Home run derby to break ties in future MLB All-Star Games?

For the most part, casual baseball fans only cared that MLB and the MLB Players Association came to an agreement Thursday that ended the lockout that had threatened more than a handful of regular-season games. It appears, though, that an interesting piece of information is found in the fine print of that deal. 

Ronald Blum of The Associated Press reports that the next MLB All-Star Game, scheduled to occur at Dodger Stadium on July 19, could come down to a home run derby between the American League and National League squads if the contest is deadlocked after nine innings of play. 

"If the All-Star Game remains tied after nine innings, the game will be decided by a Home Run Derby between the teams, subject to the parties’ agreement on details and format," reads a portion of the 182-page memorandum of understanding signed by MLB and the MLBPA on Thursday. The AP adds that MLB senior counsel Kasey Sanossian and MLBPA deputy general counsel Matt Nussbaum signed the page of the agreement related to the Midsummer Classic. 

As Matt Kelly pointed out for the MLB website last fall, World Series home-field advantage was given to the club representing the league that won that year’s All-Star Game from 2003 through 2016. Since that's no longer the case, ending what is, in the grand scheme of things, a meaningless exhibition contest with glorified batting practice should only bring some fun to the conclusion of what is meant to be a celebration of the sport.