Red Sox Twitter Can't Believe Chris Sale Is Starting The All-Star Game Over Steven Wright
By Matt Dolloff, CBS Boston
BOSTON (CBS) -- There's no doubt that Steven Wright has had an incredible first half of the season. His 10 wins and league-leading 2.68 ERA has surpassed all possible expectations.
But there's a reason Wright exceeded those expectations so spectacularly: he's not a true star player.
Yes, he's having an All-Star season and is much deserving of a spot on the American League roster - and if AL manager Ned Yost had selected him to start in the game, that would have been deserved as well. But Yost passed Wright over for White Sox ace Chris Sale to start the game instead, and Red Sox TwitterTM was none too pleased.
In fact, they were in disbelief.
Look, it's understandable to feel that Wright should have started in the All-Star Game. It's worse to think that he might not even pitch, considering that Yost has hinted at four other pitchers (Corey Kluber, Cole Hamels, Aaron Sanchez, Jose Quintana) filling out the first five innings over Wright. But to be this incredulous about it is to not only overrate your own player but miss the point of the All-Star Game entirely.
People don't go to All-Star Games to see Steven Wright play. They don't turn on the TV to see the overachievers who got their much-deserved recognition for having a career year, which Wright is getting simply by being there. No one outside of their respective teams' markets really cares about seeing the Fernando Rodneys, Ben Zobrists, or Wrights of the world. Great stories, but not the reason MLB puts the All-Star Game on TV.
Sale, who by the way leads the league with 14 wins and is third in strikeouts with 123, is a pitcher who puts butts in the seats and eyeballs on the TV screen ... Wright is not.
Also, there's the whole "facing an entire lineup of All-Stars" thing, and home field in the World Series is on the line. No rational, knowledgeable fan would consider Wright a better option than Sale, Kluber, or Hamels to face the National League lineup the first time through the order. No one should really be clamoring for that much-anticipated Kris Bryant - Steven Wright showdown.
As fun as it will be to see Wright pitch in the game - I believe Yost will find a way to get him in there - I'm not going to get all bent out of shape just because he chose a clearly better player to start the game over him. Giving Wright the starting nod would have been awesome to see and a nice cherry on top of an improbably amazing season, but it's not outrageous that it didn't happen. For a guy like Wright, simply seeing him in an All-Star uniform ought to be good enough.
Matt Dolloff is a writer for CBSBostonSports.com. His opinions do not necessarily reflect that of CBS or 98.5 The Sports Hub. Have a news tip or comment for Matt? Follow him on Twitter @mattdolloff and email him at mdolloff@985thesportshub.com.
