LOS ANGELES — Giancarlo Stanton homered in his first game at Dodger Stadium, Byron Buxton followed with another hit and the American League won its ninth straight All-Star Game, beating the National League 3-2 on Tuesday night.
Byron Buxton followed with another home run and the American League won its ninth straight Midsummer Classic, defeating the National League 3-2 on Tuesday night.
AL manager Dusty Baker reminded his team of the streak before the game.
“We had to keep it to him and keep going,” Stanton said.
Fans rooting for a tie after nine innings so they could see a home run first decided they didn’t get their wish instead of extra innings.
Instead, back-to-back homers in the fourth inning were the difference as the AL extended its overall advantage to 47-43-2.
Facing 11-game hitter Tony Gonsolin of the Dodgers, Stanton’s impressive 457-foot, two-run shot landed in the left-field pavilion, not far from where the LA native watched games as a youngster.
“He smokes them,” NL manager Brian Snitker said. “Big strong kid.”
Stanton and his father, Mike, would sit there after buying tickets from scalpers at whatever price they could afford.
“My Pops took me to my first Dodger game, showed me how to love the game, and now here we are,” the New York Yankees shortstop said. “Look at us, it’s just amazing.”
Despite his love for the home team, Stanton was excited to see the visiting players.
“It was really the big boppers when they came to town,” he said. “I wanted to see (Mark) McGuire, (Sammy) Sosa and (Barry) Bonds, even if it was two at-bats. It all comes full circle.
Stanton was named the game’s MVP, receiving a glass bat engraved with his name by two-time MVP Steve Garvey and Billie Jean King, part of Dodgers ownership.
“It hasn’t fully sunk in,” he said. “It will be an amazing memory for the rest of our lives.”
The homer ended Stanton’s career 0-for-7 skid in the game, and at 111.2 mph, it was the hardest-hit homer in an All-Star game tracked by Statcast. Jose Ramirez also scored to tie the game at 2 points.
Four pitches later, Buxton went deep to give the AL a 3-2 lead against a clearly frustrated Gonsolin, who took the loss.
Nine-time All-Star Clayton Kershaw made his first career NL home start as the Dodgers hosted for the first time since 1980. Los Angeles Angels two-way star Shohei Ohtani had the first hit in Kershaw’s first pitch.
Houston’s Framber Valdez earned the win, tossing a scoreless third inning.
AL starter Shane McClanahan of Tampa Bay gave up two runs and four hits. The first-time All-Star, who owns an MLB-leading 1.71 ERA, has allowed four hits or fewer in his last seven starts.
McClanahan combined with 10 other pitchers in the top five. Cleveland closer Emmanuel Klasse put on a great show, striking out the side in the ninth to earn the save.
Austin Riley’s single in the eighth was the NL’s only hit after the first inning.
Ohtani led off the AL as designated hitter. Interviewed moments before the start, the Japanese superstar admitted he would swing. He drove a 91 mph fastball into center field on the first pitch.
“I was definitely swinging one hundred percent,” Ohtani said through a translator. “Kershaw is really good at possession.”
His hit snapped an 0-for-8 streak as a hitter against Kershaw. Last year, Ohtani was the starting pitcher and led off as the DH in a 5-2 AL win in Denver. He hasn’t played this year, so he could start Friday in the Angels’ first game since the bye in Atlanta.
“I mean, you can’t throw the first pitch of the All-Star Game as a breaking ball,” Kershaw said. “You should have given him a heater there, I think for everything. You should have done it.”
But the three-time NL Cy Young Award winner had the final say. Kershaw fired a first pitch that caught Ohtani off the bag.
“Honestly, I still didn’t know what to throw. Sometimes I throw there for second to get called out with the pitch,” Kershaw said. “I wasn’t trying to get him out. I was trying to slow the game down a little bit, but it worked.”
Then Yankees shortstop Aaron Judge went down swinging. With Rafael Devers out, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. grounded into a fielder’s choice, and Kershaw departed to the applause of an appreciative crowd.
“I tried to take a minute at the beginning to think everything through and look around, which I usually never do,” Kershaw said. “That kind of calmed things down for me and I had a lot of fun after that.”
