At last month's players-only Hall of Fame dinner, one of the greatest players who ever lived made a statement that it is becoming too easy for players to get into the Hall of Fame because more players are being considered "superstars." And he is right; the term "superstar" is used too loosely now to describe great players.

SUNDAY NIGHT BASEBALL

NY Yankees at Boston 8 p.m. ET, ESPN Play-by-play: Jon Miller Analyst: Joe Morgan How can the slumping Red Sox get back into the AL pennant race in September? I'm not sure the Red Sox can play well enough to overtake the Yankees. They have too many key injuries. Pedro Martinez was out for two months and isn't pitching like his former self. Nomar Garciaparra is on the disabled list again. The only way they can overcome the Yankees in the AL East is if the Yankees fall back to them. That's possible, because the Yankees aren't a great team either. But under the circumstances, the Red Sox can't do much better than they are doing now. Beginning Friday, the Red Sox play the Yankees seven more times, but I don't expect them to take much advantage of the unbalanced schedule down the stretch. They just have to play hard. There has been too much adversity to overcome, including the ill-timed managerial move from Jimy Williams to Joe Kerrigan. With a month and a half to go in the season, the Red Sox were 12 games over .500 and in contention when Williams was fired, not in last place. The Red Sox had played well all season, fighting through adversity, but the obstacles have finally caught up with them. That's why teams play 162 games; they can only cover up weaknesses for so long. -- Joe Morgan

In the past a superstar was an everyday player who could hit, hit for power, run, field and throw. Plus, he had to be an intelligent player, someone who knew how to play the game. Now, players are called superstars if they can only do one or two things well. That's the problem.

Hitting 50 home runs or stealing 100 bases doesn't make a player a superstar. He may be a great hitter, baserunner or fielder. Being excellent in one or two areas of the game makes someone a star, but not a superstar.

Teams should never have to pinch-run, pinch-hit or play defense for a superstar. He has to be a complete player, one who can do everything on the field. No one ever had to replace Willie Mays, Hank Aaron or Roberto Clemente late in the game. Their teams just let them play.

A superstar player must meet the following qualifications, applying to all positions but pitcher: