The worst part of the All-Star voting process, besides the elimination of skill from the evaluation of athletic ability and blatant favoritism shown towards teams and players least in need of the exposure, is the same argument that comes up once results are announced: Player X sucks and doesn’t deserve to be called an All-Star, even though it’s the All-Star game and not the All-Production team and Star is in fact a term of popularity.

Jason Varitek, reserve catcher, is hitting .219. David Ortiz, DH, is injured and out for the season. Alfonso Soriano hasn’t played a game since June 11. Even our own Joe Crede currently holds the wrong kind of lead in errors among AL third basemen.

So what does it all mean and why should we care? Exactly; it means nothing and we shouldn’t, unless Terry Francona telling Justin Morneau to lay down a bunt so the Red Sox have home-field advantage or Clint Hurdle trying to remember how to win a game is your idea of entertainment.

Meanwhile, Sox fans are going to rally – nobly, as they have before in 2005 and 2006 – behind Jermaine Dye as the AL’s final representative. People will talk about his numbers, his rebound from last season, and how awesome it would be to see the Sox represented even further at the national level, as though being or playing for an MLB franchise wasn’t fame enough and seeing the Good Guys’ outfielder make it to Yankee Stadium was somehow the only way to validate what we’ve known all along.

So don’t do it, Sox fans. Don’t vote for number 23. Jermaine Dye knows you love him but, more importantly, the AL already has six outfielders and, if the past two weeks are any indication, Evan Longoria’s speed is going to go further getting home-field for the Sox. Now get out there and stuff that ballot box.