My friend Murray disagrees with my Most-Stars screed. He writes:

Initial reaction: I can't believe you're hammering the fans. The fans' team is acceptable, if not perfect. Once you open the voting to the internet and campaign in Japan, what do you expect to happen? Whatever. But Jesus, Mike, Dusty took Kerry Wood and Russ Ortiz and left Dontrelle Willis and said it was because he hadn't seen Willis pitch this season (hey, Dusty, get cable!). He took Mike Williams. The players think Carl Everett and Shawn Chacon belongs on the All-Star team.
So the fans elected Troy Glaus and Marcus Giles? Big deal. It's no crime that Corie Koskie and Jose Vidro didn't get elected to the All-Star Game. Matsui is the best Japanese player of the last 25 years. Did you think Japanese voters were going to conclude that they should vote for Vernon Wells--whose career consists of one good half season and one half-good season--instead of Godzilla? It's a crime when real stars don't make it. It's a crime that Brian Giles isn't going to make it. It's a crime that Jason Giambi isn't going to make it. It's a crime that Pedro and Mike Mussina aren't going to be there. That's the real damage. And because the managers think it's their job to make everybody happy rather than win the game, they're going to play these schmucks.

I wrote back:

I didn't mean to take the fans to task. They did do a poor job, but I just meant the system is screwed up and it's a "for the want of a nail" thing that starts with the fans' vote. They pick Ichiro and ignore Frank Thomas. That's fine if we have 40-man rosters to cover their mistakes, but that's impractical. So why not take it away from the fans?

I'm a rabid fan, and I yet didn't even vote this year. I considered it at the Yankees game but thought I was not knowledgeable enough at that point. And then apathy set in. The cause was the fact that my one well-considered vote would be lost in a sea of face-painted stadium stack voters and online hackers submitting Pat Paulson for starting DH. If the reason we still keep the fan vote is to have a vote based on popular opinion, then well, to quote Austin Powers, that plane has sailed. It's like having Ross Youngs in the Hall of Fame and leaving Ron Santo off, which is something we both know could never happen except in bizaroo world.

I was trying to say that the Gileses and the Aubrey Huffs are the ones that get screwed because a warm body is taken from the poorer teams, not necessarily the best player. Giles has languished in Pittsburgh and though he is arguably the second-best player in the NL over the last 5-6 years, he has only gone to two All-Star games!?! In 5-1/2 seasons as the Pirates closer Mike Williams has had an ERA under 3.00 once and he will be going to his second All-Star game next week. It's ludicrous. Williams is the Johnny Bravo of the All-Star team: he fits the suit--that's it.

I did overlook Willis since he did not qualify for the ERA title. He should be on the team. Apparently, he was left off the "final vote" because only position players qualify. Though I do not see why it should be that way.

I like Matsui but there's no way he should be going to the All-Star game, let alone start, with the talent being left off the roster. If the Japanese fans love him so much, vote him onto the Japanese All-Star team.

Oh, and the list I had didn't delineate the players selections from the Scioscia/Baker ones. So I guess I tended to lump them together and blame the managers.

I also received an email from your friendly, neighborhood MLB extolling the virtues of the final vote. "Cast your All-Star Final Vote for the 32nd man" it advised. Upon closer inspection, I found that I have the final say as to who will be the last man on each roster. That was as promising as the dozen or so times that I won the Publishers' Clearing House Sweepstakes, as long as my name was the same as the winner's. Heck, I would change my name for that much money, but it didn't work.

Anyway, here's the email:

etopps 2003 All-Star Final Vote -- You have the final say!
************************************************************

This season's All-Star Game online voting soared to new
heights with more than 4.6 million ballots cast and over
60 million total votes tallied. You and millions of other
fans made your selections carefully and voted often.

Now, you can do it again.

The 2003 MLB All-Star rosters are nearly complete. There
are just 2 final spots left. Who didn't make the team that
should have?

YOU determine the final two players to go to Chicago for the
74th Midsummer Classic, with the etopps All-Star Final Vote.

Voting ends on Wednesday, July 9th at 6 p.m. ET.
>> YOU GET THE FINAL VOTE. Vote for the 32nd player on each team.

>> VOTE NOW! >>

AL Nominees Eric Byrnes -- Outfield, Oakland Athletics Jason Giambi -- First Base, New York Yankees Bengie Molina -- Catcher, Anaheim Angels Frank Thomas -- First Base, Chicago White Sox Jason Varitek -- Catcher, Boston Red Sox

NL Nominees Orlando Cabrera -- Shortstop, Montreal Expos Luis Castillo -- Second Base, Florida Marlins Geoff Jenkins -- Outfield, Milwaukee Brewers Corey Patterson -- Outfield, Chicago Cubs Benito Santiago -- Catcher, San Francisco Giants

>> VOTE NOW! >>

See who has already made the 2003 All-Star team. >> AL Roster: >> NL Roster:

Sheez, do you think they want me to vote for the "Final Vote"? DO IT TODAY!!!!!!!!!

Anyway, Benjie Molina? Luis Castillo? Is that the fans are clamoring for in their final selection? Thomas and Giambi: OK. Why not Pedro, Willis, Mussina, and Clemens? OK, so they don't want fans to vote on any pitchers because not even Joe Morgan can figure out those tricky ERAs. It takes a real baseball scientist like Dusty Baker to figure out Mike Williams is superior to Dontrelle Willis. So why no Sammy, Thome, Walker or at least Bill Mueller and Milton Bradley (he has name recognition)? Here is where the ten choices fall in the major-league OPS standings:

  8 Frank Thomas, Chi WS
 17 Jason Giambi, NYY
 22 Jason Varitek, Bos 
 32 Eric Byrnes, Oak
 37 Geoff Jenkins, Milw
 68 Corey Patterson, Chi C
 82 Orlando Cabrera, Mon
 96 Benito Santiago, SF
102 Luis Castillo, Fla
112 Bengie Molina, Ana

The AL selections are good besides Molina, but you would have done just as well to pick names out of a hat to get the NL Almost-Stars. But then again the majors would stop living the dream if they got the "Final Vote" Nearly-Stars right.