Tuesday, July 11, 2006

July 11, All-Star Game Blog

Okay, this opening promo is really dopey. Shooting stars and people looking up at the sky at the stars. Players faces on oversized pointy stars. Let's just play the game already!

Little pre-game pep talk from Phil Garner. "We have a great team, we have to get off the snide, blah, blah, blah" This is all for show and I hate it! Now, crazy boy, Ozzie just told all his guys that he couldn't promise they would all play. Well, of course not! How are they all going to play when all of the White Sox are going to play the whole game?

A little retrospective on the history of the Pirates now, which is actually pretty cool. Forbes Field, Honus Wagner, Bill Mazeroski, Roberto Clemente. Willie Stargell, the 1979 World Series team. Steve Blass. What I really have a problem with is that Pittsburgh just hosted 12 years ago! This is its fifth All-Star Game.

Okay, All-Star promotional contest. I hate this. Kid hits off a tee at five balls to hit a spot on the field for a prize. Al Oliver coached him. This guy looked ancient when he played...it's like he skipped right from the 70s to the present. Still has those afro sideburns.

Okay, Joe Buck is introducing every player from each side. It looked like Mark Redman from the Kansas City Royals almost expected people to boo him, because he's just an awful token all-star. One thing I have always liked about the baseball All-Star game is that the players always wear their own team's uniforms and not some dumb league uniform.

This is like a who's who of former Sox players. Nomar, Bronson Arroyo, Freddy Sanchez, David Eckstein. Let's see, who did we get for all of those guys? Orlando Cabrera, Doug Mientkiewicz (I didn't even check if that's spelled right, that's how confident I am), Wily Mo Pena, Jeff Suppan and I don't even know. Ortiz is batting third, by the way and Loretta is hitting eighth. A nice round of boos for Kenny Rogers...no not the singer, although they should boo him too. Oh, forgot to mention Edgar Renteria in the former Sox category. We got Andy Marte for him. The Pittsburgh crowd is going nuts for Jason Bay as they did earlier for Freddy Sanchez. Renteria is batting fifth. Of course, we have a commercial break before they can play the National Anthem for this 8:05 start, which is now going on 8:26 edt, 4:26 am Baghdad time.

They were saying on EEI today that it's too bad that Joe Castiglione wasn't doing the play-by-play for the home run derby last night. Everytime a guy would pop it up, you know it would be, "Here's the pitch, swing and a pop up and that's out number seven", but of course he would do it in that voice where he sounds like he just found out that Jerry Trupiano just ate the last hot dog down in the pressroom leaving him with nothing. Of course, if you have Joe for his downer call on the non-homers, you need Trupiano for the home runs..."Swing and a drive, way back, way back!...Caught 20 feet in front of the left field wall. That looked like he got all of it on the swing (as he tries to cover himself)".

I think Leanne Rymes is singing the national anthem and then the jets just flew over. I'm sure I spelled her name wrong, but at least I think I got Mientkiewicz's right. Anyway, another commercial as Fox tries to turn the All-Star game into the Super Bowl with a commercial break every chance they get. I wonder if they will break for a commercial if a batter calls for time or if a beach ball falls onto the field.

Pretty good Holiday Inn commercial. Joe Buck is waiting for the elevator with some yahoos who are all kissing his ass, and want him to say, "Swing and a miss" as they hold their fingers against his throat...he does it and keeps doing it for like four of them, before he gets weirded out (it took that long?) and takes the stairs. You can't appreciate how dumb it was on here.

Joe Buck and Tim McCarver are doing the game tonight. McCarver! This is going to be chocked full of comedy! I was actually kind of groaning about doing this game on the blog, but now that I think of it, McCarver makes it all worth while.

Another behind the scenes look....oooh, ahh...Phil Garner telling the NL guys that there are no signs. What?! Another commercial?! What did we just come back from the last one for? Is my wallet still in my back pocket? Can I have those four minutes back?
Okay, I personally think that this commercial is disturbing. Little kids, playing either basketball or football, but the computer generate the heads of real pro-athletes on them. Peyton Manning's head on some little kid! Why?

Chuck Tanner threw out the first pitch. I like that.

