On August 1^st, the Oakland Athletics will honor one of the greatest players of Major League Baseball's history when they retire the number 24 in honor of outfielder Rickey Henderson.

Although he will be remembered for his blazing speed and incredible talent, his career is also defined by his attitude. He played each and every game with a passion that showed how much he truly loved playing baseball. Henderson was quoted as saying, "If my uniform doesn't get dirty, I haven't done anything in the baseball game." When thinking about the Hall of Fame player, people often think about "Rickey being Rickey." He had one of the most interesting personalities that those around the sport had ever experienced. He was often seen talking to himself and often talked about himself in the third person during interviews. There are many stories about "Rickey being Ricky" such as the time he fell asleep on an ice pack and got frostbite-which forced him to miss three games in August. His personality and his ability to have fun were on display when he broke Ty Cobb's record for career runs scored. He hit a home run and instead of trotting around the bases and scoring like everyone else, he slid into home.

Henderson graduated from Oakland Technical High School in 1976, where he played basketball, football, and baseball. He had numerous football scholarship offers but turned them down when the Athletics drafted him in the fourth round of the 1976 draft. Everyone saw his talent and potential in the minor leagues where he stole 7 bases in one game in 1977. This tied a minor-league record and gave everyone a sneak preview of what was to come of his major league career. Rickey's 25 year career began when he made his major league debut in 1979; he went 2 for 4 and had a stolen base.

Henderson's career spanned over four decades and involved 9 different teams. From the late 70's to the beginning of the new millennium, Henderson played for the Athletics, Yankees, Blue Jays, Padres, Angels, Mariners, Mets, Red Sox, and Dodgers.Henderson is often regarded as the sports' greatest leadoff hitter and base runner. He was a 10 time all-star whose career is decorated with various records, awards, and accomplishments. He hold career records for stolen bases (1,406), runs scored (2,295), and lead off home runs (81). He holds the single season stolen base record with 130 and is the only player in the history of the American League to steal 100 bases in a season, having done so three times. He led the American League in stolen bases 12 times, led the majors in hits in 1981, won American League MVP in 1990, a gold glove in 1981, was a three time silver slugger, and was named The Sporting News' Comeback Player of the Year in 1992. Henderson won two World Series Titles in 1989 and 1993. He holds the franchise stolen base record for both the Oakland athletics and the New York Yankees; he was among the league's top ten base stealers in 21 different seasons. On the final day of the 2001 season he collected his 3,000 hit. He will be inducted to the Hall of Fame on July 26^th and will finish that week by having his number retired in Oakland.

"And the Rickey Rally - a walk, two stolen bases and a sacrifice fly - was purist baseball at its best. Scoring runs, after all, is baseball's bottom line, and no one's better at it than Rickey."
- Allen St. John, sportswriter, Salon.com Oct. 9, 2001

Once upon a time the midsummer classic was an event that showcased the talents of the games top stars. People watched all their favorite players together on one field, playing in a game for nothing other than bragging rights, but competing as if everything was on the line. Nowadays the game determines which league will have home field advantage in the World Series. While it seems like adding meaning to this game could only help the appeal, the reverse is true and the all-star game gets less and less exciting every year.

Players used to care about bragging rights for their league so they tried hard to win the game and put all their effort on the field. Managers managed to win, rather than to ensure that everyone on the roster would get some playing time. The stars played 7, 8, and 9 innings and the games were exciting.

This all seems to be in the past as today's all-stars appear to be more interested in the paychecks and the experience of being an all-star, rather than in winning the game. The starters only play the first 3 innings and the game is full of substitutions because managers want everyone to get an opportunity to play. Baseball has expanded the rosters so much that by the time the end of the game rolls around, most fans are stuck looking at a game with a bunch of random players that are good baseball players, but that are not true all-stars.

I think that the Home Run Derby is the most exciting part of the All-Star Break and am wondering if there is anyone out there that actually cares about the All-Star game anymore?