As Ben Franklin left the halls of the Constitutional Convention meetings in Philadelphia in 1787, having just signed the new United States Constitution, a lady outside asked what the four months of meetings had produced. Said Franklin, “A republic, if you can keep it.”

We have kept it so far, but the task of keeping it never ends. Happy Fourth of July.

Baseball was fortunate enough over the decades to snuggle up with mom, apple pie and hot dogs. MLB took the moniker of “America’s game” and ran with it all the way to the bank.

Whenever MLB needs a favor from government or the public, it rolls itself in the flag and waves the red, white and blue. MLB would like to believe we can’t live without it. Surprise. We can.

MLB might well take heed of Mr. Franklin’s remark. MLB is a soft spot in many a heart, but only so long as it deserves that spot. That deserving grows less and less.

Tuesday, MLB Commissioner Bud Selig unleashed some of the owners to talk about contract negotiations with the players. Prior to this week, no owner could speak about labor issues without incurring a 1 million dollar fine. Why are they talking now?

Selig, who has adamantly objected to the players union bargaining in the press, was aware the players were going to get the better of the spin game. So, he rounded up some general managers and owners to sound off publicly about how they would not back down from their labor positions (if the owners can ever agree on what their positions are) if the players threatened a strike at the end of the year.

What is tragically obvious in this move is that Selig and at least some of the owners are more concerned with the public perception of identifying the bad guys then they are concerned with getting the contract done.

The players and owners had best realize most fans mix the two in the same pot of boiling oil and really don’t care if there’s a good and bad guy involved in the theatrics. Close your traps and get the deal done.

Baseball might also want to take care of its day-to-day business. The hired-gun season has started with the Yankees acquiring Raul Mondesi. As more teams drop out of the playoff picture, more of the deep-pocket teams will hire away quality players for the rest of the year, even if they have no intention of retaining their services come 2003.

These deals make a mockery of the team concept; one that begins and finishes a season more or less in tact. The process creates even more inequity among rich and poor teams.

The whole system of roster changes during a season needs to be addressed and the hired- gun concept eliminated from baseball’s vocabulary.

MLB also had best get a handle on the All-Star Game. It is no longer a game with meaning, just a bell and fireworks display that ends after the introductions. Nevertheless, it is still about rewarding players for outstanding first halves of a season, and making room for future Hall of Famers?

Managers continue to name more and more of their own team players when those of other teams are more deserving. Joe Torre named three of his Yankees in addition to the three Yankees voted to start. NL manager Bob Brenly added six of his Diamondbacks, including catcher Damian Miller, because Brenly said, “I was a catcher.”

That’s a good way to pick All- Stars, don’t you think?

As the Fourth of July is a time to celebrate a nation’s history, the MLB All-Star Game is a time to celebrate a games greatness. Both must be worked or lost.

Old Town native Gary Thorne is an ESPN and NBC sportscaster.