All Star Game | The Baseball Zealot

The GMS curse: The NL wins one

On the heels of the announcement of George Steinbrenner’s passing, the National League finally win an All-Star game… their first since I was in my early 30s.

It was a simple win with good pitching and a nice clutch hit by sub Brian McCann who was responsible for all three of the NL’s runs. Indeed, all of the NL’s offense came from the bottom of the order, much from the substitutes. The top four in the order were a combined 0-11.

Kudos goes to my Cub Marlon Byrd who was one those runs McCann drove in during the seventh inning. More importantly, Byrd gunned down David Ortiz at second for a 9-4 assist. Byrd can probably be thankful it wasn’t anyone else besides slow-footed Ortiz but nonetheless it was a ninth inning rally killer.

Final score NL 3 AL 1

And thought you have most likely have seen the box score already, check out the one done by Baseball Reference. It’s the most comprehensive and interactive out there.

MLB announces 2010 All-Star logo

Wasting no time, MLB has come out with logos for the 2010 All-Star game that will be held in Angel Stadium:

Via The Biz of Baseball:

The official logo of Major League Baseball’s 2010 All-Star Game features a red dimensional star encircled by the silver halo of the Angels. The beveled star serves as an icon that represents the showcase of Major League Baseball’s finest talent. The unique typography of the 81st Midsummer Classic also reflects the dimensional beveling inspired by the host Club.
“Major League Baseball is pleased that the 2010 All-Star Game will be hosted by the Angels, one of the model franchises of our sport,” said Baseball Commissioner Allan H. (Bud) Selig. “The enduring success of the Angels under Arte Moreno both on and off the field is remarkable. I am thrilled that the 2010 All-Star Game will spotlight a Club that embodies Major League Baseball’s commitment to providing affordable, family entertainment.”

IL Beats PCL 6-5

The Triple A All Star Game used to be THE showcase of the stars of tomorrow, that distinction has been taken over by the Futures Game. Still over 16,000 fans crowded into Portland’s Triple A ballpark to checkout the show, and they weren’t disappointed. Future stars shined as Phillies prospect Drew Carpenter was the winning pitcher, working one inning, striking out the side, disposing of the heart of the PCL lineup on only 9 pitches. Yankees centerfielder of the future Austin Jackson ripped a hard triple off the wall. Rays infielder Reid Brignac got himself a double, I remember being impressed with him in the Arizona Fall League. Catcher Erik Kratz was the hitting star of the game, doubling, and then sending one completely out of PGE Park for a homer, but that one’s got an asterisk, as he hit a 3-0 fastball(?) off knuckleballer Charlie Haeger, he was sitting on a BP fastball & he got it, all of it. Drew Stubbs also launched one deep into the night, as did Esteban German. You see, in a game like this, there are prospects, and there are suspects.

2009 All-Star Game: from a fan who remembers when the NL used to be good

Thirteen proved to be an unlucky number for the National League as once again, they need to wait another year. The American League defeated them 4-3 Tuesday in a tight game decided by good bullpen pitching and clutch hitting.

Bleacher Report live blogged the whole affair if the want all the details in its sordid glory.

A few of the subplots:

SI’s Ben Reiter wonders if MLB and St Louis just maybe over-exposed, over-used and quite frankly tired out Albert Pujols before the game even started.
When Ichiro met the President, you can (thankfully) throw out the script book.
As was expected, FOX’ broadcast of the All-Star game pretty much dominated the night as per the Nielsen ratings.

Overall, FOX averaged an estimated 12.32 million viewers to go with a 7.5 rating/13 share. NBC’s 5.7/10 was second, topping the 4.8/8 for CBS. ABC’s 2.7/5 and The CW’s 0.5/1 trailed.

2010 is a new year and a new decade. I can feel a NL victory… maybe.

Update: just to prove that you can use stats to prove any point, while FOX’ ratings WERE better than any in their slot, they did slip a bit from last year. Down 4% from last year’s game.

Messin’ with Kazmir

See the trouble Terry Francona caused?

James Shields will start as planned on Friday against the Blue Jays, but Matt Garza will now be moved up a day from Saturday to Sunday. Maddon plans to talk to Kazmir on Friday to determine when he pitches, and, in turn, when Edwin Jackson will start. Jackson will get the nod whichever day Kazmir does not.

All part of division rival Boston’s evil plan. I know it.

Francona, AL get away with one in All-Star Game

Yes, the AL got lucky last night.

No, I don’t mean with their 4-3 win… That was well-deserved. However as Buck and McCarver talked about incessantly up until the end of the game, Francona breathed a sigh of relief when Michael Young drove Justin Morneau home on a sac fly in the bottom of the 15th. As it was, he had already brought in Scott Kazmir, who was on his “Do Not Pitch List”, for one inning. He didn’t relish the idea of bringing him for much longer.

Maybe we haven’t learned anything from the 2002 All-Star game. That was the year Bud Selig declared the game a tie after both teams ran out of players and relievers. After Francona’s starter, Cliff Lee went two frames, none of the American League pitchers pitched more than one inning until George Sherrill who came in the 12th. To be fair, no one thought this game would go 15 innings. That said, perhaps we should start playing the All-Star game as a game to be won (I don’t buy into the whole idea that now that we’re playing for home field advantage, the game counts… it’s a game and it’s played to be won).

I don’t let NL Manager Clint Hurdle off easy either. Why did he take out Brandon Webb, who pitched the 14th inning, after just one inning? As visitor team and with a tie game, surely he knew that even in the best scenario, Lidge would have to pitch at least two innings for an National League win. I would have left Webb in for just one more inning.

One more thought on the whole matter, if a manager is going to pick a pitcher for a game, even an All-Star Game, make sure he’s a pitcher who he is comfortable putting in the game. Webb and Kazmir are most deserving of a All-Star nod but if they are taking up a spot on roster, the managers should be able to put them in with a minimum of mini-dramas described to us in full details by Buck/McCarver. Less is better, guys.

Other comments on the Game:

Despite the long game, I thought it was exciting. Kudos to the AL for their victory and the NL gave them an excellent fight.

Fine job by the Cub pitchers. Zambrano, Dempster and Marmol in four combined innings allowed just one hit and no runs with six strikeouts.

I appreciated the good defensive efforts on the NL’s part in the (I believe) 10th and 11th innings in dire base situations. Three outs in five plate appearances were made at home plate. Nice job, Russ Martin!

I gotta feel for Dan Uggla. Here’s a guy who’s had an awesome first half and he gets to his first All-Star Game and pretty much stinks up the place. Oh for 4, 3 K’s and 3 errors (two in one inning). Then Buckarver is telling me a heartbreaking story about his Dad too.

See you in St Louis, AL!