MLB All-Star Game Should Not Determine Home-Field Advantage in the World Series - Joe Chacon's Blog

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MLB All-Star Game Should Not Determine Home-Field Advantage in the World Series Stuck

Posted on July 3, 2012 at 05:20 PM.

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The 2012 edition of the Major League Baseball All-Star Game will take place on July 10 at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri.

Starting with the 2003 All-Star Game, World Series home-field advantage has been awarded to the league winning the All-Star Game. Prior to that, the leagues alternated home-field advantage in the World Series each year.

The initial marketing campaign was titled, "This Time It Counts." It came across as a ploy that forced the players to take pride in the league they played for.

We are seeing the same kind of advertising this year with the players stating in the commercials, "I play for the [insert league name here]."

As much as I want to believe these players have a divine interest in seeing the league they play for win the game, I'm not buying it. Free agency and the lack of team loyalty has removed most of the pride MLB players had for their respective leagues.

The All-Star Game should not determine home-field advantage. The advantage in every sport should be given to whoever had the best record in the regular season. Mike Napoli getting a base hit off of Wade Miley to win the game should not take away home-field advantage in the World Series for the National League.

I love the MLB All-Star Game and most everything that goes along with it. I enjoy seeing the players wear the uniform of their team, and enjoy how MLB ties in historical figures into each Mid-Summer Classic.

One thing needs to be fixed soon, and that is to remove the tie-in to home-field advantage for the winning league.

The MLB regular season is very long and grueling. The team with the best record should be rewarded throughout the playoffs.

Joe Chacon is a staff writer for Operation Sports and a featured columnist for Bleacher Report. You can follow him on Twitter @JoeChacon.

Comments

# 1 BSchwartz07 @ Jul 4

While I do agree to an extent, let me throw this out there...
Teams do not play the same opponents in the MLB, it of all the sports is the most slanted towards interdivisional play. That said, a team like the Rangers who plays in a weak division may get to 100 wins a lot easier than a team from the NL or AL East.... Thus, the overall better record doesn't actually represent the team who has had the best year. This method helps to sort of "solve" the better league and give that winner home field...
Just throwing that out there, even though I'm not a huge fan of this system. It is better than the old way, which was alternating every year.

# 2 tbennett54 @ Jul 4

I disagree, it gives it a feeling that this game means something.

# 3 StL_RamZ @ Jul 4

I like it the way it is because unlike other all-star games that seem pointless and are often boring (mostly NBA +100)

They actually have something to play for and it makes all tHe allstars work together and show how competitor baseball is....

FYI I hate Baseball

# 4 BaylorBearBryant @ Jul 4

i kinda like the way it is now

# 5 tHurley2010 @ Jul 4

Without the winner gets home field advantage in the World Series, the Midsummer Classic becomes just about as relevant as the NBA All-Star Game, the NFL Pro Bowl, and the NHL All-Star Game. It becomes just another game in an already exhaustive season. If they're is no incentive, then why play the game in the first place? They still have 81 other games to play. Isn't that enough without having to have one more?

# 6 bonannogiovanni @ Jul 4

Totally disagree, all star games mean nothing otherwise and are boring to watch. HFA counts for league titles anyway.

# 7 djcorrosive @ Jul 4

I'd love to see a best of 3 all-star series. That way HFA doesn't hinge on just one game and we get to see more of the star pitchers.

# 8 bubba4 @ Jul 4

Only MLB would take itself so seriously that they would take a key component of tournament play (HFA) and let it be determined by an exhibition game!! Message to MLB: No one CARES who wins an Allstar game!! HFA should be earned through Season play. AllStar games are simply exhibitions staged for the fans. The NHL and NBA understand this fact. A team that wins 125 games in a season deserves the HFA. NOT the exhibition game winner. MLB need to relax a bit.

# 9 mattsatx79 @ Jul 4

I disagree and believe that it should mean something. I wish the NBA would do something along these lines too. I have not watched NBA All Star Weekend in a long time.

# 10 Shinyhubcaps @ Jul 4

I disagree as well.

First off, it isn't that big of a prize. Since it's happened, the "home-field advantage team" is 6-3, but it really only affects Game 7s, which is 1-0 in the 9 years it's been in play. 88% of the time, home-field advantage means nothing. (Home-field advantage, statistically, is also smaller in baseball than in any other sport.)

Second, the argument for best record may be prone to scheduling biases. Fact is, the AL and NL don't play the same teams for most of the year, so if one league is top-heavy, the best team may have a stacked number of wins by not playing the same opponents as the other league.

# 11 bubba4 @ Jul 5

The NBA Allstar weekend and the NHL AllStar events are, imo, more entertaining and interesting that the MLB AllStar game. The homerun contest is still mildly entertaining, but the game itself is quite a bore. It's pitcher dominated. They need to scrap this idea of the exhibition game deciding HFA. They need to either keep the DH for both leagues or dump it all together, and run the league like all other sports do. Then the Allstar game can be returned to its all-exhibition glory.

# 12 Joe Chacon @ Jul 5

You guys bring up some great points both for and against the main point of the article. The first month of writing for Operation Sports has been great because not only does the community here state their opinion respectfully, but the opinion is usually backed up by reasons why a side is taken.

Good stuff!

# 13 shadia147 @ Jul 7

Heard a great idea on the Dan Patrick Show; Instead of Home Field during the World Series, how about using the DH or not during next years Interleague play?