A hushed group of reporters gathered at a hastily called news conference listened as the latest strange twist in the struggle to add spice to next year's all-star game was revealed by Major League Baseball commissioner Bud Selig.

"This year's addition of giving home field advantage in the World Series to the league that wins the All-Star game has achieved our first step toward restoring league pride to the outcome of the All-Star game. Starting next year, the ante will go up when the league that wins the All-Star game will be allowed to use corked bats at their discretion for the entire World Series."

Pressed for details on the need for the change, Selig detailed several alternative enhancements that were discarded during negotiations by the Executive Committee, including making the All-Star losing league play without gloves or cleats during the Fall Classic. The corked bat advantage was eventually accepted over the more time-consuming idea of rolling out a temporary home run fence just beyond the infield dirt for the All-Star winning league. "People want home runs, but they won't accept a slower pace of play. Thus the corked bats really satisfied our objective."

As would be expected, the once stealthy back-door business of corking bats will now be legitimized. Master corkers, once mysterious characters rarely known by name are scrambling to launch websites and hire marketing teams to position their corking technology in the new field. Reports that the Gallo family of Napa would leverage their winemaking expertise to enter the bat corking industry was confirmed by their announcement of a spin off company named "Gallo Bats."

"We feel our hundred year history of corking bottles will be of value to major league hitters seeking an edge. The technology used to contain the thousands of pounds of pressure a bottle of champagne contains should make Gallo Bats the players' choice."

Appearing at the Gallo Bats announcement was their new corporate spokesman, Chicago Cubs slugger Sammy Sosa. Asked for his reaction to the announcement, Sosa, himself the recipient of a suspension for using a corked bat earlier this year, commented, "This will be a huge advantage for the winning league. I know that using corked bats has really increased my power numbers, so this has got to help." The always playful Sosa then winked and added, "and only a Gallo Bat will make the pitcher whine."

Not as sure about the decision was Cub skipper Dusty Baker who fumed, "We ain't won a Series since 1908, now the one advantage we have may be minimized by league decree."

Selig, no stranger to controversy during his tumultuous term as commissioner felt this additional incentive would be his final significant contribution to the game he has loved to death since childhood. When asked if he had accomplished all his goals as commissioner, Selig replied that his only failure was his effort to modify the World Series format to climax with a seven game "Brewers vs. the World" tilt. "I like the idea of the Brewers being the Harlem Globetrotters of baseball, but I just wasn't able to convince some of the other owners that this type of realignment would work."

Jordan Perry has authored a number of unpublished baseball books and manages a coin operated laundry in Redding, CA. Jordan has two articles appearing in this edition of The Becker Sports Report. Check out his other, "NBA's Earl Boykins stirs Little League Controversy."