Fire the MLB All-Star Game

Guys like Mo don't prioritize the ASG. (Star-Leger)

The All-Star Game started out as a one-time exhibition in 1933 to generate interest in baseball during the Great Depression, but in 2011 it's little more than a reminder of how technology has changed the fan experience. No matter how many gimmicks Bud Selig attaches to the game, the bottom line is the fans don't care and the players don't care, so the event should be fired.

The game is supposed to be about giving fans what they want, and it fails to do so. Part of the problem is that thanks to television, radio and Internet packages, every fan can see every team every night if that's what they want. Nobody living in St. Louis needs to tune into the All-Star Game anymore so they can see Red Sox players because they can watch all 162 Sox games on live TV. The other issue is that the most popular players frequently don't end up appearing in the game. Jersey sales are a pretty good measure of player popularity and of the 20 top selling player jerseys in 2010, just six of those guys played in the game last night.

These factors have led to a drop in fan interest: in 2011 the game had a ratings share of 6.9, the lowest ever, and just 11 million viewers, the fewest ever. That's down from 12.1 million viewers in 2010, which had been the record low. The 2011 season premier of American Idol drew 26 million viewers, which was the least-watched premier since the show debuted in 2002. The MLB All-Star Game hasn't drawn that many viewers since 1988.

Even the players as a whole don't really care about the game. In 2003 Selig decided that the winner of the game would get home field advantage in the World Series in the hope that interest would tick up and also to prevent a repeat of the very unpopular tie game in 2002. Since every team needs at least one representative in the game, that means a large percentage of the players still don't care who wins because they know they're waiting until next year for the playoffs. Surprisingly, even teams that have a good shot at making the World Series don't care about the game, either. Five members of the Yankees who made the team this year bailed, because they pitched on Sunday or were "injured." Only 3B Alex Rodriguez, however, is seriously injured right now and only CC Sabathia pitched on Sunday.

If fans still want to choose a team each year, that's fine, but there is no need to play the game. A better use of the three-day stretch allotted for the game would be to give every player some time off.