First Inning - AL at NL

Ichiro leads it off for the AL as Ozzie Guillen wishes that Scott Podseknik was leading off. Brad Penny is the starting pitcher for the NL. Ichiro has a full count. Joe Buck has already beaten to death the fact that Ozzie told his guys that if they don't play, tough, make the team next year. Ichiro just struck out on an outside pitch. Here's Jeter...just swung and missed at a high 96 mph fastball and then again at a 98 mph heater. Just missed with another 98. Looks like he's trying to prove something here as he almost hits Jeter with a 99 mph fastball. This gun has got to be fast. Full count. Well, it wouldn't surprise me if Penny was out for a few weeks after this game, he's looking to blow his shoulder out as he fans Jeter on a high and inside fastball.
Here's Big Enormous Papi. 97 fastball, swing and a miss. 2-2 count after a 99 mph fastball. I don't think he has thrown anything offspeed and Ortiz actually fouled off a 99 fastball. Ortiz fouls it off after they showed a shot of Bronson and Nomar hanging out in the NL dugout. 98 mph fastball at the knees freezes Ortiz. Penny strikes out the side. That was very impressive.

Alfonso Soriano is leading off and just hit the first pitch off AL starter Kenny Rogers to right field for an out. Carlos Beltran just fouled a ball down the left side and this ball kid fell on his butt trying to field it. Awful. The Sox have way better ball people as Beltran rips it past A-Rod at third. and yes, Lowell would have had it. Double for Beltran. Here's Albert Pujols. He pops it up to Jeter in shallow left field. Two outs and here's Jason Bay, the local kid. Well, local, in that he plays for the Pirates. 1-1 count to Bay. Oh my gosh...this ball kid is horrible! He just did it again...he slides both feet first trying to field a foul ground ball. 2-2 the count. The Gambler gets him on a slow curveball on the outer half of the plate. Three down, no runs.

Teams R H E
AL 0 0 0
NL 0 1 0

Second Inning - AL at NL

Here's A-Fraud to lead off the inning. 97 mph fastball for an 0-2 count. Wow, Penny just broke off a nasty curveball. He must have caught the home plate umpire off guard, because he called it a ball. 1-2 count on A-Rod. He actually made contact in fair play! Ground ball to Renteria at short, who makes the play, must be because it's not the Fenway dirt, and throws him out.
Vladimir Guerrero just brought Penny back to reality with an opposite field homer to right field. 1-0 AL. Ivan Rodriguez up now. Liner to second base and Chase Utley puts it away. Okay, never fails, Fox just introduced their dumb kids instruction for the night. Crayon instructions accompanied by bad Disney music as they mark where your shoulders, knees and toes should be in your batting stance. Oh yeah, Vernon Wells just flew out to center.
It's official. Jon Lovitz career is officially over. He was just in a Subway commercial. Now he's on the same level with the fat guy, who lost all that weight. Lovitz! He starred on SNL, now he stars for Subway. I don't think we'll see Dana Carvey or Mike Meyers doing Quiznos anytime soon.

Edgar Renteria leads it off. I personally think that he had a decent year offensively for the Sox last year, of course he was horrid in the field, but everyone piles on him like he should have hit .330 with 25 homers and 90 RBIs for the Sox. His numbers were decent. Full count, by the way. He taps to Rogers at the mound and Kenny steps and throws to first.
David Wright from the Mets wasted no time in tying the game, pulling a laser to left field over the fence. 1-1. Utley steps in from the left side for the Phillies. Rogers hangs a curveball inside for a 2-1 count. Paints a pitch on the outside to even it up. Utley hits a slow roller past a diving Kenny Rogers that Jeter fields and throws late to first with. (Editor's note: Alex Gonzalez would have thrown him out)
Paul LoDuca steps in for the Mets. 1-1 the count. Another comebacker to Rogers. He fields, turns, throws to second, Jeter coming across the bag, catches and throws to first for the 1-6-3 double play to end the inning.

Teams R H E
AL 1 1 0
NL 1 3 0

Third Inning - AL at NL

Wow...Loretta leading off the third just hit a sharp grounder to first and it took a weird hop and Pujols fielded it barehanded and then beat Loretta to the bag for the out.
Magglio Ordonez is hitting for Kenny Rogers. Oh, and Roy Oswalt started the inning for the NL. 2-1 to Ordonez. Two strikes now and Oswalt strikes him out for out number two.
Here's Ichiro with a 2-0 count. 3-0. Fouls off the 3-0 and then lines the next pitch to right field for the third out.

