Why the 2020 MLB all-star game could be greatest ever

The 2020 MLB All-Star Game could go down as one of the greatest in baseball history.

Once: that’s the number of times the MLB All-Star Game has been scratched.

One time, since the Midsummer Classic’s inception in 1933, has it not been played. That was in 1945, with WWII and mandated travel restrictions being the reason. More to the point, even during the strike-shortened seasons- 1981,1994, 1995- they got this game in.

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The way things are going, that streak is showing every sign of coming to an end in 2020. Owners and players continue to lock horns, each side working on their own misguided endgame that is looking more and more like it could result in little to no baseball being played this season.

However, that’s a subject for another time.

A subject for, well frankly for almost every article out there being written about MLB right now. Hopefully, you peeked at my own in the above link. ESPN’s Jeff Passan boils down the financials with depressing austerity here.

For this piece though, let’s pretend while we still can that the 2020 MLB season will be played in some form. And more importantly for this topic, played in some form that isn’t completely compulsory either. A season where some goodwill still exists between players and the league.

Because the result of all that…could be the greatest MLB All-Star Game of all-time.

The MLB All-Star Game is truly unique among its contemporaries. The NFL Pro Bowl is pointless, generally providing fans nothing but the opportunity to imagine what it would look like if you sent professional football players to summer camp.

The NBA All-Star Game? Rookie-mode on NBA 2K has more defense- it’s a shootaround.

The NHL ASG? I have honestly never watched it, which is really their whole problem.

The MLB version is not without flaws either, of course. Fan voting is imperfect, often rewarding big market stars over smaller market ones having better seasons.

The concept of every team needing a representative? A baseball debate as iconic as the virtues of having a designated hitter.

But it’s still far-and-away the most compelling ASG on the landscape, whether it “counts” or not. The following are a few reasons why 2020 could be such a special year for the Midsummer Classic.

An interesting idea for the 2020 MLB All-Star game? Play It Twice.

Another tweak that could be fun, and quite possibly necessary given travel restrictions, would be to play two MLB All-Star Games. Splitting into the best of the Cactus and Grapefruit Leagues perhaps, or just the best of the Eastern and Western United States.

Double the action, and more recognition for more players. Not to mention, double the broadcasting revenue- so consider this extremely likely to come up in those MLB-MLBPA negotiations.

Give Recently Retired All-Stars Chance To Play

You know who’s probably in better shape than 80% of active MLB players right now?

Ichiro Suzuki.

Why not take the opportunity of an unconventional MLB season to make some unconventional selections for the MLB All-Star Game? Honoring Ichiro feels like something the game should have done in 2016 or 2017 anyway. He can easily rep the Mariners, who lack any semblance of a true star.

David Ortiz, C.C. Sabathia, and others fall into this category as well, though admittedly only Ortiz carries that Ichiro cache. In any case, make this All-Star Game like the Masters- you can keep coming back if you’ve got that green jacket in your closet. I’m not saying they can fill two lineup cards this way, but I am saying that I would watch every second of it if just Ichiro or Ortiz suited up one more time.

Tweak Selection Process

Lastly, who would even play in such an All-Star Game?

Obvious answers include compressing the usual three months of fan voting to just three weeks or just giving 2019 MLB ASG players a second shot. Why not borrow selection strategies from other leagues though instead?

Let’s make Mike Trout and Christian Yelich captains, and let them pick their team like in the NBA. Or let the votes of peers and coaches matter to a much greater extent, like in the NFL. Maybe they play on the ice, like in the NHL. That last one was a joke, but it would be one of the most-watched sporting events ever.

More importantly, though, this would seem like a great one year trial of junking the rule that every team needs a representative. While I actually like the rule, it would be interesting to see how potent a lineup a manager could make without mandatory Orioles and Tigers.

Those are just a few ways to  produce the most memorable 2020 MLB All-Star Game since that infamous tie in 2002. Now, all we need is a season.