Did La Russa make the right decision with Cain?

This morning National League All-Star team Manager Tony La Russa announced that Matt Cain of the San Francisco Giants would be the starting pitcher for the NL in the All-Star game. There was a lot of controversy over that move because many believed that R.A. Dickey of the Mets deserved to make the start. Dickey has better stats in key categories like ERA, WHIP, and strikeouts. Cain threw a perfect game earlier this season, but Dickey had a feat of his own by throwing back to back one-hitters.

La Russa said he picked Cain because he believed starting catcher Buster Posey might have trouble catching Dickey's knuckleball. He claimed he didn't want passed balls in the opening innings of the game.

I don't buy this at all. These catchers have been catching baseballs ever since they were children, and they should be able to catch a knuckleball for a few innings. I also think this is a cheap shot towards Posey, because La Russa is indicating that he would have a hard time catching him. Dickey even offered to bring Josh Thole's modified catcher's mitt to the All-Star game, so whoever caught him wouldn't have that much trouble.

Let me know what you think about La Russa's decision. Readers are free to comment so leave a comment below.