Roy Halladay is now on for the AL to face Matt Holliday of the Rockies, who is pinch-hitting for Oswalt. Hits a bounding chopper to Jeter, who gloves and throws across his body for the out at first. Soriano just took a curveball for a ball and then another big curveball and serves it into left field for a single. Wow, Soriano just got a huge jump off Halladay and Pudge Rodriguez didn't have a chance to throw him out at second. If that's how Halladay is, then the Sox should run all day on him. Carlos Beltran just hit a single to center field and here comes Soriano around third trying to score, but Vernon Wells is no Johhny Damon and guns out Soriano at the plate on one hop to Pudge. Beltran takes second on the throw.
1-0 count to Pujols and Beltran bolts for third and steals it. Halladay throws a 55-foot curveball that skips away from Pudge and Beltran scampers home with the go-ahead run to give the NL a 2-1 edge. Halladay strikes out Pujols on a curveball out of the strike zone on the outer half.


Teams R H E
AL 1 1 0
NL 2 6 0

Fourth Inning - AL at NL

Brandon Webb pitching for the NL now as Jeter fouls off an 0-2 pitch. 2-2 count. Webb just got Jeter out on his front foot swinging at a big, slow curveball for the first out of the inning. Here's David Ortiz, the greatest clutch hitter in the history of the universe. 2-2 count. Ortiz pops up to Wright in foul ground near third base. Two outs. Here's A-Rod. 2-0 count. Grounds a curveball to Renteria, who gobbles it up and throws to first for the final out.

Okay, could be the dumbest movie of the year. Snakes on the Plane! What? Samuel L. Jackson. Just further proof that he never should have been allowed to ruin Star Wars. Since when are there going to be hundreds of snakes on a plane in the air?

*The Subway Trivia Game* There are 25 fresh faces in tonight's All-Star game, what is the record for first time players? 32 in 1988 and 2003. I contest the answer though. What about the first All-Star game ever? They were all new players!

Halladay is still out there in the fourth as Jason Bay greets him with a single to center.
Renteria doing his thing, grounds to Loretta at second, who pivots like an All-Star, throws to Jeter, who throws to Ortiz, who catches it like an All-Star for the double play. Two outs.
Here's David Wright. 2-1 count. Halladay gets it in on the hands of Wright, who manages a weak ground ball to short and Jeter throws him out.

Teams R H E
AL 1 1 0
NL 2 7 0

Fifth Inning - AL at NL

Okay, because the game wasn't moving at a slow enough pace, now there is a ceremony to commemorate Roberto Clemente. Bud Selig is presenting the Commisioner's Historic Achievement Award to Clemente, accepted by his widow, Vera, who is wearing this retched olive green pants suit. Bud actually made a really good speech and it's actually pretty moving, especially for the Latin players.
Commercial time as the fifth inning waits and it hits 10 PM in the Eastern U.S.

Bronson starts the fifth for the NL and gets Vladi to sky a high pop-up to foul ground on the left side as Freddy Sanchez basically knocks Wright out of the way to catch it. Pudge Rodriguez just flied to deep center field for the second out. Vernon Wells is up. He smacks a ground ball past the outstretched glove of Wright at third and into left field for a hit. Here's Loretta with two outs and a runner on first, takes ball one low. Loretta smokes a liner to short, but Freddy (the Sox gave me away for Jeff Suppan!) Sanchez leaps up to catch it. Great catch! Inning over.

A bunch of changes in the AL defensive line-up, but who can keep track. I do know that Michael Young is now at second for Loretta and Barry Zito is pitching to Chase Utley to lead off the bottom of the fifth. Utley pops behind first and Papi just kind of wanders over and lets Young make the grab for the first out.
Here's Paul LoDuca, hot shot to third base, E-Rod has it bounce off him, then panics, picks it up, throws it in the dirt, but All-Star first baseman David Ortiz makes the pick in the dirt for the out. Matt Holliday just hit a drive to left field that left you believing that it had a shot to get out of town, but Gary Matthews, Jr, makes the catch. How is this guy an All-Star?

