The votes are in and slot machines have been approved, placing Jerome Bettis under scrutiny… The votes are in and slot machines have been approved, placing Jerome Bettis under scrutiny for backing the deal. Carlos Beltran cannot help his league win home-field advantage because he was voted in as an American League All-Star, not a National League All-Star. And even if he was playing for the National League, he would have been cheated out of a starting role since Ken Griffey Jr. and Sammy Sosa will be starting in the outfield for the NL.

Citizens lose, state wins and Bettis approves.

Gov. Ed Rendell officially signed a bill in Bensalem, Pa., that approved the use of slot machines in 14 casinos across the state. The new bill, which will take money from poor gamblers and put it into the struggling state economy, could help the Pittsburgh Penguins build their new arena.

It is estimated that the slot machines will bring in $3 billion in revenue each year. It will also reduce debt at several state-run institutions, like the Pittsburgh International Airport, and it will support the building of a new David L. Lawrence Convention Center Hotel.

Steelers running back Jerome Bettis’ support of the bill has caused the NFL to investigate whether Bettis has violated any anti-gambling guidelines.

All Bettis did was back the deal. He supported the proposal so that his city and his state could get out of debt. It’s not like he pulled the lever and won $100 in nickels. It’s not like he did his best Pete Rose impersonation and put $1,000 down on the Steelers winning the Superbowl. He just traveled to the state capitol and let it be known that passing this proposal is important for the state’s economy.

The NFL can go ahead and investigate, but they are really just gambling on this one.

Isn’t that against league guidelines?

All-Star, No-Star.

Forget about Jason Kendall of the Pittsburgh Pirates and Bobby Abreu of the Philadelphia Phillies. They both got snubbed from the National League All-Star team, but one of them will at least have a chance to play in the game if they are voted on by the fans as the 32nd man.

Carlos Beltran, who has 19 home runs, 58 RBIs and a .278 batting average at the midway point, was named to the American League All-Star team. He was part of a trade that sent him from the underachieving Kansas City Royals to the playoff-contending Houston Astros 11 games ago. According to Major League Baseball rules, he cannot appear on the NL All-Star team because he has not played enough games to qualify.

MLB will recognize him as an All-Star, but he can only participate in All-Star activities, not the actual game.

This rule is completely unfair to Beltran, who is having a great season. There has to be a rule change, especially now that trades are an everyday norm in baseball, so that great players who happen to relocate before the summer classic can represent the team they currently belong to.

The situation is kind of similar to what happened when Sandis Ozolinsh was traded from the Florida Panthers to the Anaheim Mighty Ducks three days before the NHL All-Star Game. The teams are in different conferences, and Ozolinsh was selected as a Panther to the Eastern All-Stars. Despite the change of teams, Ozolinsh still played, but he went ahead and wore a patch on his jersey indicating he was a Mighty Duck, not a Panther. He was also introduced as a Mighty Duck during the pre-game ceremonies.

However, Beltran could not be introduced as an Astro and play for the AL All-Star team since the game will decide what league receives home-field advantage in the World Series.

This is yet another reason why the All-Star Game should not decide home-field advantage. If it did not decide that, Beltran could easily be placed on the NL team, because the game would be nothing more than a day for the fans.

The grass is not greener in the outfield.

All three outfielders on the NL’s All-Star team’s bench have a better batting average than Ken Griffey Jr. and Sammy Sosa, who are both starting. Along with left fielder Barry Bonds, the trio has been described as the best outfield to ever take the field at an All-Star Game.

I understand that Griffey and Sosa are both members of the 500-home-run club, but that does not give them a right to start ahead of those on the bench who are having a better season, especially since, as I said before, the All-Star Game means something this year.

Wouldn’t you want your best players to start so that you can win home-field advantage?

Lance Berkman is batting .303 with 16 home runs and 59 RBIs and he will be sitting on the bench, waiting for his chance to play. Miguel Cabrera is in the same boat, with a .292 batting average, 20 home runs and 55 RBIs. Both of these players beat out the .244 batting average of Griffey and .272 average that Sosa owns.

But All-Stars are what the public wants to see, right?

Then again, the public does not want to see a meaningless game.

Maybe the mid-summer classic should just consist of a home run derby. That way there would be no controversy, barring a pine tar incident or a corked bat.

Jimmy Johnson is the assistant sports editor of The Pitt News and he hopes to benefit as a non-gambler from those who do not have the lucky touch.