(07-04-2011, 11:48 PM)thelegendjerryrice Wrote: + 1
It was not like this back in the day. You had a bad year you didn't get voted to play.
Today it's all about your NAME. Not what you do on the field.
Back in the day????
Cincinnati Reds voting controversy
When fan voting to determine the game's starters was completed, seven Cincinnati Reds players (Ed Bailey, Johnny Temple, Roy McMillan, Don Hoak, Frank Robinson, Gus Bell and Wally Post) had been elected to start in the All-Star Game. The only non-Red elected to start for the National League was St. Louis Cardinal first baseman Stan Musial. While the Reds were known to be a great offensive team with many outstanding position players, most baseball observers agreed that they did not deserve seven starters in the All-Star Game. An investigation showed that over half of the ballots cast came from Cincinnati. The Cincinnati Enquirer had printed up pre-marked ballots and distributed them with the Sunday newspaper to make it easy for Reds fans to vote often. There were even stories of bars in Cincinnati not serving alcohol to customers until they filled out a ballot.
Commissioner Ford Frick decided to appoint Willie Mays of the New York Giants and Hank Aaron of the Milwaukee Braves to substitute for Reds players Gus Bell and Wally Post. In addition, Frick decided to strip the fans of their voting rights. Managers, players, and coaches picked the entire team until 1970, when the vote again returned to the fans.