The '99 MLB All-Star Game "will be awarded to Boston,
sources said, as the result of an agreement struck between"
Red Sox CEO John Harrington and Acting Commissioner Bud
Selig, according to Gordon Edes of the BOSTON GLOBE. An
official announcement is expected within a week. The
Brewers "had been promised" the game, but since Miller Park
will not be completed in time, Selig "was granted permission
by his fellow owners to try to work out a deal with another
club." The Red Sox "had been promised that they would host
the game in the year 2001, the 100th anniversary of the
franchise." But Harrington and Selig agreed to the switch
last week. The Red Sox "would not confirm" that an
agreement had been reached (BOSTON GLOBE, 7/13).
TALKING 'BOUT MLB REALIGNMENT: In his Sunday column,
the N.Y. TIMES' Murray Chass wrote, "Initial reaction to a
radical realignment plan that the realignment committee
discussed last week has been mixed, with regard to both its
desirability and its chances for adoption" (N.Y. TIMES,
7/13). Also in N.Y., Dave Anderson: "The proposed
realignment makes so much sense that this could be its
downfall when the club owners vote" (N.Y. TIMES, 7/13). In
Boston, Peter Gammons: [O]wners clearly have decided that
rivalries are important" (BOSTON GLOBE, 7/13). Giants CEO
Peter Magowan believes that there will be "less resistance
to realignment by owners because of the early success of
interleague play" (SACRAMENTO BEE, 7/13). Rangers President
Tom Schieffer, on the latest proposal: "I think there's a
real chance that this is going to happen" (FT. WORTH STAR-
TELEGRAM, 7/12). ESPN's Bill Conlin noted that 75% of MLB
owners have to agree on realignment: "I just don't think
with all the rivalries they can get it done." But ESPN's
Mitch Albom called geography "overrated" in MLB's
realignment proposals: "You get into rivalries with teams
because you're challenging against them for the top, not
because you can drive to them. I think geography is way
overrated when it comes to fans" ("SportsCenter," 7/13).
OR HAVE REAL CELEBRITIES? In Dallas, Ken Daley wrote
that one way MLB could "liven" up the All-Star festivities
is to adopt a "seven-inning Rookie All-Star Game, in lieu of
the lame celebrity softball contest" (DALLAS MORNING NEWS,
7/13)....J.D. Drew, the No. 2 pick in the June MLB Draft,
signed with the Northern League's St. Paul Saints. The
Phillies, who drafted Drew, retain his rights until two
weeks before next year's draft (PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER,
7/12). Drew's agent, Scott Boras, could challenge MLB rules
to make his client a free agent next June or have the
Phillies trade him to a team willing to pay the financial
package he seeks (Peter Gammons, BOSTON GLOBE, 7/13).
