Ian Miller
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The 2022 MLB All-Star game at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles is rapidly approaching, with starters for the July 19th event announced on Friday.
The fans voted in current MLB superstars like Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Manny Machado and Mookie Betts, but the commissioner’s office added several long time stars to each league’s roster.
Albert Pujols, back in St. Louis to close out a legendary Hall of Fame career, will be heading to LA, as will Tigers DH and former Triple Crown winner Miguel Cabrera.
MLB confirmed that both were added as an extra 33rd player for each team as “legacy picks” to honor their past achievements without taking a roster spot away from a current star.
This marks Pujols’ 11th All-Star selection, and the 12th for Cabrera.
Both players unquestionably deserve to be celebrated during the league’s premier marketing opportunity. They’ve each had remarkable careers with the combination of tremendous success and incredible longevity that’s become increasingly rare.
While both are long past their prime, a competitively meaningless exhibition game is the perfect time to acknowledge their career achievements.
Baseball has always honored its past and celebrated its iconic players, and combining the young exciting talents of the future with legends at the end of their career is a perfect format for the All-Star game.
Beyond MLB recognizing their careers, the national fan base will also have an opportunity to send Pujols and Cabrera off into retirement.
While there have been previous legacy picks at the All-Star game, lets hope this becomes a consistent part of the Midsummer Classic.
Follow Ian Miller on Twitter: @ianmSC
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MLB Commish did something right, for a change.
I have to be honest, this is the first year in a long time I cannot get interested at all in the MLB season. There’s no interesting storylines to me personally, and no incredibly exciting player who’s a must see right now. Ohtani was the show last year, but he’s not playing at that level this year…and the team around him is terrible. NY is happy I guess, but I’d hope so with a $430 million payroll between their two teams.
It’s an uninspiring season, and this is coming from a die hard baseball fan who’s watched MLB regularly since 1990. The style of play, rule changes, and players in general are just getting too “vanilla” for me. The league has little personality or showmanship anymore. It’s ironic that with all the amazing talent the game has to offer, the game is getting less interesting.