As WNST.net’s Glenn Clark and Drew Forrester have offered their insight into the scheduling conflict jeopardizing the site of the Ravens’ season-opening game on Sept. 5, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell remained optimistic on Thursday that they would be able to work out a compromise with the Orioles.

Goodell said on the final day of the league meetings in Arizona that he hasn’t spoken to Major League Baseball commissioner Bud Selig this week, but the sides continue to work toward a solution. The commissioner went out of his way to take a soft approach in discussing the Orioles’ position after many have accused the league of bullying Baltimore’s baseball team.

“People are working toward trying to find a solution that will work for everybody,” Goodell said. “We recognize that this wasn’t something that baseball or the Orioles asked for. They’ve been very cooperative in trying
to work out a solution.”

The commissioner once again mentioned the idea of the Orioles playing an afternoon game — shifting their scheduled start time of 7:05 p.m. — that would leave enough time for the Ravens to kick off at M&T Bank Stadium later that evening, but many have suggested the only realistic possibility would be a day-night doubleheader later that weekend since it’s highly unlikely MLB, the players association, and the Chicago White Sox would all approve moving the Thursday game to earlier in the day. Both the Orioles and White Sox finish series in other cities the night before and will likely be arriving in Baltimore well after midnight on the morning of Sept. 5.

The league meetings wrapped up on Wednesday, but it’s clear the NFL wants a resolution sooner rather than later so it can announce the teams involved and the location of its season-opening game televised on NBC. It’s all but certain that the defending Super Bowl champion Ravens will be playing in the game, but whether the contest is played in Baltimore remains up in the air.

“We’re both trying to compromise to say, ‘How can we do this so the fans of Baltimore can have a really special day with an Orioles game in the afternoon and a Ravens celebration at night for their Super Bowl championship?’” Goodell said. “I’m hopeful that that will happen.”

With the NFL congregating in Arizona this week for its annual league meetings, troubling news surfaced Monday morning about the season-opening game presumed to be hosted in Baltimore this September.

As Super Bowl XLVII champions, the Ravens would be in line to host the first game of the 2013 season as has become the tradition in recent NFL seasons, but a scheduling conflict with the Orioles on Sept. 5 is putting that in jeopardy. With the Orioles scheduled to play the Chicago White Sox that night in the opener of a four-game series at Camden Yards, the Ravens have been unable to come to an agreement to move the time of that game and could be faced with the prospects of opening the season on the road.

Via their official Twitter account, the Ravens said a league source labeled Baltimore opening on the road as the “least desirable” possibility, and NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said in a Monday press conference that he’s spoken twice to MLB commissioner Bud Selig in attempts to resolve the issue. The league does not want to move the season-opening game to Wednesday, Sept. 4 due to the Jewish holiday of Rosh Hashanah.

Goodell and the league is proposing that the Orioles play earlier in the day on Thursday and would move the start time for the Ravens to as late as 9 p.m. that evening in hopes of having a successful doubleheader for the city. The commissioner did not present any other day as being an option for the NFL’s season opener, confirming what many Ravens fans fear if a compromise cannot be reached.

“Unfortunately the only option is to take the Ravens on the road,” Goodell said. “We think that’s wrong for Ravens fans.”

Shifting the Orioles’ scheduled Thursday evening game with the White Sox to that afternoon would still create problems due to parking and the possibility of extra innings or a rain delay. The Orioles would also likely object to playing a day game on Thursday after traveling back to Baltimore from a game in Cleveland the previous night.

With the Orioles and White Sox scheduled for a four-game set that weekend, a day-night doubleheader on Friday, Saturday, or Sunday would also be a solution to open that Thursday night for the Ravens.

However, moving the time of the game by more than 30 minutes — let alone scheduling a doubleheader — is subject to approval by Major League Baseball, the players’ union, and the White Sox, according to The Sun.

Regardless of the circumstances or who’s ultimately to blame — there are compelling arguments for all parties involved — this situation needs to be worked out. The city of Baltimore deserves to be showcased in the NFL’s season-opening game, which has become a major event in recent years as a way to celebrate the previous season’s Super Bowl championship team.

Unfortunatley, this isn’t the first time in which the Ravens have found themselves in this kind of a position as the league elected not to schedule the Super Bowl XXXV champions with a Monday night game — the hoopla of the Thursday night opener hadn’t been created yet — to open the 2001 season even though the previous five Super Bowl winners had received the privilege.

In that case, there was no conflict with the Orioles, who were off on the night of Sept. 10, 2001, as the league chose to open the season in a matchup between the Denver Broncos and the New York Giants.

Have you had your feelings hurts?  Have you hit a tough stretch and need to turn your frown upside down?  Your best buddy Bud Selig is ready to give you a great big bear hug and change a rule if he needs to.

While the All-Star game provided insomnia sufferers the best night of sleep since the Yanni music fest it also provided more proof why Bud Selig doesn’t have a clue.

During Monday night’s home run derby the Yankees Robinson Cano was booed continuously by the Kansas City faithful.  Unhappy with Cano’s decision in not choosing Royals all star designated hitter Billy Butler they booed every time the Yankees name was announced and cheered every time Cano recorded an out.  No big deal the home team fans are supposed to react that way.  Baltimore fans nearly 20 years later we still despise Cito Gaston for not putting Mike Mussina in the 1993 All-Star game.  The game was held in our city and in our stadium and this guy from Canada snubs our guy (at the time).  Hell hath no fury like Charm City fans scorn!  Subsequently Gaston was booed ferociously every time he came back to Baltimore.

