MLB’s All-Star embarrassment will have Reds fans calling foul

Elly De La Cruz did not make it to Phase 2 of the MLB All-Star ballot. The Cincinnati Reds superstar came in behind New York Mets star shortstop Francisco Lindor and Mookie Betts of the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Not only did Lindor and Betts receive more votes than De La Cruz; the race wasn't even close. Lindor finished Phase 1 of the fan voting with 2,296,443 votes and Betts was hot on his heels with 2,094,921 votes. De La Cruz's 1,114,725 votes weren't even half of what Lindor received, and barely pushed him past Philadelphia Phillies shortstop Trea Turner (993,862 votes).

This is the latest example of why MLB fans shouldn't be allowed to vote on the All-Star participants. Though it's quite possible that De La Cruz will make the NL squad as a bench player, his numbers are miles better than Betts', and the Reds' infielder even gives Lindor a run for his money in most categories. De La Cruz is ahead of both Lindor and Betts in hits, doubles, home runs, RBI, stolen bases, batting average, on-base percentage, slugging, and OPS.

Reds shortstop Elly De La Cruz snubbed in All-Star voting & shows why fans shouldn't participate

Some will argue that the All-Star Game is just a popularity contest anyway. Seeing as how the event is for the fans, shouldn't they have a say so in who goes to the Midsummer Classic? There's certainly merit to that argument, but it can't be overlooked that All-Star appearances are used a measuring stick for a player's greatness, and even Hall of Fame candidacy. Should fans really be voting for something that can have that type of impact on a player's long-term legacy?

Furthermore, this system favors the large-market teams. It always has, and it always will. Looking at the shortstop position itslef, you see De La Cruz, Lindor, Betts, Turner, and Dansby Swanson among the top-5. Outside of De La Cruz, every shortstop comes from a big-market franchise. And the drop off in voting from Swanson (800,022) to Geraldo Perdomo (294,413) shows a seismic gap between No. 5 and No. 6 despite the on-field numbers favoring the Arizona Diamondbacks' infielder.

Outside of the D-backs Ketel Marte and Corbin Carroll, every other names among the NL All-Star finalists come from big-markets. Meanwhile, deserving players like De La Cruz, James Wood (Washington Nationals), Brendan Donovan (St. Louis Cardinals), and Hunter Goodman (Colorado Rockies) are left out of Phase 2 of the voting process.

De La Cruz, Wood, Donovan, and Goodman are all deserving of a spot in the All-Star Game, and because MLB rules require every team to have at least one representative, they'll secure one.

But the fan vote is making a mockery of the All-Star selection process. Major League Baseball finally scrapped the ill-fated idea of creating All-Star jerseys for players every year and will let them represent their own teams this year. It's time for Rob Manfred to do one better and get rid of the fan vote.

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