SEATTLE – The reign of the American League is over.
The National League won its first All-Star game since 2012 on Tuesday night, when Rock mountain catcher Elias Diazcontinue, run twice oriole closer Félix Bautista up NL won 3-2 in front of 47,159 fans at T-Mobile Park.
Those fans made them listen all night, begging Shohei Ohtani to sign a contract in Seattle and cheer loudly for their hometown representatives. In the ninth inning, all was set for Julio Rodríguez become a hero. The sailor the midfielder walked to the plate representing the victory as the crowd chanted his name.
Pandemonium, however, did not happen then.
Rodríguez had a seven-step walk before Phillies closer Craig Kimbrel, put two athletes on the base. Philadelphia manager Rob Thomson stuck with his guy, and Kimbrel rewarded confidence by beating José Ramírez on the 30th throw of the inning to secure the win and mark a bucket list item off his list with a save.
Kimbrel said: “I had the opportunity to pitch, but never had this opportunity. “I probably threw more pitches than I wanted to, but I’m glad Topper stuck with me and let me have that chance.”
Here are five other lessons from the night:
1. Ohtani’s free agency is never far
Cheering for the hometown players is to be expected. Normally, the division’s competitors are not treated like that.
Ohtani is an exception.
MLB 2023 All-Star Match: Angels’ Shohei Ohtani Are Rewriting MLB History
How is he different? Before Tuesday’s All-Star game, an opposing player visited him. After being autographed by All-Star teammates Mookie bet And Freddie Freeman, arizona‘S Geraldo Perdomo made the trip to the AL club to get an autograph from Ohtani. Two-way talent has fun obligatory.
Needless to say, fans fell in love with Ohtani. Chants of “come to Seattle” rang out every time he stepped onto the plate.
“I’ve never experienced anything like it, but I’ve certainly heard it,” Ohtani said through the interpreter afterward.
He then praised the city of Seattle, where he’d spent his past vacations, and its fans. Of course, insert any other city name, in any of the other 29 football fields, and the same songs will rock the stage. angel superstar who is about to have a free agency that has every fan base hope to land the next generation’s talents.
Is the player doing the same thing to try to entice him?
“I wanted to keep that a secret,” Ohtani said.
Rodriguez, the hometown star, said he talked to Ohtani a bit but didn’t specifically talk about coming to Seattle.
“Secret,” Rodriguez said with a smile. “It is impossible to know everything in life.”
2. Luis Arrez bring his famous parade to Seattle
A month ago at T-Mobile Park, the impossible happened: Arráez won in a series.
His 0 to 12 performance in three games in Seattle dropped his batting average to 0.378, which looks like he’s finished on a quest to hit 0.400. Just three games later, including two five-hit performances, he peaked again.
No wonder, then, why Blue jay closer Jordan Romano called Arráez the most upset player in the league ahead of Tuesday’s game. Arráez returned to the fateful scene at T-Mobile Park and erased the bitterness on his last trip to Seattle, requiring just two throws to knock out two singles. His second hit brings J.D. Martinez Go home from Monday to tie the game in the fourth inning.
“Wait for the ball, hit the ball,” Arráez said. “That’s what I do.”
Marlins’ Luis Arráez hits an RBI knockdown to score even in the All-Star Game
Freeman, who led the major leagues in hits last year and hit 0.325 last year, was one of many Arráez’s NL teammates who marveled at the achievement. Marlins midfielder ability. After winning the AL batting title last year, Arráez is on track to do the same in this year’s senior round.
“It’s amazing to watch,” Freeman said. “Just today in the game, a 0-0 split for a hit and a quick 0-0.98 mph ball for a hit in the dark. Nothing bothered him. Unbelievable.”
Arráez tells Freeman and Betts that he enjoys watching them fight, but the feeling is mutual. He feels all the support from his All-Star colleagues.
“They said, ‘Hey, go ahead, play hard, enjoy the game, you can hit 0.400,'” Arráez continued. “I said, ‘Hey, it’s hard. I’m human. But I’ll try. Let’s see what happens when I finish my season.”
3. Rangers deep roll
If the All-Star game is supposed to paint the picture of the first half of the season, it’s no surprise that six different Texas Rangers players were on the field when Nathan Eovaldi defeated in the second round.
Despite a late somersault leading up to halftime, Rangers still had a two-game lead Houston Astros as the surprise leaders of AL West. Many expected their improved rotation to be the driving force behind them, but it was the offense that propelled them to this point, scoring more runs than any other team in baseball.
More than half of the AL starting lineup wore Texas caps. And while those players struggled to make Tuesday’s offensive against NL’s elite arms, Adolis García still shows two jumps to catch the ball against the wall on the right side of the field.
The first came on the second field of the game, when Ronald Acuña sent a 353-foot ball out onto the field that García watched. It will be a home match in one field: AL starter Gerrit ColeYankee Stadium.
4. ray fairy tale star
Well represented as brave (eight players) and Rangers, telling the story of the first half would be incomplete without mentioning the Rays and the beginning of their history.
On Tuesday, Randy Arozarena And Yandy Diaz showed off their talent and excitement in Tampa Bay, whose team is still leading the AL East powerhouse.
Immediately after García caught Acuña, Arozarena made a leap of his own, robbing Freeman of a basic hit that should have been a five-ball home run. Arozarena turned to his good friend García, and the corner kickers excited fans by crossing their arms and posing in Arozarena’s classic pose.
Adolis García, Randy Arozarena make elite catch to start the All-Star Game
“It’s not fair,” Freeman quipped. “No, it was a good catch. Hit the ball hard, really couldn’t ask for more in the All-Star Game.”
A half later, Rays ‘Díaz fought the only home game until the Rockies’ Díaz exploded.
5. National League of Vengeance
For a while, the 93rd Midsummer Classic looked more like that.
That said, NL has won 3-21-1 in an All-Star game since 1997 and hasn’t won a game since beating AL, 8-0, at Kauffman Stadium in 2012. On Tuesday, the juniors took the lead in four of the first seven innings and have never been behind in that time, in fine form to claim their 10th straight win in the All-Star Game.
But, in the end, NL exacted revenge.
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Arráez and Martinez were prominent attackers early on, drawing 2 to 2 each, before Díaz delivered the decisive shot. Thomson then tried to downplay NL’s recent underperformance.
“I don’t think they really pay too much attention to that anymore,” he said. “I think if you go into a game, you want to win. But I don’t think that makes much sense.”
Rowan Kavner including the Dodgers and NL West for FOX Sports. Previously he was the editor of digital and print publications of the Dodgers. Follow him on Twitter at @RowanKavner.
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