In the end, the players' ethos won out over the fans when it came to Stephen Strasburg's All-Star candidacy. Strasburg ultimately was not selected to be on the team, and the stated reason by many was that he simply didn't have the longevity of many other candidates.
At least that's what Phillies general manager Charlie Manuel told TBS last night, via Federal Baseball.
"[Strasburg] got quite a bit of consideration. I love watching the guy pitch. I haven't seen him live yet, he hasn't pitched against us, but at the same time I've been watching him. I don't have to tell anybody, he's got a great future. What's he got, like five starts or something in the major leagues? In my experience in the game. I think of the kid, leave him alone and let him pitch. He's going to be an All-Star for a long time, and I just felt like, there's other guys out there who've started anywhere from 18-20 games, and I felt, like I said, just kinda leave him alone, let him get broken in at the major league level and he'll take care of himself."
Based on how he's pitched so far, I don't think Strasburg has a problem with being "broken in" to the Major League level, but maybe the Mets disagree. Still, based on this analysis, it's clear Manuel wanted to give guys like Matt Capps a chance to play in the game instead of anointing Strasburg too soon.