Tuesday, June 16, 2009

Loyalty vs. Integrity....Integrity Wins

Faithful readers of this blog know my affection for the Philadelphia Phillies. Yesterday, though, I had to make a choice between loyalty to the team and integrity to the game.

I read on the Phillies' website that Jimmy Rollins, the Phils' shortstop, leads all National League shortstops in votes for the annual All-Star game. While Rollins always plays his position in the field well, his offensive numbers have been pretty dismal this season.

Loyalty to the Phils' demands that I continue to root for J-Roll, even when he's struggling that the plate.

But integrity forced me to get online yesterday and place the maximum 25 votes for Marlins shortstop Hanley Ramirez.

I love the Phils, but when it comes to the All-Star game, I think it's only right that the players voted in are actually playing like all-stars. I'll continue to support J-Roll, but the bottom line is that he's not playing like an All-Star. A leadoff hitter with an on-base percentage of .254 simply doesn't deserve to be in the starting lineup of an All-Star team.

I know we've got some baseball fans reading the blog, so what do you think? Should the All-Star game just be a popularity contest, regardless of how the players are actually playing? Or should the numbers count for something, even if that means less popular players make up the rosters?

1 comment:

  1. I agree--stats should count for most of the voting decision. However, I don't like prima donna athletes and will choose someone who plays hard and is a team player over someone with a bad attitude.

    And what is with all the votes for Manny Ramirez? Talk about voting based solely on popularity!

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