I usually detest the spectacles called all-star games. When I was a kid, I loved seeing all the stars in a game, but by the time I reached 20, the thrill had gone. And as the years passed, the spectacle part became especially distasteful as:
- mediocre players from bad teams were added to the all-star teams to fulfil the quota that there must be a player from each team
- managers selected far too many players from their own teams (e.g. Cito Gaston!)
- the game's outcome determined home-field advantage for the World Series.
- the size of the rosters grew so that the teams are far too large.
For some odd reason I decided to watch the game last night. If the temperatures had been lower here in London, Ontario, I'd have gone to watch the local team play instead. Also I think that because the Blue Jays had four players there, that created a bit more interest for me.
I'm sort of glad I did. It was a well-pitched, well-played game. It helped that we didn't watch much/any? of the pre-game hoopla. It also helped that although the Blue Jay batters made outs all the time, the Blue Jay pitchers did well in their brief appearances. It helped, too that the Tigers players generally played well.
But overall I actually enjoyed the game. And that surprised me.