Why I Hate The Taco Bell All-Star Legends and Celebrity Softball Game

It is time to lose the Taco Bell All-Star Legends and Celebrity People Who Occasionally Appear On Television Softball Game.  After watching last night it just made me furious. While there were some “Legends” the celebrity portion leaves much to be desired. When James Denton is the biggest star then you have some problems. 1.

 1. Apparently James Denton is on Desperate Housewives. I have never seen it but he is always at this game and is a staple. 

I actually went to it last year when the game was in Anaheim. It was after the Futures game and me and my buddy wanted to stick around. He is a big Ozzie Smith fan and he would be playing so it was enjoyable. Ricky Henderson hit some underhanded softballs for a long ride but that is about where the excitement ended. I remember the worst thing about being in the stands was that was no announcer or even graphics on the jumbo-tron to tell us who these “celebrities” were. I guess that’s why you watch it on television.

So after Robinson Cano won the Home Run Derby Last night ESPN showed the 2011 Taco Bell All-Star Legends and Celebrity Softball Game and guess what? They didn’t have announcers either. Just James Denton and Erin Andrews were mic’d up and then attempted to do play by play while playing the game. Needless to say it was more aggravating to watch than a Cubs game.  

I grew up in the 80’s and 90’s. Back then 2. MTV would have these Legends/Celeb games called “Rock n’Jock” and they were maybe the best things going in my childhood. I have been both a baseball and pop culture enthusiast my entire life and these games were like a wet dream come true. I am not sure if it was because it was MTV heyday or if celeb’s egos were not as inflated as now but the “Celebs” at these games were the real deal. Rarely was there a “Who the F--- is this chump?” moment. Celebs like George Clooney, Keanu Reaves, and Kevin Costner were all staples in these games. Last night someone named Tim DeKay from some show called “White Collar” took some hacks. Who? And since there was no announcers calling the game the only way I knew this was a graphic that came on the screen that I had to pause cause he swung at the first pitch and it was out before I could read who the hell he was. 

 2. You know you are old when you refer to the 90's as "Back then"

Now people may say, “Hey, you are older and this game is supposed to appeal to the younger baseball fan.” I would say back: unless “White Collar” is a Disney channel show I don’t think anyone in any demographic knows or cares who Tim DeKay is besides maybe his mother. I just don’t think anyone cares about this game in general. Obviously ESPN didn’t. They couldn’t find or pay one of their blowhard announcers to schmooze with these so-called celebrities and legends for an hour or so then why would any person want to watch it?

So here is the deal. Either make this game like the old Rock N Jock game or get rid of it forever. That’s what the American Baseball/Pop Culture Public wants. We don’t want Jonas brothers, or random TV personalities that are on Access Hollywood every other Thursday. We want Celebrities. If I wanted to watch people I have never heard of play softball I’ll go to the park, and I’ll do my own play-by-play commentary.