Grand old game skews younger

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The NBA is transitioning to a new, dramatically younger A-list, led by Chris Paul, Dwight Howard and LeBron James. So is the NHL, with Alexander Ovechkin, Evgeni Malkin and Sidney Crosby. Even the San Antonio Spurs aren't really old -- just their deeds are.And so, without nearly the notice, is your baseball. The game that has so put itself on the defensive with so many members of the younger generation has reupholstered itself without many folks bothering to notice. You see it in the Tampa Bay Rays, who are young and vibrant all over -- at least enough so they have been replaced by the Arizona Cardinals as the worst franchise in sports.In fact, baseball is so young right now that you actually could change part of the format of the All-Star Game, the industry's annual backslap to itself, and prove the point beyond all argument.All you, in your role as the good little Bud Selig who stands on Bud Selig's left shoulder, would have to do is convince him to get rid of the Futures Game, the minor-league all-star game, and replace it with the Futures Are Now Game with two teams made up of major-leaguers below the age of 30 who have not made an All-Star team.And you could do it easily, even using the old every-team-must-be-represented format. You might have to wince once or twice about one guy making it at the expense of another, but life's hard and then you become arbitration-eligible.In other words, and this is based in large part on this year's performances rather than mere reputation:AMERICAN LEAGUE-- Catchers: Mike Napoli, Los Angeles; Dioner Navarro, Tampa Bay.-- First basemen: Kevin Youkilis, Boston; Ryan Garko, Cleveland; Casey Kotchman, Los Angeles.-- Second baseman: Ian Kinsler, Texas.-- Shortstops: Jhonny Peralta, Cleveland; Bobby Crosby, A's.-- Third baseman: Alex Gordon, Kansas City.-- Outfielders: Josh Hamilton, Texas; Nick Markakis, Baltimore; Carlos Quentin, Chicago; B.J. Upton, Tampa Bay.-- Pitchers: Erik Bedard, Seattle; Nick Blackburn, Minnesota; Fausto Carmona, Cleveland; Zack Greinke, Kansas City; Cliff Lee, Cleveland; Jon Lester, Boston; Shaun Marcum, Toronto; Daisuke Matsuzaka, Boston; Ervin Santana, Los Angeles; James Shields, Tampa Bay; Joe Saunders, Los Angeles; Andy Sonnanstine, Tampa Bay; Chien-Ming Wang, New York.A lot of pitchers, true, and you might be surprised by Crosby, but until Rich Harden lasts a full year, he's the best available Athletic at a position that is underrepresented by the young.NATIONAL LEAGUE-- Catchers: Geovany Soto, Chicago; Yadier Molina, St. Louis.-- First basemen: Conor Jackson, Arizona; Joey Votto, Cincinnati.-- Second baseman: Dan Uggla, Florida.-- Shortstops: Stephen Drew, Arizona; Yunel Escobar, Atlanta; Ryan Theriot, Chicago.-- Third baseman: Garrett Atkins, Colorado.-- Outfielders: Justin Upton, Arizona; Hunter Pence, Houston; Matt Kemp, Los Angeles; Ryan Braun, Milwaukee; Ryan Church, New York; Nate McLouth, Pittsburgh; Xavier Nady, Pittsburgh.-- Pitchers: Brandon Lyon, Arizona; Jair Jurrjens, Atlanta; Carlos Marmol, Chicago; Kevin Gregg, Florida; Edinson Volquez, Cincinnati; Aaron Cook, Colorado; Adam Wainwright, St. Louis; Heath Bell, San Diego; Tim Lincecum, Giants; Jon Rauch, Washington.That's 26 a side, rather than the more bloated and silly 32 they have in the real All-Star Game. But those are all players your favorite team would crave, here and now, without reservation, and those you don't know, you will soon enough.Indeed, the only thing that separates the elite in this group from your Pauls or Ovechkins is that there are more of them. True, some will get hurt, or end up on bad teams that nobody notices, but that's the nature of every sport. More players have been declared sure-fire Hall of Famers after two years than actually managed to be inducted by a factor of roughly 150-1.Nevertheless, if you can make two legitimate All-Star teams without much effort under these restrictions, you've got loads of talent without resorting to baseball's usual tactic of YankeesRedSoxYankeesRedSoxYankeesRedSoxYankeesRedSoxYankeesRedSox until you all get sick.And the lesson? There are lots of Chris Pauls and Alex Ovechkins out there, as long as you're willing to look beyond the sports in which you can find the originals. And as far as the All-Star Game idea, we'll be happy to sell it to Major League Baseball at the usual MLB rate -- exorbitant, with interest.(E-mail Ray Ratto at rratto@sfchronicle.com.)(Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service, www.scrippsnews.com.)