Future Hall of Famer Cal Ripken Jr. disagrees with the decision reached by baseball Commissioner Bud Selig three years ago to award home-field advantage in the World Series to the winner of the annual All-Star Game.
“I am not a big fan of that,” Ripken said Monday during a break in the All-Star Game festivities in Detroit. “I think there was a little bit of an overreaction to the [7-7, 11-inning] tie in Milwaukee [in 2002]. As part of that reaction, you want to say, `Let’s make [the All-Star Game] meaningful.’
“But I think baseball has always been about the real game, not an exhibition game. I think that maybe all that needed to be said was: `Folks, we let it become a little bit lax, and we let it become a little bit more of an exhibition game than we liked. And that will never, ever happen again.’ I think that would have done it.”
Ripken is in Detroit this week as part of the Ameriquest Mortgage Company promotion that allows a fan to sit with Ripken and former pitcher Jack Morris during the All-Star Game at Comerica Park.
“I played in the All-Star Game 19 times and I always had a nice perspective from the dugout,” Ripken said. “This will be a different perspective for me, watching the game next to a fan. And I think it will be a cool one because the winner (Robert White) is going to sit between me and Jack.
“The fan will get a pitcher’s perspective and a hitter’s perspective. Jack and I like to get on each other’s nerves. It ought to be an interesting interpretation of the game.”
Sights seen
The Outdoor Life Network created an eight-foot thank you card to Lance Armstrong that has been traveling around the country since the network began its live coverage of the Tour de France on July 2. The card was unveiled in New York on June 30 by Lance’s mother, Linda Armstrong, and was in Chicago last weekend for the 22-mile Chicago L.A.T.E. bike ride. Numerous Armstrong supporters from Chicago inked their best wishes on the card.
Armstrong is attempting to win a record seventh straight Tour de France.
Overheard
Frank Thomas has done his best to shed the label of a selfish, introspective player. He continues to keep a low profile during the off-season, spending most of his time in Nevada.
“It just gives me that freedom to get away and live a normal life,” he said. “That’s what I have done over the last few years. For 13 years I lived here in Chicago full time and never got to get away from baseball. I got to the point of my career where I have to get away from Chicago to have some time to myself and my family.” …
Sox general manager Ken Williams recalled seeing a newspaper poll a few years ago when the Sox acquired pitcher David Wells. “I remember that 80 percent of the fans thought that was a good move at the time,” Williams said. But after Wells was injured and failed to match his previous level of production, fans reacted differently to a poll asking about the acquisition. “Then 50 percent of the people polled said they knew it was a bad deal from the beginning,” Williams said with a chuckle.
Word on the street
The lineup of seventh-inning stretch singers at Wrigley Field this weekend: Thursday, former Cub Bill Buckner; Friday, Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban; Saturday, Northwestern’s Rose Bowl football team, represented by Pat Fitzgerald, Steve Schnur, Darnell Autry and D’Wayne Bates; and Sunday, actor Vince Vaughn. …
David Bailey, a former standout at Loyola, tallied 16 points in a pair of games for the Bulls at the Vegas Summer League over the weekend. The 5-foot-8-inch guard notched seven points, three assists and a pair of steals in an 89-85 loss to the Orlando Magic on Friday, then tallied nine points in only 12 minutes in a 72-71 victory over the Sacramento Kings on Sunday. Bailey finished his career ranked third on the Loyola career scoring list with 1,933 points. …
Left-handed pitcher Tim Byrdak, a fifth-round draft choice of the Kansas City Royals in 1994 out of South Suburban College, has endured an arduous career journey that has included recovering from elbow surgery, playing in the Independent Leagues with Joliet and Gary, and working assorted night jobs to provide for his family. He was called up from Baltimore’s minor-league system recently, and his wife and kids watched him take the mound for the Orioles at Camden Yards. Byrdak, 31, recorded his first save in six years against the Red Sox last week.
Local attractions
Northern Illinois plays host to the 10th annual Bob Brigham Golf Classic on July 29, at the St. Andrews Golf and Country Club in West Chicago. NIU head football coach Joe Novak, plus former Huskies coaches Pat Culpepper, Jerry Ippoliti and Bill Mallory will be in attendance. Breakfast and registration start at 8:30 a.m., followed by a four-man scramble format and dinner. Call 815-753-5510. … Members of the Real Madrid soccer team will attend the Cubs-Pirates game Friday at Wrigley Field.
The last word
Ripken, talking about the White Sox and Orioles possibly meeting in the American League playoffs this year:
“I am rooting for both teams. I would like to see the White Sox return, maybe for personal reasons. Because it holds a part in my life that we won the World Series (against the Phillies in 1983) and got there by beating the White Sox and a rivalry developed. It would be cool to see history kind of repeat itself that way.”
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fmitchell@tribune.com
