Congratulations to the American League’s win in last night’s 2009 All Star game in St. Louis continuing their streak and dominance in the Mid-Summer classic. It was also rewarding to see Orioles’ first time star, Adam Jones, contribute the game winning RBI with a sacrifice fly. For long suffering Baltimore fans, Jones provided the nation with a tantalizing glimpse of the Orioles’ bright future.
Still, the highlight of the night belongs to Tampa Bay outfielder, Carl Crawford, who reached over the fence to rob Colorado Rockies Brad Hawpe of a certain homerun in the bottom of the 7th inning.
No question, the All Stars in both leagues played up to their reputation. They played hard and showed tremendous skill. Who could accuse this of being a beauty contest or mere exhibition, but clearly the American League had the edge, adding this game to the pages of All-Star history which reveals some striking trends of which this game plays right into the plot.
After its long draught, the American League has won 20 All Star games since breaking the National League’s three decade grip including 12 straight games with their victory on July 6, 1983 in old Comiskey Park ignited by a Fred Lynn grand slam en route to a 13-3 bashing of the senior circuit. The National League would then win three out of the next four before the next era of dominance, this time belonging to the American League started in 1988 winning all but four All Star games since with National League victories coming in 1994, 1995, and 1996, and a tie in 2002 as the game went deep into extra innings beyond which the available pitchers could hold up.
When the National League won the All-Star game in 1950 in Chicago’s Comiskey Park, it would begin its era of dominance that would control the next three decades winning seven out of eleven games in the 1950’s. Two games were played in 1959. In the 1960’s their grip tightened, winning eleven games out of thirteen with one tie and one American league victory with two games played in 1960, 1961, and 1962. The “Senior Circuit” only lost one game in the 1970’s, on July 13, 1971 with Earl Weaver leading Reggie Jackson and his own Oriole, the game’s MVP to Frank Robinson. However, the National League’s rule would seem stifling as at American League would not win another game in the 70’s achieving their first victory that would soon turn the tables of league dominance in 1983. In fairness to the National League, their era should be seen as still intact until their loss in 1988 since they won six out of ten games for the decade.
While few runs in any sport could compare to the National League’s long dominance of the All-Star game, even from its beginning in 1933, the first era of the All-Star game covering 1930’s and 1940’s featured a more modest era of dominance without the excessively long streaks still showing the American League starting in the era of Babe Ruth winning 12 and losing 4 to the National League. No game was played in 1945 because of World War II.
While baseball historians will continue to argue what caused the first two eras of one league’s advantage and reporters attempt to account for the present trend, the extent to which either league has been firmly in control still seems improbable but to examine how many games ended in narrow victories of one or two runs shows that the games were at least competitive through out.
The All-Star game started when the New York Yankees ruled sports. Yankee stars were at the heart of many American League victories in the first two decades, but wouldn’t the New York Yankees continue to dominate baseball as the torched was passed from Joe DiMaggio to Mickey Mantle in the 1950’s?
While the Yankees continued to contribute more stars than any other team during the 1950’s, things changed rapidly to National League rule. The National League saw contribution from Willie Mays, Hank Aaron, Frank Robinson, and Ernie Banks among others, great African American stars, while the American League was slower to break the color barrier. The New York Yankees, for instance, would not add its first African-American player until Elston Howard joined the pin-stripes in 1955. These players would continue as the nucleus of the National League team through the 1960’s as the victories continued to mount. Another player who came to personify the National League effort played his first All-Star Game in 1965, but would then play continuously from 1967-1982. That player, Pete Rose, became the poster boy for National League mastery. Playing for his hometown team in their brand new Riverfront Stadium in 1970, Rose slapped a single leading off in the 12th off of California Angel’s pitcher, Clyde Wright. After moving to second on the next hit, Cubs batter, Jim Hickman, singled to center. Testing the arm of Kansas City’s centerfielder, Amos Otis, Rose rounded third and charged the plate. Amos’s throw sailed past Cleveland Indian’s catcher, Ray Fosse, but Rose clobbered into Fosse just the same. Rose would miss his next three games with a slight knee injury, but Ray Fosse’s career would never be the same. Rose and fellow “Big Red Machine” teammates from the Cincinnati Reds would play key roles in the 1970’s games including players like Joe Morgan, Johnny Bench, Tony Perez, and George Foster among others.
