The MLB's 'One All-Star Per Team' Rule Needs To Be Thrown Out As Soon As Possible

Here's all you need to know about the MLB All-Star game in 2019. Miami Marlins starter Sandy Alcantara, a player with a 4-7 record and a 3.86 ERA, is going to the festivities in Cleveland.

Through the MLB's 'one All-Star per team' mandate, some head-scratching reserve selections were made to accommodate that provision. While Alcantara is the most egregious example, Toronto's Marcus Stroman, St. Louis' Paul DeJong and Baltimore's John Means stood out as some unusual All-Stars.

While Caleb Smith was going to be an All-Star on merit alone, his injury forced the league to slide Alcantara in the game.

This can't continue if the league truly cares about the quality of the game.

Alcantara isn't the first player with subpar stats to make the All-Star game, as Mark Redman represented the Kansas City Royals with a 5.71 ERA in 2006, Cesar Izturis made the cut in 2005 after hitting .275 with one homer, and Jason Castro was the lone selection on those 110 loss Astros teams, but he's still emblematic of the problem with this system.

The MLB is still trying to maintain the illusion that their game is more competitive than any other. If that's the case, fine. If that's the narrative you want to push, let the 32 best statistical performers make the cut, regardless of team.

The fact that Manny Machado and Gleyber Torres are siting at home while Alcantara and Means get to bask in All-Star glory is borderline criminal. While Alcantara should be congratulated for his All-Star performance, even he has to know that it loses a little bit of luster when it is forced for the sake of being fair.