Frank Thomas jumped on a plane in the middle of one recent All-Star Game, making MLB officials nervous about handing over the game's MVP trophy to a travel agent instead of the first baseman. If you attach real meaning to the game, players suddenly feel pressure from fans and, more important, their peers to play and to play hard. Try looking your teammates and fans in the eye after that. That's a de facto rule as it is, anyway. Those days are long gone.
Relief pitchers can throw no more than two innings.
Again, we're not telling you anything you don't already know about the All-Star Game. We just want to make sure Braves manager Bobby Cox doesn't use Maddux for seven innings of relief. Manager's discretion, as is. Only 30 players appeared in the first All-Star Game. Now each team has 30 players, and managers go loony trying to get them all in the game.