Tomorrow, July 14th,
is the MLB All-Star game, which is being played in Cincinnati this year. The
approach of this game got me thinking about All-star games in general. The
concept of getting all of the best players in a professional league together
and having them play an exhibition game seems like a good one. However, all
three of the major sports leagues, NBA, NFL, and MLB, have generally boring
All-star games. None have held my interest in years. However, all of the
leagues do feature various skills exhibitions (e.g. Home Run Derby and Dunk
Contest) prior to the actual game. These events are fun to watch. I try to make
sure I see them every year. I think it is time we just cancel the NBA and NFL
All-Star games and just focus on skill events.
The various All-Star
games have turned into drawn out and boring affairs filled with lackadaisical
performances and too many commercials. The play is sloppy and subpar. Only MLB
manages to put on a watchable show. In the NFL and NBA games the defense is basically
non existences which takes away a major part of the sport. The primary factor
for this is the fear of injury. None of the stars or their teams want to risk
injury in a game that doesn't matter.
Sports like
basketball and football are very team centered games. Throwing together
All-Star caliber players and asking them to play together with little or no
practice is bound to result in a sloppy game. That is exactly what the NBA
Al-Star game and NFL Pro-Bowl are. In the NBA there are turnovers and missed
shots galore. Basically players start playing hero ball and isolation. You miss
out on the beauty that is the fluid game of team Basketball. The NFL's game is
full of blown routes and missed throws. You can't ask a group of players to gel
at the level required to create great football.
It would be terrible
for the fans the teams and most importantly the platers to suffer a major
injury during a basically meaningless
game. Imagine the outcry if a star quarterback suffered a major injury during
the Pro Bowl because some DE wanted to prove he was the best pass rusher in the
league, but instead got caught on a block and awkwardly rolled into the knees
of the passer. In an instance the team next season is wiped out and potentially
the players next payday and future financial security. It doesn't make sense to
play hard defense during and All-Star game and risk season or career altering
injuries. That means it also doesn't make sense to play the game at all.
The skills
competitions that the leagues put on have little or no risk of injury. The
NBA's skills competitions are probably the most dangerous. The Dunk Contest,
Three Point Contest, and Skills Challenge all require running and physical
effort near game level to compete. However, they are all performed by world
class athletes in a non-defended and non-contact environment. Guys shouldn't
get hurt throwing down a 360 tomahawk jam.
Speaking of 360
tomahawk jams, watching Dunk Contest is fun. Although the event still has way
to many commercials and takes longer than it should, it is generally a good
time. Similarly the MLB Home Run Derby is a fun spectacle for a summer evening.
I witnessed the events live at Safeco Field in 2001, it was a blast (pun
intended). In both leagues they are able to bring out stars to compete in most
of the events (the NBA does fail to do this in the Dunk Contest from time to
time). This allows fans to see their favorites, while putting them in different
non game situations that are fun to watch. It is way more fun than the All-Star
games.
One of the things
the that hurts the NFL's All-Star experience, the Pro Bowl, is a lack of a
skills challenge. They eliminated the events after the 2007 events. Reading
online it appears that the NFL never gave a great explanation for why the
competitions were ended. Now all they have left is a boring no touch version of
a football game that nobody watches. Clearly they cancelled the wrong events.
MLB is the only one
of the big three with an All-Star game that shouldn't be eliminated. The
baseball game is interesting for the first couple of innings when all the
starters are still playing. However, by about the 5th or 6th all the best
players are out and the game starts to drag.
Even with the only
All-Star game worthy of surviving, MLB should considering expanding their skill
competitions. Currently the only one is the Home Run Derby. They could easily
add a fly ball or ground ball shagging contest. Imagine Andrelton Simmons and
Elvis Andrus seeing who could scoop up the most grounders and make an accurate
throw to first. Maybe points for range and accuracy of throwing. The league
could easily add a stolen base race. They could have Dee Gordon and Billy
Hamilton see who can go first to second fastest. I would tune in to see that.
Two of the three
majors leagues, the NBA and the NFL, should seriously consider cancelling their
All-Star games. All three should instead focus on skills challenges. This would
give players more time to rest and heal, while providing fans with a fun break
from the regular season. It would eliminate the yearly complaints about none of
the players giving any effort during the games. It would still give fans a
chance to see the stars and enjoy the fun the comes with these slightly silly
events.
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