It was all about the Kansas City Royals and the American League at Tuesday's 2016 MLB All-Star Game at Petco Park in San Diego.
A year ago, Mike Trout took home MVP honors, but it was the Royals who took advantage of the home-field advantage to triumph in the World Series.
This year, Kansas City's Eric Hosmer took home the MVP award in the 4-2 win, putting his Royals in an advantageous position to defend the title while giving the American League a dominant fourth win in a row.
He was quick to talk about what the victory meant for his team too.
"Hopefully this is something we can all rally upon for the second half and find a way to use that home-field advantage," Hosmer said, according to the Associated Press' Ronald Blum.
At first, Hosmer took things into his own hands. When Kris Bryant of the Chicago Cubs smashed a solo shot in the top of the first inning to put the National League out front, Hosmer was quick to respond in the bottom of the frame, tying things up with his own homer.
Interestingly enough, he did it off former teammate Johnny Cueto, which led to a noteworthy stat from ESPN Stats & Info:
Hosmer got something in the way of reinforcements right away, as Kansas City catcher Salvador Perez belted a two-run dinger to put the American League ahead for good.
It was just Kansas City's night. To understand just how special the event was for the Royals, ESPN.com's Jayson Stark provided a staggering bit of research:
Never once, in the six seasons and 575 games they had started together as big league teammates, had Hosmer and Perez homered in the same inning of any game -- regular season or postseason. So of course they both went deep in the very first inning in which they both batted in an All-Star Game.
Now, this far it sounds like Hosmer and Perez could have had an interesting debate for individual honors. Hosmer, though, took the role of insurance man in the third inning and drove in Toronto's Edwin Encarnacion, finishing 2-for-3 at the plate with a pair of RBI.
Other notable events unfolded during the game, even though the American League built a lead it wouldn't relinquish by the third frame.
Perhaps most notable was David Ortiz's farewell. The Boston Red Sox legend didn't hit a homer like he would have wanted, but the goodbyes still made for an epic time. Both MLB and Fox Sports captured the special moments:
What else was memorable in the Kansas City show? Bryant's homer was special, and Miami Marlins outfielder Marcell Ozuna drove in a run to at least try to keep the game competitive. Trout carved out a bit of history, becoming the first American League player to record a hit in each of his first five All-Star Games, according to CBSSports.com's R.J. Anderson, Matt Snyder, Dayn Perry and Mike Axisa.
Perhaps most important of all, the game showed that the future of the sport looks great. Ortiz made this clear in an interview after the game, as captured by FoxSports.com's Dieter Kurtenbach:
I get really impressed with the talent MLB has right now. It's not like it used to be. When I first got to the big leagues, the face of baseball was a guy my age, maybe a little bit younger. Now, the face is baseball is 21, 22, 23 years old. That tells me that this game is in unbelievable hands — great future. It made me happy.
Kansas City, love it or hate it, exemplified this Tuesday.
Most expected the American League to boast a strong pitching staff. Royals skipper Ned Yost went into the game with an oddly constructed roster, boasting more relievers than starters. Five relief pitchers wound up not allowing a run, including Kansas City's Kelvin Herrera.
Still, the spotlight goes to Hosmer, who posted a heartfelt message to Instagram after the game:
It's not too far off to call Tuesday's epic event a passing-of-the-torch moment, with Ortiz giving the nod to a younger generation featuring Trout, Hosmer and so much more.
While Kansas City gears up to put an injury-riddled first half behind it, fans of every team can rest assured the MLB is in great hands.
All stats and info via ESPN.com unless otherwise specified.
Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com
- Login to post comments