Teams R H E
AL 1 2 0
NL 2 7 0

Sixth Inning - AL at NL

The left-handed hitting Grady Sizemore hits in the pitcher's spot to lead it off vs. the Rockies' Brian Fuentes. He's behind 0-2 at the plate and Fuentes gets him on a flailing swing on a pitch down and away and out of the zone for a strikeout.
Here's Ichiro. 1-2 after a terrible swing on a slider away. Ichiro grounds to short as he looks like he's running to first at the same time as he's swinging his bat. David Eckstein now at short, fields it, and just barely has enough to throw out Ichiro at first. Here's Jeter. He gets Jeter way out in front on an 0-1 pitch that he grounds to Wright at third for the out at first to end the inning.

Scott Kazmir is now pitching for the AL and gets leadoff man Freddy Sanchez to ground out to Miguel Tejada at short for out number one.
Carlos Beltran is now up. 2-1 count. Beltran grounds a ball foul to the left side to run the count full, before flying out to left to Matthews for the out. Pujols hits a deep fly to Grady Sizemore in center field, who goes back a few steps on the track for the out. On to the seventh.

Teams R H E
AL 1 2 0
NL 2 7 0

Seventh Inning - AL at NL

Derrick Turnbow takes over for the NL to face Paul Konerko. 0-2 count misses outside for 1-2. Konerko works a full count. He muscles a fast ball into the gap in left center field.
Troy Glaus now up for the AL. 96 fastball on the outer half to the righthanded Glaus to even the count at 2-2. Ground ball to Wright, he fields the high hop, onto Sanchez, he steps on second has trouble on the transfer, throws high to first, but Ryan Howard comes up with it for the double play. Michael Young pops up high to shallow left field and there's Sanchez again, now at second base, but Holliday calls him off to make the catch.

Here's John Legend to sing God Bless America for the seventh inning stretch.

Okay, I have to comment on this commercial. Flomax. Are you kidding me? They name it Flomax. Basically, it's for men with problems urinating. It supposed to help you when you have to go. This is more funny dancing around the whole, I'm having trouble peeing, than the erectile dysfunction commercials. I hope they show that flomax commercial again. There's more stuff to make fun of there, but I couldn't get it all. Only had 30 seconds to write and watch.

Johan Santana pitching for the AL to Jason Bay. I'm sure he might play the entire game in his home park. Santana strikes him out with a nasty change-up on a 1-2 pitch for the first out.
Lance Berkman is pinch-hitting for the pitcher. Santana walks him on four pitches. David Wright still in the game is now up. I wonder what Miguel Cabrera is thinking as he sits on the bench. Wright gets jammed and hits a weak ground to Young, who, fields, has to hurry with a great pivot and throw to Tejada, who turns it over and throws to first for the double play and the end of the inning.

Teams R H E
AL 1 3 0
NL 2 7 0

Eighth Inning - AL at NL

Tom Gordon starts the eighth by pitching to the Twins great, young catcher, Joe Mauer. 1-2 count. Gordon gets Mauer on a 2-2 low, sharp-breaking curveball. One out and here's Gary Matthews, Jr. I liked his Dad. 1-1 count. Matthews takes the 1-2 pitch right where it's pitched and goes the other way through the hole between third and short for a hit. Jim Thome pinch hits for the pitcher. Thome shatters his bat on the hit-and-run and Matthews coasts into second as Freddy Sanchez makes the play at second and throws out Thome for the second out. Grady Sizemore up for the AL. He scorches a ground ball to the right of second, but Sanchez is there and throws him out for the end of the top of the eighth.

Brian McCann, the catcher for the Braves leads off the eighth and the lefty faces another lefty, BJ Ryan, who gets McCann to ground out to Tejada for the first out.
David Eckstein up for the NL with an 0-2 count. Eckstein fouls off a couple pitches, but succumbs with a swinging strikeout. Holliday wastes no time, lining the first pitch from Ryan to Glaus at third for the end of the inning and onto the AL's last chance.

Teams R H E
AL 1 4 0
NL 2 7 0

Ninth Inning - AL at NL

Trevor Hoffman, the ultimate closer with 460 career saves, second all-time is on to face Jermaine Dye, who hits a squibber back to Hoffman, who throws him out.
Miguel Tejada at the plate and is down 0-2 in the count. Tejada does his best Jermaine Dye imitation and grounds a change-up back to Hoffan, who gets his second assist in as many batters. Here's Konerko, who smacks the first pitch past Miguel Cabrera at third for a hit. Troy Glaus just drove an 0-1 pitch to left field that just got over the head of Carlos Lee in left field and into the stands for a ground-rule double to put runners on second and third for the AL.
Now, Michael Young is up with an 0-1 count. Make that 0-2. Talk about clutch! Young just drove a pitch the other way to the gap in right-center field to score Jose Lopez, who pinch-ran for Konerko and Glaus to give the AL a 3-2 lead.
Joe Mauer steps in and sends an 0-1 pitch back to Hoffman, who makes the play to first for his third assist of the inning. That has to be some kind of record.

