Back on June 13, I took interleague play to task, and now its time to verbally abuse another one of beloved MLB commissioner Bud Selig’s glorious inventions.

What’s the point of making this All-Star Game count? Was it truly a reaction to that tie in 2002 in Milwaukee? Just how exactly does that makes sense? The reason that game ended in a tie was because the managers were subbing out players to get them into the game, not because there was nothing on the line. Heck, both teams scored seven runs in a spirited contest that unfortunately only lasted ten innings. Even with the new “this one counts”  rule, managers still sub out players to attempt to get everybody in. Frankly, the managers should always do this. What’s the point of having a rule which states every team needs a representative if they aren’t guaranteed to get into the game? Lowering the bloated roster count to the traditional 25 or at least closer to 25 would make it easier to get players in, but that’s not going to happen.

So to what purpose does “this one counts” serve? Is it supposed to raise ratings? Does this rule even matter to baseball fans? Have you or anyone you know decided to watch the Major League Baseball All-Star Game because it had an impact on the World Series? Baseball Almanac has a record of All-Star Game ratings, and the ratings actually steadily declined after the implementation of the 2002 rule. The 2006 All-Star Game, featuring many players from the New York market and the first All-Star Game of several new stars, finally brought back many viewers. I’m not convinced that the “this one counts” rule has anything to do with the ratings.

Does the “this one counts” rule bring the game back to earlier decades when the game really meant something to both leagues? Does it make the game more competitive? Not necessarily. The National League still hasn’t won an All-Star Game since 1996. Grant it, MLB has been lucky to have the last two All-Star Games be really entertaining and go down to the wire. This isn’t really a result of any change in gameplay, though. The new rule really only serves to make managers and teammates feel pressure about letting the league down, but there’s no immediate backlash because the World Series opponents aren’t decided until October. By then, everybody has virtually forgotten about how the All-Star Game ended.

“This One Counts” is only truly convincing to the mainstream personalities, such as ESPN talking heads, who eat up the illusion of the stipulation carrying a lot of weight. It hasn’t meant anything yet, as each World Series since 2003 has went a maximum of six games. Three of them have ended in sweeps. Wait until a series goes to seven games, and we are reminded that it was Cristian Guzman who struck out to end the game.

One could argue that the old way of deciding who got Game 7 in the World Series wasn’t masterful, either. It was just blind luck. The leagues similarly alternated each year. Yet, who can argue against blind luck? Players and pundits would just have to throw their hands up in the air and ask themselves, “What are you going to do?” Making the All-Star Game count identifies a scapegoat, whether that be Selig or the National League’s overall inferiority. Ultimately, it has no effect on preventing ties, raising ratings, or changing how the game is played, so why does it exist?

The AP released some numbers earlier, and turns out the MLB pays Bud Selig a little more than most of us fans make. Over $14 million more.

Now if the MLB is making money, which we all know it is, and wants to pay Bud Selig buckets upon buckets of cash for helping to sweep steroids under the rug and doing his best to keep the Young brothers from doing anything too crazy, then power to them. Its just the other stuff I question. The $400k in benefits. The $140k in expenses. How can a guy who gets paid $14 million need an expense account. He can’t reach into his pocket and cover airfare when he has to fly out to San Francisco and demand Bonds pee in a cup? I assume he doesn’t pay to go to actual games, but I’m sure he can afford his own concession stand hot dog and beer. Maybe not at Yankee stadium, but at the others.

We all know many of the baseball owners aren’t free spending types, so I’m putting this out there: make me Commissioner of baseball. I’ll do Selig’s job for half. And you can keep the expense account. When I visit your team, I’ll even buy you one of those ice creams in a novelty plastic helmet. And if your team wins, you can even get sprinkles.

SI.com is reporting that Bud Selig is now considering not punishing the players that were named in the December Mitchell Report on steroids. Selig had previously said that he would punish the players around the time the report came out.

I guess Mitchell’s pleading to not punish the players finally got through to Bud..

Recently the Owners unanimously voted to extend Bud Selig’s contract for three more years. I’ve seen a lot of articles lately praising this move, saying it gives Selig time to finish his job of cleaning up baseball, to work on his legacy, to continue the peace he’s kept between labor and owners.

Its all a bunch of hooey.

Selig does not deserve three more years. His legacy should be the Steroid Era and the Mitchell Report, and if the owners really want to bring about the change in regards to players and PEDs they should have started with the man who let it happen, Selig.

Is Selig solely to blame? Of course not. The players are the ones who did the drugs. The trainers supplied them. Fellow players, coaches and owners looked the other way. We the fan even continued to come out in record numbers and spend more and more on the produce despite overwhelming signs that our beloved stars were juicing. But the buck has to stop somewhere, and that somewhere is the man with the ultimate authority, Selig. He could implement tougher testing, tougher rules. He could use the power of the lifetime ban, banishing the worst offenders to the same baseball limbo occupied by other big time cheaters and rouges like Pete Rose and the Black Sox. But instead, he’s for the most part sat idly by.

He received praise for not clapping and supporting Barry Bonds, and while he didn’t enthusiastically support Bonds he didn’t exactly go out of his way to find the truth behind the cloud of doubt that surrounded one of baseballs most suspected steroid users.

Selig is the commissioner who brought us the Strike, the tied All Star Game and tell all Jose Canseco books. When baseball was getting mired in the cloud of doubt brought about by fixed games and gambling, they moved to bring in Landis, the first commissioner to show the ownership meant business when it came to restoring the reputation of the sport. This month they had the chance to do so again, to bring in a new commissioner who could be tough on Steroids and perhaps once again clean up baseballs tarnished image.

The New York Daily News reports that Bud Selig has agreed to remain Major League Baseball’s commissioner for three more years.

Selig appeared before congress this week and accepted responsibility for the slow response to the steroid problem in baseball. He pledged to take steps to prevent drug use in baseball in the future.

MLB has seen tremendous growth under Selig’s reign, during which inter-league play was developed and the wild-card was added to the playoff structure, which have made for exciting pennant races especially last years where many teams fought up until the final day of the season to move on to post-season play.

MLB has set all-time attendance records in each of the last four years. In 2007, attendance showed 4% growth from 2006 as 79,503,175 fans attended regular season games at the 30 Major League ballparks. And, revenues have increased more than four-fold, from $1.2 billion in 1992 to $5.2 billion in 2006.

I don’t like an owner being the commissioner, it seems like a conflict of interest to me. He’s done great things for the game, but he also severely tarnished it with his lax attitude toward steroids until he was forced to act.

The Associated Press is reporting that tomorrow press conference will be held at 2pm tomorrow and the list will be posted on MLB.com shortly after. Bud Selig will not be attending Mitchell’s press conference, but will hold his own about 2 1/2 hours later.

Let the games begin. I don’t know, but I just have a feeling the list isn’t going to be as shocking as some people are expecting. Hot Foot will be updating you with information as it becomes available.

At the Journal News, Peter Abraham indicated that Bud Selig has said the new, Mets Stadium, CitiField which is set to open in 2009 is a possibility for the 2011 MLB all-Star Game.

Selig also announced that Yankee Stadium will be home of the 2008 MLB All-Star game, which is the last year before the Yankees new Ballpark which is also set to open in 2009.

Can't Stop The Bleeding submits their list of candidates for baseball commissioner, which Bud Selig revealed he will be retiring from in three years.