Major League Baseball All-Star Week

Angels outfielder Vladimir Guerrero got off to a slow start, but recovered to win the 2007 State Farm Home Run Derby after receiving a new bat from David Ortiz. He defeated Toronto outfielder Alex Rios in the final round.

July 10, 2007 -- Given the distinct San Francisco flavor that emerged Tuesday night at AT and T Park, the 78th All-Star Game might as well have been stuffed between slices of sourdough bread and washed down with a pint of Anchor Steam beer. From the paths batted balls took to the behavior the record crowd exhibited, the bayside ballpark's character was evident as the American League outlasted the National League, 5-4. An inside-the-park home run by Seattle's Ichiro Suzuki and conventional homers by Tampa Bay's Carl Crawford and Cleveland's Victor Martinez helped extend the AL's unbeaten streak to 11 games -- 10 victories and one tie in 2002 -- and gave the Junior Circuit a 16-3-1 record in the last 20 All-Star Games. The AL also gained home-field advantage for this year's World Series, although Minnesota center fielder Torii Hunter claimed that this was an afterthought. "We're competitors," Hunter said. "You didn't have to put the World Series on the end of that. We're going to play hard anyway." The NL shared that sentiment. Trailing, 5-2, the NL roused itself with two outs in the ninth inning as Washington's Dmitri Young singled off Baltimore second baseman Brian Roberts' glove. Then Alfonso Soriano of the Cubs homered off Seattle's J.J. Putz, generating momentum that soared as three walks loaded the bases. But Francisco Rodriguez of the Angels, who issued the last two of those walks, coaxed a harmless fly to right field from Philadelphia's Aaron Rowand to seal the AL's second one-run victory in a row and third in the last five years.

There may have been no Yankees and no Mets. No Alex Rodriguez, no Manny Ramirez, no David Ortiz and no Jason Giambi. But there certainly was a Josh Hamilton. The second-year Rangers outfielder had a first round for the ages Monday night in the annual State Farm Home Run Derby at Yankee Stadium, but he lost in the final round to the Twins' Justin Morneau, who outhomered Hamilton, 5-3. Smacking 28 first-round homers into the far reaches of the old ballpark, which is scheduled to close at the end of the season after 85 years, Hamilton set the all-time Derby record for homers in a single round. He shattered the mark of 24 that Bobby Abreu, then of the Phillies and now of the Yankees, set in Detroit's Comerica Park three years ago, when Abreu won the contest. Hamilton had a three-round total of 35, but it was the opening sprint that won't soon be forgotten. Asked how it felt to experience the Derby, Hamilton said: "Think about the best environment imaginable and being in the middle of it. That's what it was like out there." Morneau was the only repeater from last year's Derby at San Francisco's AT and T Park, won by Vladimir Guerrero of the Angels. Morneau, who was eliminated back then in the first round, had 22 homers on Monday night -- eight in the first round, nine in the second and five in the final round. Although Morneau won, he finished in arrears of Hamilton by 13 total homers. But the format dictates that homers hit in the first two rounds are totaled, while the finalists start with a clean slate in the championship round, a fact that was material to the conclusion.

July 15th, 2008 -- On an evening honoring the rich tapestry of Yankee Stadium's history, the American League found another reason to celebrate the Midsummer Classic -- but it'd have to wait. The Cathedral isn't one to let the spotlight go easily. In the longest All-Star Game in history, Michael Young's sacrifice fly delivered the final blow, allowing the AL to defeat the NL in 15 innings, 4-3, on Tuesday. In the 79th Major League Baseball All-Star Game, it was a memorable finish to perhaps the final national event on the storied Bronx stage. The final twist took hold with the Phillies' Brad Lidge on to work the 15th. Justin Morneau slid home after Young's fly ball to right, with Corey Hart's throw home arriving just a touch too late. "I would have loved to have seen that game wrapped up a little earlier, but we battled and I think it's fitting in Yankee Stadium -- a place where something unpredictable always seems to happen," Young said. "At that point, the legs aren't exactly feeling great, but I had just enough in the tank," Morneau said. Tampa Bay's Scott Kazmir pitched a scoreless top half in relief, logging his first All-Star victory with three outs of work. Kazmir did not expect to even see action in the contest, but as the night grew toward its four-hour, 50-minute conclusion, the bullpen members thinned out. "Once I was there by myself, it was a little nerve-racking," Kazmir said. "There's no telling. I was good to go out for another one, that's for sure." It wasn't needed, as the American League extended its unbeaten streak to a record 12 games, improving to 11-0-1 since the National League's last victory in 1996 at Philadelphia. The decision secures the American League's home-field advantage in the World Series, the sixth consecutive year since Major League Baseball began using the All-Star Game to decide placement of the Fall Classic.

7/13/09: Prince Albert, meet Prince Fielder. With a sellout red-clad Busch Stadium crowd chanting for the hometown royalty, Albert Pujols, to claim the State Farm Home Run Derby hardware in his own castle, it was the Cardinals slugger's National League Central rival who tore down the ramparts and grabbed the gold. Fielder, the Milwaukee Brewers' All-Star first baseman, out-homered Nelson Cruz of the Texas Rangers in the final by a score of 6-5 to win his first Derby in his second try.

7/14/09: The American League extended its unbeaten streak in the Midsummer Classic to 13 years with a 4-3 win over the National League in front of 46,860. The AL's run without a loss is the longest unbeaten streak in All-Star history. First-time All-Stars Adam Jones and Curtis Granderson teamed up to deliver the winning run for the Junior Circuit, which will have home-field advantage in this year's World Series, but All-Star veterans Jonathan Papelbon, Joe Nathan and Mariano Rivera brought the game home in relief.