All of the talk, debate and bickering of the past week regarding the All-Star roster has gotten a bit annoying on all fronts.

In the end, Major League Baseball is the only place a finger should be pointed. Commissioner Bud Selig and his cronies are trying to have their cake and eat it too.

For the tenth straight season the league that wins the Midsummer Classic will gain home-field advantage for the World Series.  I’ve never been a fan of the overreaction by the Commish after he got booed in his hometown when the 2002 game was called after 11 innings due to a tie. But if you’re going to place such magnitude on the game then perhaps you should take fans being able to vote 25 times per day, per email account.

MLB is driving millions of page views to its website, MLB.com, not only for the initial roster, but the last player in vote as well. They are selling out and it’s not going to change.

If that’s the case then the league needs to remove the “now it counts” tagline and go back to the good old game that the fans always enjoyed that was nothing more than a glorified exhibition.

I for one miss the old days when I had to go to the ballpark to vote. I would take an inning or two and really ponder my decision before turning my ballot back to the usher. Even back then teams stuffed the ballot box, but it was less susceptible to corruption than the internet opens things up to today.

It’s funny I found this 1988 commercial that made a big deal that you could vote through a USA Today promotion anywhere you bought Budweiser…

MLB mlb all-star game, bud selig, fan ballot, 1988 budweiser commercial

It's hard to believe it's already been 10 years since this happpened...

The 2002 game at Miller Park in Milwaukee delivered a forgettable conclusion - a 7-7 tie after 11 innings - what happened next echoes to this day.

A beleaguered Commissioner Bud Selig, sitting in his home stadium, no less, had no choice but to call the game a draw after each team had run out of pitchers. Fans chanted "Let them play!" but to no avail.

Selig's solution? An interesting twist for the following season: dangling the carrot of home-field advantage in the World Series to the winning team. That, in turn, brought roster expansion so managers would have enough pitchers in case of extra innings.

But the 2002 game itself remains a controversial subject.

--Bob McManaman/The Arizona Republic

MLB flashback, sports flashback, mlb all-star game, 2002 all-star game, tie, bud selig

The All-Star rosters were announced by Major League Baseball on Sunday. Here are few notes of interest:

REDS - Closer Francisco Cordero gets the nod and is the team's lone representative. The right-hander will be making his third trip to the mid-summer classic. He made it in 2004 as a Texas Ranger and then again while playing for the Brewers in 2007. There was speculation that Johnny Cueto would be the choice from the team, but a deep pool of starters and Cordero's solid numbers (20 of 21 save conversions) made the veteran the pick.

PUJOLS TO VOTE GETTER - The NL MVP is well on his way to another amazing year, leading the majors with 31 homers and 82 RBIs. He collected 5,397,374 votes to finish with the second-highest total in history, trailing only Ken Griffey Jr.'s six million votes in 1994. Pujols has made the NL team eight times in nine seasons and will be making his sixth start.

WAKEFIELD FINALLY GETS NOD - Starter Tim Wakefield made his first All-Star roster in his 17th season, one of a major league-high six Red Sox headed to Busch Stadium for the July 14 game. The 42-year-old right-hander is tied for the big league lead with 10 wins.

LEFT OUT - Dodgers outfielder Manny Ramirez and Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez, both 12-time All-Stars, weren't expected to make the rosters, but their absence was compelling nonetheless. Ramirez was suspended for the first 50 games of the season for violating MLB's drug policy and A-Rod missed time following hip surgery after admitting in spring training to using steroids when he played for the Rangers.

FINAL VOTE - The 2009 All-Star Game Sprint Final Vote on MLB.com will determine the 33rd N.L. roster spot, a competition that will feature shortstop Cristian Guzman of the Nationals, outfielder Matt Kemp of the Dodgers, third baseman Mark Reynolds of the D-backs, third baseman Pablo Sandoval of the Giants and outfielder Shane Victorino of the Phillies. Fans can now begin voting to select the final player for each League's 33-man roster via the 2009 All-Star Game Sprint Final Vote on MLB.com, casting their votes from a list of five players from each League over a four-day period. In the A.L. third baseman Chone Figgins of the Angels, third baseman Brandon Inge of the Tigers, second baseman Ian Kinsler of the Rangers, outfielder Adam Lind of the Blue Jays, and first baseman Carlos Peña of the Rays will be competing for the final spot.

COMPLETE ALL-STAR ROSTERS

MLB mlb all-star game, reds, francisco cordero, cardinals, albert pujols, red sox, tim wakefield, dodgers, yankees, manny ramirez, alex rodriguez

REDS: WIRE TO WIRE -   We recap June and get ready for July as well as talk minor league stuff w/Pete Muehlenkamp

The All-Star voting comes to an end today and it is apparent that no Red will be voted in by the fans and rightfully so.

With every team having to represented someone from the team will have to go. Reds' beat writer Hal McCoy of the Dayton Daily News posed the very question on his blog today.

There is no doubt that Joey Votto would be a hands down pick had he not missed the better part of a month. Votto is hitting .354 and has clubbed 9 HR's and 38 RBI's in just 158 at bats. If he had enough at bats to qualify, Votto would be leading the NL in batting (Hanley Ramirez current leader with .348 average).

While the argument can be made that Brandon Phillips is the team's most valuable player, his .269 batting average drags down the fact that he has hit 11 HR's and driven in 52 runs. His gold-glove caliber defense shouldn't be overlooked, but it will.

McCoy suggests there are only two candidates to consider - starter Johnny Cueto and closer Francisco Cordero.

Cordero is currently tied for fourth in the NL with 19 saves, three behind league-leader Heath Bell. He has converted 19 of his 20 save opportunites and posted a 1.91 ERA.

Cueto is 8-4 with a 2.69 ERA. There are so many starter options to consider though.

Manager Dusty Baker thinks the young hurler is deserving.

“I haven’t thought about it. But Cueto’s ERA is indicative of being an All-Star," Baker said. "But there are a lot of good pitchers in our league.”

MLB reds, mlb all-star game, johnny cueto, francisco cordero, joey votto, brandon phillips