Baseball writer John Harper in today’s Daily News has written a great opinion piece about Tony La Russa’s decision NOT to start R.A. Dickey in tonight’s All Star Game, which of course is a great disappointment for Met fans.

In his column Harper argues that giving the winner of the All Star Game home field advantage in the World Series was meant to boost ratings for an event that many baseball fans have lost interest in and starting Dickey would do just that!

Harper calls Dickey’s uplifting story of overcoming childhood sexual abuse, poverty and a rare physical defect that kept him in the minors for years before his perseverance and dedication turned him into a knuckleball pitching star, “the rarest of feel-good stories, one we’re not likely to see again.”

Harper states “Surely Dickey’s story, which transcends baseball, would bring more casual fans to the TV on Tuesday night, for the spectacle of seeing him start the game. How many of those folks will be watching when Dickey comes in to pitch the fifth or sixth inning?”

And to add insult to injury Tony La Russa didn’t even have the courtesy to call R.A. personally to let him know that despite the fact that he is the most dominant pitcher in the National League he would not be starting the game, Dickey found out via a text from a friend this morning after the Daily News broke the story.

You can read the full story here.