The NL wasted no time taking a 2-0 lead for the first time in 10 years. Decked out in yellow spikes and alternating yellow and red sleeves, Ronald Acuna Jr. led off the bottom of the first with a walk-off double to left and scored on Mookie Betts’ single. Paul Goldschmidt hit a solo homer with two outs.
Between the runs, AL second baseman Andres Gimenez picked off Manny Machado defensively and followed with a blinding throw behind shortstop Tim Anderson, who threw to first to complete the double play.
A sellout crowd of 52,518 filled Dodger Stadium two years after the third-oldest ballpark in the majors was scheduled to host before the game was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
CANADIAN CONTENT
Toronto Blue Jays ace Alec Manoa dominated on the mound — and on the microphone — as he pitched a scoreless second inning for the American League. Manoa provided plenty of entertainment by striking out three batters
Mic’d for the FOX telecast, Manoa provided plenty of entertainment by striking out three NL hitters — William Contreras, Joc Pederson and Ronald Acuna Jr. — and also striking out Jeff McNeil of the New York Mets in between.
“Three strikes! Let’s go!” Manoa yelled into a FOX TV-provided microphone as he ran off the mound after striking out Acuna to end the inning.
Manoa threw to his Toronto teammate, catcher Alejandro Kirk, while Guerrero Jr. played first.
The game also featured Jays second baseman Santiago Espinal, who went 0-1 at the plate to tie the game. Reliever Jordan Romano was on deck to throw if Emmanuel Klase of the Cleveland Guardians went down in the ninth. He struck out all three batters he faced.
Guerrero went 0-for-2 at the plate, grounding into a fielder’s choice in the first inning and popping out deep to center in the fourth.
HERE’S TO YOU, MS. ROBINSON
Dodgers outfielder Mookie Betts, with all the other stars lined up behind him, led the crowd in sending wishes for Rachel Robinson’s 100th birthday. On his 1-2-3 count, the crowd and players chanted, “Happy birthday, Rachel!” Jackie Robinson’s widow did not travel from her home in New York. She visited Dodger Stadium in April on Jackie Robinson Day to mark the 75th anniversary of her husband breaking baseball’s color barrier with the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947. Jackie Robinson’s achievement was honored with on-field comments from the host of Oscar actor Denzel Washington and video board presentation.
FIRST RUN
Backed by a mariachi band, Dodgers great Fernando Valenzuela threw out the ceremonial first pitch. Fittingly, All-Star first baseman Alejandro Kirk of Toronto served as catcher. Kirk and Valenzuela were born in Mexico. Fernandomania gripped the Dodgers in 1981, when the left-hander won Rookie of the Year and the Cy Young Award, helping LA win the World Series.
FASHION CRITICS
Reviews were mostly negative for the second year in a row for the All-Star uniforms. AL wore dark gray uniforms that blended in with the referee’s black shirt and dark gray pants. NL wore all white uniforms. Both had gold lettering. Fans were critical on social media, with “disgusting” being a common criticism. Last year, MLB refused to wear traditional jerseys, which was met with heavy criticism online.
THE CHANGE IS STILL ON
Dodgers first baseman Freddie Freeman batted in the third to the now-familiar chants of “Freddie! Freddie!” Even the exhibition game featured an extreme changeup and he was thrown out of right field. Home Run Derby champion Juan Soto was thrown out by the third baseman, who was playing much closer to second base, to end the fifth. The next season, the change was dropped.
EASY
Hall of Fame announcer Vin Scully, the voice of the Dodgers for 67 years before retiring in 2016, watched the game from his home in Los Angeles. The Bronx native, 94, began calling games when the franchise was based in Brooklyn and followed the team west before the 1958 season.
NEXT
The regular season resumes with six games Thursday, including Stanton, Judge and the Yankees playing a doubleheader against Houston. The Yankees own the best record in the majors at 64-28. Jose Altuve, Jordan Alvarez and the Baker Astros have the second-best mark in the AL at 59-32.
“I’m just sorry we have to play him in a doubleheader on Thursday,” Baker said. “But for today we are on the same side.”
Also will be Freeman, Betts, Trea Turner and the Dodgers, who top the NL at 60-30 odds, host the Giants.
Add Comment