Similar scenario happened last year when the All-Star game was held in Arizona.  Diamondbacks fans let Prince Fielder know their displeasure when he didn’t choose Justin Upton.  During an interview Tuesday Bud Selig said “We’ll talk about (changing the rules), I felt very badly last night. I felt badly last year for Prince. This was tough.”

The rule that Selig is alluding to is the home run derby rule that allows the captain to pick their own team.  His new rule change would mean that the host team would automatically have a participant in the derby if there is a representative of that team in the game.  Thereby eliminating the controversy caused by Cano’s decision or Fielder from the year before.  Giving the home fans their guy to root for during the hitting exhibition.

On the surface I have no problem with this idea.  He wants to alter a rule for a competition that means absolutely nothing.  Bud if you want to make sure the home team has a guy at the plate that’s cool with me.  If you want the bat boy to take a swing or the mascot to pitch blindfolded go for it.  At the end of the day it means zilch.  It doesn’t affect the standings or decide home field advantage.  Go for it Bud you’ve got my blessing.

What doesn’t make any sense is that while Bud is concerned about Robinson Cano or Prince Fielder getting their feelings hurt, it appears he is happy to offer the same close minded position on the use of video replay.  Selig’s response was that most people don’t want it.  Clearly Bud listens as well to his audience as Justin Bieber obeys speed limits.

Mr. Commissioner I offer to you a crazy idea.  Why not test video replay during an exhibition game?  How about a game where you have the odds in your favor, like the All-Star game?  After all you’ll have the best umpires in the game working the game.  Come to think of it wasn’t Jim Joyce calling first base Tuesday night?  On second thought maybe the odds aren’t stacked in your favor, Bud.  

Adam McCallister WNST audition

Follow me on Twitter: @McCallister_A

Major League Baseball’s All Star Game carries about the same amount of condescension and pity as someone holding a surprise party for themselves.  Its one big MLB love fest, except anyone with a brain turns the game off and is left with animosity…or maybe that’s just me.

It all starts with the voting.  Any bloke with a computer can vote for their favorite players regardless of whether they are deserving or not.  I hate to be “that guy” but the old voting system where you had to actually go to a game to cast one was leagues better.  Not only did it draw in more fans, but it also ensured that at least the fans who were voting cared enough about the game that they actually went to one.  Don’t even get me started on the Twitter voting.  That was one of the most asinine things I’ve seen.  Not only did it destroy my timeline, but the fact that all of western Asia was able to vote for Yu Darvish was just completely unfair.  Fan voting influence needs to be decreased.  There are far too many snubs that should’ve made it and players that shouldn’t be there (ahem, Bryce Harper) that are.

The game used to mean something.  But those days are long gone.  Being an All Star used to be an honor and the players would reflect that on the field during the game.

Some players don’t even want to be there and until this year they were allowed to simply opt out.  I’m sorry but I can’t take any game seriously in which a rule had to be instituted that players have to participate if elected or they will be fined if they don’t have a legitimate injury.  Why wouldn’t you want players to play who actually want to be there?  Wouldn’t that be more entertaining Bud Selig?

The fact that only 5 teams are represented in each of the starting lineups is utterly ridiculous as well.  If I wanted to watch the Rangers, Tigers, or Yankees, I would just tune into ESPN on any given night.  To combat this and in order to insure “fairness”, baseball mandated that every team must have at least one participant.  So when you have so many from so few teams and then you have to add at least one more for the rest of the teams, it just gets to be a ridiculous amount of people.  And some of them don’t even get to play.  It’s just a microcosm of everything that is wrong with the MLB.  You have the league dominated by a few teams and the MLB tries to make up for that but ends up failing (see revenue sharing, or lack thereof). 

Sure, baseball’s All Star game is the closest thing to the real game, but that’s one of the problems with it.  It’s the same as every other game.  Interleague play has really done a number on its popularity.  Before interleague play, the game used to be one of the only time you could see the best from the AL play the best from the NL.  I have already seen the likes Bryce Harper, RA Dickey, and Dan Uggla because they have played the Orioles during interleague play.  It has taken the sense of surprise and unpredictability out of it.  It’s not special anymore because everyone has seen these most of these players play their team at some point.

And it’s not just the All Star game that is a joke.  If you didn’t watch the Home Run Derby, I completely envy you.  The fact that there was three hours of televised home run jacking is just absurd…THREE HOURS!  The most exciting part of the whole thing last night was watching Adam Jones chow down on some ribs.

But the biggest mistake Major League Baseball has made with the Midsummer Classic was the knee jerk reaction to the tie that occurred ten years ago.  Baseball’s genius idea to avoid future ties and to ‘make it more interesting’ was to add incentive to the game: home field advantage to the winning league in the World Series.  I guarantee you that Adam Jones isn’t worried about striking out for fear the AL might get home field advantage in the World Series.  I mean, he could care less about his own individual performance since getting his new contract.  What if an 88 win team somehow makes it to the World Series against a 108 win team?  You’re telling me the 88 win team should get home field advantage because their league won a scrimmage back in July?  I’m sorry, but you can take that cow fodder somewhere else.

MLB’s All Star game is completely flawed as is every leagues all star game.  But it will continue to exist because they get to show off their “best” players to everyone.  It’s just one big advertisement for Major League Baseball; that Fox actually pays them for.  Genius business strategy I’d say.  I don’t blame them for having one.  If I was in their position I would have a party for myself too.

I just blame people for watching the sorry excuse that is…