When you stroll into the bar this morning, don't forget to pick up a party hat and one of those plastic horns. I asked Dave and Kevin to bring in some cupcakes.
And we're having a two-for-one special on Irish Coffee, the super caffeine version. We all need to stay awake on this important day.
Happy Baseball Solstice, everyone! This Monday we are celebrating the longest day in the baseball-writing year.
The day before the All-Star Game is brutal for baseball writers, who normally don't seek your compassion. We're at the host hotel by 9 a.m. the next morning for credentials, and the managers' interviews usually start an hour or two later.
The most interesting -- and hectic -- part is the players' interviews, which occur around noon to 2 p.m. or so. You get an hour with the AL and NL separately. All the players are there (well, Manny Ramirez often isn't) and they sit at separate tables with big placards.
When the doors open, the media wolves converge. It's baseball's version of Super Bowl Media Day (I've done both and the baseball one is about 1/50th the nightmare that the Super Bowl is). The players usually have to field some dumb questions, which can provide for some great one-liners. It's also interesting to see who attracts the most media.
Obviously, the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox are always bombarded, but many of us seek out the less-heralded quote machines and spend some time with them. In the past, Torii Hunter and Carl Crawford lit it up for the national media.
George Sherrill, the Orioles' lone representative, said he is looking forward to everything about the All-Star Game. And that includes the media free-for-all. He is a great story – former non-drafted independent league player turned big league closer and now All-Star – so it'll be interesting to see how many writers come to him during the hour.
After both leagues are done, writers need to complete their stories and file them before or shortly after heading to Yankee Stadium for the Home Run Derby, which traditionally doesn't end until close to midnight. We have to file that story before we're done our 15-hour-plus day.
I know, you guys are weeping for my sad, boo-hoo story. But here's the deal: What makes Baseball Solstice so frustrating for us is our belief that most of you guys, our loyal readers, couldn't care less about the Home Run Derby. I know I don't. But maybe I am wrong.
And that brings us to today's topic (Took me long enough to get to it, but, hey, I wrote this on the train. I had some extra time). Does the Home Run Derby interest you?
I defended the continuation of interleague play, but I wish the Derby would just go away. And I don't even have to listen to Chris Berman. I just think it has become a non-event, but since it has its fanfare, we lemmings of the press cover it.
Most players don't even like participating in it anymore. It has two purposes: More commercial advertising for MLB. And a good bonding experience for the players, who bring their camcorders and film it from the field. That aspect is cool, the rest is not.
So I say scrap it, MLB. Or do something fresh.
Daily Think Special: Should Major League Baseball do away with the Home Run Derby? If not, what changes could be made to make it more interesting? Or at least less painful?
