MLB has traditionally alternated All-Star Game host cities between leagues, but Cincinnati is lined up for this year and San Diego is set to host next year. New MLB commissioner Rob Manfred thinks now is the perfect time to bring some more changes.
During a Q & A session at ESPN on Thursday, Manfred said that he plans to move into more of a Super Bowl-type bidding process for cities to host the All-Star Game:
“One of the things that I am going to try to do with All-Star Games is — and we’ll make some announcements in the relatively short-term — I am looking to be in more of a competitive-bidding, Super Bowl-awarding-type mode, as opposed to [saying], `You know, I think Chicago is a good idea,'” he replied.
Manfred didn’t go into the specifics about how the bidding process would work, but Jayson Stark of ESPN.com hears from a source that they’ll consider the “merits of the city and ballpark, and which team and city can produce the best ‘All-Star experience.'” That’s all well and good, but it’s going to be a little complicated in the short-term. Teams like the Nationals and Marlins built new ballparks in recent years with the understanding that they would get an All-Star Game in the near future, so it’s believed that MLB will follow through on those promises.