Entering the 1980’s, the National League had several teams in transition. The “Big Red Machine” ran out of gas. The Pittsburgh Pirate “family” grew old. Tommy Lasorda’s first round of champions moved on, and the Phillies who opened the 80’s as perhaps the league’s toughest team consisted largely of aged veterans. As the Yankees faded from glory, a new age of stars began to develop in the American League to where by the end of the decade the balance shifted to the American League being in control.
But what accounts for the American League’s current reign?
Some would suggest the designated hitter, but that only affects every other game putting the American League at a slight disadvantage when the tables are turned as they were this year. Surely, the richest payrolls in baseball are in the American League. The New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox lead in highest salaries not to mention presence of players in All Star games. But the next tier of top salary teams are mostly in the National League including the New York Mets, Chicago Cubs, and Los Angeles Dodgers with the Los Angeles Angels and Chicago White Sox being lesser players in that fraternity.
Could it be with the requirement that each team must be represented by at least one player adds a burden to the National League?
Since the National League has sixteen teams to the American League’s fourteen, the National League has two fewer roster spots to control.
This is truly an era of American League dominance. The American League has topped its rival in Interleague play in recent years. Since the Reds won the World Series in 1990, the American League won 11 World Series to 7 by the National League with no series due to the 1994 strike including two championships by the Florida Marlins in 1997 and 2003, a stunning accomplishment in light of this happening during the era of the Atlanta Braves reign of division titles from 1991-2005, but the Braves achieved their one series win in 1995 losing their four other World Series appearances during that run.
Given the last four All Star games have been decided by one run, any claim of overwhelming American League dominance would be overstated, but anyone watching last night’s game could clearly see the American League played a tighter game and once the game was in the hands of Papelbon and Rivera, it was lights out for National League hopes.
Still, the highlight of the night belongs to Tampa Bay outfielder, Carl Crawford, who reached over the fence to rob Colorado Rockies Brad Hawpe of a certain homerun in the bottom of the 7th inning.
No question, the All Stars in both leagues played up to their reputation. They played hard and showed tremendous skill. Who could accuse this of being a beauty contest or mere exhibition, but clearly the American League had the edge, adding this game to the pages of All-Star history which reveals some striking trends of which this game plays right into the plot.
After its long draught, the American League has won 20 All Star games since breaking the National League’s three decade grip including 12 straight games with their victory on July 6, 1983 in old Comiskey Park ignited by a Fred Lynn grand slam en route to a 13-3 bashing of the senior circuit. The National League would then win three out of the next four before the next era of dominance, this time belonging to the American League started in 1988 winning all but four All Star games since with National League victories coming in 1994, 1995, and 1996, and a tie in 2002 as the game went deep into extra innings beyond which the available pitchers could hold up.
When the National League won the All-Star game in 1950 in Chicago’s Comiskey Park, it would begin its era of dominance that would control the next three decades winning seven out of eleven games in the 1950’s. Two games were played in 1959. In the 1960’s their grip tightened, winning eleven games out of thirteen with one tie and one American league victory with two games played in 1960, 1961, and 1962. The “Senior Circuit” only lost one game in the 1970’s, on July 13, 1971 with Earl Weaver leading Reggie Jackson and his own Oriole, the game’s MVP to Frank Robinson. However, the National League’s rule would seem stifling as at American League would not win another game in the 70’s achieving their first victory that would soon turn the tables of league dominance in 1983. In fairness to the National League, their era should be seen as still intact until their loss in 1988 since they won six out of ten games for the decade.
