Why MLB’s All-Star game is undoubtedly the best in professional sports

ARLINGTON — We spend so much time on what we perceive baseball gets wrong.
Umpiring. Rule changes. Hall of Fame voting. List goes on. This year, it was the pants.
Advertisement
And we don’t spend nearly enough time on what it gets right. No, make that perfect. As the All-Star Game comes to Arlington on July 16 for the first time in 29 years and only the second time in the 53-year existence of the Rangers, it’s worth remembering that. Major League Baseball invented the idea of the All-Star Game 90 years ago and it still holds the patent.
Advertisement
“Of all the sports, this one does it best,” said Rangers Hall of Famer Michael Young, who went to seven as a player, won the MVP in 2006 and had a walkoff sacrifice fly two years later in the final game at the original Yankee Stadium. “There is no doubt about that.”
Rangers Be the smartest Rangers fan. Get the latest news. SIGN UP Or with: Google Facebook By signing up you agree to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy
Every other sport has tried and failed. Quick, name a great moment in Pro Bowl history. Well, besides the day Roger Goodell admitted it wasn’t working and kinda junked the whole thing. The last time the NBA All-Star Game was riveting TV was four years ago, not so much because of the play, but because of the moving way a still-grieving league mourned the tragic loss of Kobe Bryant. The NHL? Hey, the Winter Classic is cool. No, that’s not a dad joke. It’s not an All-Star Game either.
Baseball gets it right. Always has. From the moment Babe Ruth homered in the first one to Mariano Rivera pitching a perfect ninth 80 years later in his final All-Star Game. The game doesn’t need tweaking. We were reminded of that when, after an 11-inning tie in 2002 that left fans in Milwaukee booing, MLB decided to make the game matter more by putting home-field advantage in the World Series at stake. This is why the Rangers are the only team in history to go to back-to-back World Series and not have home field advantage in either. MLB has since wisely eliminated that.
Advertisement
The game — and the week of events that accompany it — produces. Period. The Home Run Derby might be one of the five biggest sporting events of the year. Pretty incredible considering it’s an exhibition before an exhibition. The Futures Game, celebrating 25 years this year, has its own fan base that eyes the prospects. That’s before you get to the game.
On game day, there are homages to history like the All-Century Team introduction in Boston in 1999. There is acknowledgement of the locals like Ken Griffey Jr. throwing out the first pitch in Seattle last year. There is a wink and a nod between opponents who are competitive, but clearly having fun. Like, you know the time Nelson Cruz snapped a selfie with umpire Joe West in 2017.
Advertisement
Most will mention the heat first when they talk about the last time the game came to Arlington. It was oppressive. But the ovation Iván Rodríguez received was thunderous. Hideo Nomo, the first superstar Japanese import, started for the National League with his distinctive hesitation delivery. Randy Johnson, Kevin Appier and Dennis Martinez combined to take an American League no-hit bid into the sixth. The Marlins’ Jeff Conine changed the game with an eighth-inning homer. Fans left The Ballpark in Arlington drenched in sweat, but also in awe of the temple to baseball the Rangers had built.
Advertisement
Want to bring out the kid in your local MLB star? Just ask them about All-Star memories.
“Fernando [Valenzuela], that was the first,” said Young, who grew up in Los Angeles.
Which is an amazing memory, since Valenzuela, at the height of Fernando Mania, made his first start in 1981. Young was a couple of months shy of turning 5 years old.
Advertisement
“Well, I don’t remember the game, but I remember it was a really big deal for my family,” said Young, who is of Mexican-American descent. “I do remember my entire family gathering around the TV to watch.”
And then he was off and running.
“I remember Dwight Gooden pitching when he was like 19 years old [in 1984],” Young said. “And Bo Jackson leading off with a homer off Rick Reuschel and winning the MVP. I was a Raiders fan. It was in Anaheim. It was amazing. I could go on and on. I watched every game. I was fortunate to be in a few. The game is as talented as ever. They bring such special skills. It really is an incredible midway point for the sport. And they’ve done so much to enhance it. It just gets better.”
It all arrives for the first time since 1995 next week. It will be perfect. Just don’t pay too close attention to the pants. Just to be safe.
Advertisement
Find more Rangers coverage from The Dallas Morning News here.