An All Star Injustice

We all know the joke suspensions are for pitchers in Major League Baseball. Generally it's a five game suspension which is usually appealed and then dropped immediately following the pitchers next start. Thus he doesn't really miss a game, just gets an extra days rest.

Its an injustice when a pitcher really misses no time when a position player misses five games for similar rules violations. If Major League Baseball wanted to put players on equal ground, starting pitchers would receive 25 game suspensions as opposed to just five.

Today's injustice actually goes beyond this.

Next week in San Francisco, a pitcher who will be in the midst of a five game suspension and who plays for arguably the top team in the National League will dress and be available to try helping his team gain home field advantage in the World Series should they make it that far.

Chris Young will be allowed to help benefit his team while suspended... Ladies and Gentleman, only in baseball could this happen.

Don't get me wrong, while voting nearly 900 times for Boston's Hideki Okajima I cast several hundred votes for Young as well, he was the most deserving of the five National League players. (I also cast several hundred votes for Brandon Webb in a vote trade with a Diamondbacks fan for Okajima votes)

This however was before Young dropped the appeal Thursday. The guy deserves to be an All Star, to be honored as such, but in no way should he be allowed to participate, in fact he should relinquish his spot on the team immediately.

Should he not, manager Tony LaRussa should not use him in the game. No player under suspension should ever be allowed to take part in a game that could benefit his team.