While few runs in any sport could compare to the National League’s long dominance of the All-Star game, even from its beginning in 1933, the first era of the All-Star game covering 1930’s and 1940’s featured a more modest era of dominance without the excessively long streaks still showing the American League starting in the era of Babe Ruth winning 12 and losing 4 to the National League. No game was played in 1945 because of World War II.
While baseball historians will continue to argue what caused the first two eras of one league’s advantage and reporters attempt to account for the present trend, the extent to which either league has been firmly in control still seems improbable but to examine how many games ended in narrow victories of one or two runs shows that the games were at least competitive through out.
The All-Star game started when the New York Yankees ruled sports. Yankee stars were at the heart of many American League victories in the first two decades, but wouldn’t the New York Yankees continue to dominate baseball as the torched was passed from Joe DiMaggio to Mickey Mantle in the 1950’s?
While the Yankees continued to contribute more stars than any other team during the 1950’s, things changed rapidly to National League rule. The National League saw contribution from Willie Mays, Hank Aaron, Frank Robinson, and Ernie Banks among others, great African American stars, while the American League was slower to break the color barrier. The New York Yankees, for instance, would not add its first African-American player until Elston Howard joined the pin-stripes in 1955. These players would continue as the nucleus of the National League team through the 1960’s as the victories continued to mount. Another player who came to personify the National League effort played his first All-Star Game in 1965, but would then play continuously from 1967-1982. That player, Pete Rose, became the poster boy for National League mastery. Playing for his hometown team in their brand new Riverfront Stadium in 1970, Rose slapped a single leading off in the 12th off of California Angel’s pitcher, Clyde Wright. After moving to second on the next hit, Cubs batter, Jim Hickman, singled to center. Testing the arm of Kansas City’s centerfielder, Amos Otis, Rose rounded third and charged the plate. Amos’s throw sailed past Cleveland Indian’s catcher, Ray Fosse, but Rose clobbered into Fosse just the same. Rose would miss his next three games with a slight knee injury, but Ray Fosse’s career would never be the same. Rose and fellow “Big Red Machine” teammates from the Cincinnati Reds would play key roles in the 1970’s games including players like Joe Morgan, Johnny Bench, Tony Perez, and George Foster among others.
Entering the 1980’s, the National League had several teams in transition. The “Big Red Machine” ran out of gas. The Pittsburgh Pirate “family” grew old. Tommy Lasorda’s first round of champions moved on, and the Phillies who opened the 80’s as perhaps the league’s toughest team consisted largely of aged veterans. As the Yankees faded from glory, a new age of stars began to develop in the American League to where by the end of the decade the balance shifted to the American League being in control.
But what accounts for the American League’s current reign?
Some would suggest the designated hitter, but that only affects every other game putting the American League at a slight disadvantage when the tables are turned as they were this year. Surely, the richest payrolls in baseball are in the American League. The New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox lead in highest salaries not to mention presence of players in All Star games. But the next tier of top salary teams are mostly in the National League including the New York Mets, Chicago Cubs, and Los Angeles Dodgers with the Los Angeles Angels and Chicago White Sox being lesser players in that fraternity.
Could it be with the requirement that each team must be represented by at least one player adds a burden to the National League?
Since the National League has sixteen teams to the American League’s fourteen, the National League has two fewer roster spots to control.
This is truly an era of American League dominance. The American League has topped its rival in Interleague play in recent years. Since the Reds won the World Series in 1990, the American League won 11 World Series to 7 by the National League with no series due to the 1994 strike including two championships by the Florida Marlins in 1997 and 2003, a stunning accomplishment in light of this happening during the era of the Atlanta Braves reign of division titles from 1991-2005, but the Braves achieved their one series win in 1995 losing their four other World Series appearances during that run.
Given the last four All Star games have been decided by one run, any claim of overwhelming American League dominance would be overstated, but anyone watching last night’s game could clearly see the American League played a tighter game and once the game was in the hands of Papelbon and Rivera, it was lights out for National League hopes.
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