert sitting?

[warnerwlf98]

Re: 2007 All Star Game thread

I don't know if it's been brought up in this thread, but the all star game should not determine home field in the world series.

This is an exhibition game with different rules and tradition that is asked to take on additional importance to generate more interest. I believe it's a rule that pitchers can go no longer than 3 innings - but if you're playing to win a real baseball game, wouldn't you pick your best pitcher to start or at least leave your best pitcher in the longest to give you the best chance of winning? The same thing goes for the Pujols situation - wouldn't you try to give Pujols more at bats than Derrick Lee for the best chance to win?

It has been all star tradition over the years to get as many people as possible, but I've noticed it's only changed a little since this "importance" has been added. If true baseball is being played, you'll want to move runners to third with less than 2 out to try to get some "cheap" runs, yet after listening to ESPN's analysis they say "You can't expect these all stars to do situational hitting, because it's an all star game, and the fans want to see the cover knocked off of the ball."

What motivation do the managers have to try to win this game for their October aspirations? The Tigers are in first place, and have a shot of getting to the promised land this year, but the Cardinals are 7 and a half out of first and 7 out of the wild card with a lot of teams in front of them. Even though tradition selects the managers of the world series squads from the previous season, wouldn't it make more sense to have the managers be from the teams with the best records in each league?

All in all, I think it's sort of a sham that an all star game could decide anything so important that isn't played in actuality like a real regular season or even a postseason game. I'm just happy that since this home field thing was established, the series hasn't gone more than 5 games in October so home field technically doesn't come into play.

I was rooting for another tie (like some people root for intense BCS chaos to hasten the need for a playoff) to make baseball and the players association rethink this, but oh well.

[DrDoom77]

Re: 2007 All Star Game thread

I don't know if it's been brought up in this thread, but the all star game should not determine home field in the world series.

I agree, and don't understand why the team with the best overall record in baseball doesn't get homefield advantage.

That said, it annoys me that before MLB did that, certain sportswriters (Ken Rosenthal, in particular) were continually calling for Selig to use the All-Star Game to determine homefield advantage as a way of making the game interesting again. As soon as Selig did it, though, those same sportswriters turned around and lambasted him for using an exhibition game for that purpose. I'm convinced those people planted the idea in Selig's mind and encouraged him to make the change, and it bugs me that they're getting off scot free, having disavowed ever calling for that change.

[warnerwlf98]

Re: 2007 All Star Game thread

I agree, and don't understand why the team with the best overall record in baseball doesn't get homefield advantage.

That said, it annoys me that before MLB did that, certain sportswriters (Ken Rosenthal, in particular) were continually calling for Selig to use the All-Star Game to determine homefield advantage as a way of making the game interesting again. As soon as Selig did it, though, those same sportswriters turned around and lambasted him for using an exhibition game for that purpose. I'm convinced those people planted the idea in Selig's mind and encouraged him to make the change, and it bugs me that they're getting off scot free, having disavowed ever calling for that change.

I didn't mind the home field alternating between leagues for the first hundred years, but doing it by record is very fair. Hey, they do it that way in the NHL and NBA.

And don't get me started on the wild card . . . The wild card team should have no home games, so if they make it to the series, they really earn it.

[ILLCHILL]

Re: 2007 All Star Game thread

I do like the ASG detertmining the home-field since I follow a team (the BoSox) that always contends and the AL hasn't lost since before I hit puberty.

Puljos on the bench is still mind-boggling and makes you think La Russa and Ablert and at odds. Puljos said he and Tony never spoke the whole game. Anyone have the ninth inning roster of position players for the NL so we can figure out what could have happened in Pujlos went in and tied it up?

[Birdsonbat]

Re: 2007 All Star Game thread

Anyone have the ninth inning roster of position players for the NL so we can figure out what could have happened in Pujlos went in and tied it up?

Do you mean what would the defense have looked like?

C McCann
1B D. Lee
2B O. Hudson
3B F. Sanchez
SS JJ Hardy
OF Soriano
OF Rowand - Pujols comes in
OF Holliday

Dimitri batted in the pitcher's spot, I believe, so he would have been replaced. Outfield would have Soriano and Holliday, so Pujols could have played left. Or, could have moved Freddy Sanchez to the OF, Pujols to 3B.

[TheMatrix31]

Re: 2007 All Star Game thread

So now....because of moron LaRussa, the NL blew the chance to win HFA for the World Series. Horrible.