Mariano Rivera is on to close the door for the AL as Freddy Sanchez leads it off. Takes an 0-2 pitch low for ball one. Sanchez grounds to third, where Jose Lopez is playing out of position, but throws to first for the out. Carlos Beltran is still in the game for the NL and has a 1-1 count, now 1-2. 2-2 pitch and Beltran goes the other way with a hard grounder to third where Lopez bobbles it, gathers, throws, but too late. One out, one on and Ryan Howard is at the plate as the go-ahead run. Howard grounds the 1-1 pitch to the right side, Young ranges to his left and throws out Howard for out number two as Beltran moves to second base.
Carlos Lee is now up for the NL. 1-2 on Lee now. Beltran was on the move on the pitch, but Lee fouled it off. Lee bloops one to short right field, but Young backpedals out and makes the catch to give the AL another All-Star win. It hasn't lost since 1996.

Teams R H E
AL 3 7 1
NL 2 7 0

Final: AL 3, NL2

American All-Stars
HittersABRHRBIBBSOLOBAVG
I Suzuki RF3000010.000
J Dye RF1000000.000
D Jeter SS3000020.000
M Tejada SS1000000.000
D Ortiz 1B2000010.000
P Konerko 1B20200001.000
J Lopez PR-3B0100000.000
A Rodriguez 3B2000000.000
T Glaus 3B-1B2110001.500
V Guerrero LF2111000.500
M Young 2B2012000.500
I Rodriguez C2000000.000
J Mauer C2000011.000
V Wells CF2010000.500
G Matthews Jr LF10100001.000
M Loretta 2B2000001.000
B Zito P0000000.000
S Kazmir P0000000.000
J Santana P0000000.000
b-J Thome PH1000000.000
B Ryan P0000000.000
M Rivera P0000000.000
K Rogers P0000000.000
a-M Ordonez PH1000010.000
R Halladay P0000000.000
G Sizemore CF2000011.000
Totals33373074
American All-Stars
PitchersIP H RERBBSOHRPC-STERA
K Rogers2.031101130-204.50
R Halladay2.031101022-134.50
B Zito1.00000008-70.00
S Kazmir1.00000009-60.00
J Santana1.000011011-50.00
B Ryan (W, 1-0)1.000001010-100.00
M Rivera (S, 1)1.000000017-120.00
Totals9.0622141107-73
National All-Stars
HittersABRHRBIBBSOLOBAVG
A Soriano LF2010000.500
B Webb P0000000.000
F Sanchez SS-2B2000000.000
C Beltran CF4120000.500
A Pujols 1B3000012.000
R Howard 1B1000000.000
J Bay RF-LF3010021.333
C Lee LF1000001.000
E Renteria SS2000001.000
B Arroyo P0000000.000
B Fuentes P0000000.000
D Turnbow P0000000.000
b-L Berkman PH0000100.000
M Cabrera 3B0000000.000
D Wright 3B3111001.333
T Gordon P0000000.000
T Hoffman P0000000.000
C Utley 2B2010000.500
B McCann C1000000.000
P Lo Duca C2000001.000
D Eckstein SS1000010.000
B Penny P0000000.000
R Oswalt P0000000.000
a-M Holliday PH-RF3000000.000
Totals30261147

National All-Stars
PitchersIP H RERBBSOHRPC-STERA
B Penny2.011103136-244.50
R Oswalt1.000001013-70.00
B Webb1.000001016-100.00
B Arroyo1.010000010-70.00
B Fuentes1.00000109-80.00
D Turnbow1.010000014-80.00
T Gordon1.010001014-80.00
T Hoffman (L, 0-1; B, 1)1.032200013-1318.00
Totals9.0733071125-85


Next blog will be on Thursday, July 13 when the Sox host Oakland at 7:05 Eastern time.

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