| Advertisement |
MIAMI -- Miguel Sano, who participated in the Home Run Derby on Monday, used more luck than power to deliver the first RBI on Tuesday in the All-Star Game at Marlins Park. Thanks to the fifth-inning RBI single by the Minnesota Twins third baseman, the American League held a 1-0 lead over the National League heading to the sixth inning.
Advertisement
With Baltimore Orioles second baseman Jonathan Schoop at second base after a two-out double past third, Sano hit the ball off the end of his bat, getting a soft run-scoring hit behind first base and in front of National League right fielder Bryce Harper.
The run was charged to Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Alex Wood.
Harper, the Washington Nationals star, no doubt endeared himself to the fans in Miami with his choice of cleats. Harper wore shoes that honored the late Jose Fernandez, the Marlins pitcher who was killed in a boat crash last September. Harper's shoes had an image of Fernandez's face along with the pitcher's No. 16.
Beyond the consecutive doubles by Schoop and Sano, the first five innings mostly featured great defense and pitching.
NL starter Max Scherzer of the Nationals pitched just one inning, but he was dominant, striking out two.
The first NL reliever, Pat Neshek of the Philadelphia Phillies, pitched a scoreless second inning, but he got help. Harper made a brilliant diving catch in right-center field, saving what might have been extra bases and an RBI off the bat of Salvador Perez.
AL starter Chris Sale of the Boston Red Sox pitched two scoreless innings. He got in trouble in the second when the Nationals' Daniel Murphy and the Colorado Rockies' Nolan Arenado hit opposite-field singles with no outs. However, Sale escaped when he got Washington's Ryan Zimmerman to ground into a double play before striking out Miami's Marcell Ozuna on a pitch in the dirt.
The NL threatened again in the third, loading the bases against New York Yankees reliever Dellin Betances, getting two walks and a single. Betances got Murphy to bounce out to end the inning.
Red Sox center fielder Mookie Betts provided an AL highlight in the fourth. After a single by Arenado, Zimmerman hit a drive to the start of the warning track. Betts caught it and threw out Arenado, who was trying to get the extra base at second.
NOTES: Nine of Tuesday's All-Stars played high school ball in Florida -- more than any other state. ... Miami Marlins RF Giancarlo Stanton had the fastest exit velocity during Monday's Home Run Derby (121 mph). ... During batting practice, Yankees RF Aaron Judge, the Home Run Derby champ, hit a ball off the roof of the retractable dome at Marlins Park. ... Two ex-Marlins made their All-Star Game debuts in their former home park: San Diego Padres LHP Brad Hand and Kansas City Royals LHP Jason Vargas. Another ex-Marlins player, LHP Andrew Miller of the Cleveland Indians, made his second straight All-Star Game, both since leaving Miami.
