SoCalGuy7
05-29-2009, 12:58 PM
My opinion is No....
And Joe Torre says no also....
But, Frank McCourt would have no problem if manny was voted into the All-star game"
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CHICAGO -- Dodgers manager Joe Torre said he doesn't think suspended outfielder Manny Ramirez should be an All-Star this year, even though fans have him fourth in voting at the position.
"No, I don't, and if you ask Manny, he'd give you the same answer," said Torre. "I understand a lot of it is a popularity contest and you want to give the manager the best players, but to me, the significance of the All-Star Game is to reward players who had a good first half.
"They don't always do that. But I always feel it's great to have young players [given] a chance to make the club. Look at [Evan] Longoria, and rightly so.
"Manny's popularity is why he's gotten votes. Realistically, he didn't have, except for reputation, a right to be an All-Star. It probably isn't the right thing for him this year, from the baseball aspect, I've got to think."
One day earlier, Dodgers chairman Frank McCourt offered a different view on whether he would want Ramirez to play in the All-Star Game.
"I'm sure it would be a great honor," McCourt said. "The fans will make up their own minds."
Ramirez, a 12-time All-Star, is serving a 50-game suspension for violating the Major League Baseball drug policy. His suspension is scheduled to end July 3, and he is eligible to play in the July 14 All-Star Game in St. Louis.
Torre, instead, threw his All-Star support to a pair of infielders who have contributed since Opening Day -- Casey Blake and Orlando Hudson -- and also named a pair of his pitchers.
"My third baseman and second baseman -- those two guys are standouts," Torre said. "[Jonathan] Broxton and [Chad] Billingsley, but with pitchers, they can't take them all."
Try to stay objective......
And Joe Torre says no also....
But, Frank McCourt would have no problem if manny was voted into the All-star game"
------------------
CHICAGO -- Dodgers manager Joe Torre said he doesn't think suspended outfielder Manny Ramirez should be an All-Star this year, even though fans have him fourth in voting at the position.
"No, I don't, and if you ask Manny, he'd give you the same answer," said Torre. "I understand a lot of it is a popularity contest and you want to give the manager the best players, but to me, the significance of the All-Star Game is to reward players who had a good first half.
"They don't always do that. But I always feel it's great to have young players [given] a chance to make the club. Look at [Evan] Longoria, and rightly so.
"Manny's popularity is why he's gotten votes. Realistically, he didn't have, except for reputation, a right to be an All-Star. It probably isn't the right thing for him this year, from the baseball aspect, I've got to think."
One day earlier, Dodgers chairman Frank McCourt offered a different view on whether he would want Ramirez to play in the All-Star Game.
"I'm sure it would be a great honor," McCourt said. "The fans will make up their own minds."
Ramirez, a 12-time All-Star, is serving a 50-game suspension for violating the Major League Baseball drug policy. His suspension is scheduled to end July 3, and he is eligible to play in the July 14 All-Star Game in St. Louis.
Torre, instead, threw his All-Star support to a pair of infielders who have contributed since Opening Day -- Casey Blake and Orlando Hudson -- and also named a pair of his pitchers.
"My third baseman and second baseman -- those two guys are standouts," Torre said. "[Jonathan] Broxton and [Chad] Billingsley, but with pitchers, they can't take them all."
Try to stay objective......