Part One; Is Tim Wakefield an All-Star?
Yes. Wakefield is 11-3 with a 4.31 ERA. Okay, so say it was… Barry Zito in the NL or Matt Garza in the AL… that had these numbers–would he have been elected to the game? No, probably not.
So, yes there is an entire body of work over Wakefield’s career that is in the back of Manager Joe Madden’s mind when picking Wake. Should that be the case? That is part of the rules of how the All-Star team is assembled–the manager gets to make picks that he deems worthy.
Much the same is the way each team must be represented. Does Baltimore’s Adam Jones just scream, All-Star! No but he is the one of the more deserving players on that team thus he was invited.
Part Duece; Should Madden have pitched Wakefield?
No. Many of those people who are supporters of the Wakefield All-Star movement were upset by Wake not being able to get on the field. Well, they shouldn’t be mad and neither should Time (I’m sure he isn’t).
It comes down to the fact that the AL catchers would have had a rough time catching that knuckleball. Sure they could have probably caught it with some effectiveness but at the same time they do not want to be embarrassed on national television.
In a close game, a game that counts now in case you haven’t heard, the reward just wasn’t worth this risk.
Congrats Wakefield.
