2012 MLB All-Star Game: National League Shuts Out American League, 8-0

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MLB All-Star Game 2012: NL Routes AL 8-0 To Lock Up Home Field For World Series

The National League jumped all over American League starter Justin Verlander in the first inning and never looked back to earn the All-Star game win, 8-0 and secure home field advantage for the National League team in the World Series.

Verlander gave up five first-inning runs in his first All-Star Game start and was tagged with the loss. Pablo Sandoval hit a three-run triple in the first to help chase Verlander. Sandoval's San Francisco Giants teammate Melky Cabrera also led the way on offense for the NL, scoring twice with two hits including a two-run home run in the fourth inning to blow open the game. That effort earned Cabrera the MVP award.

The Giants also had the winning pitcher, with starter Matt Cain earning the win for his two shutout innings to start the game.

Cleveland Indians shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera joined the game off the bench in the fifth inning when he pinch hit for Derek Jeter. Cabrera walked in his first plate appearance to load the bases with two outs but Ian Kinsler flied out to deep left field to end the threat and keep the AL scoreless. Cabarera struck out in his second at bat by Atlanta Braves right-handed reliever Craig Kimbrel.

Cleveland closer Chris Perez was one of four available pitchers that didn't pitch an inning for the AL.

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• 11 months ago
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MLB All-Star Game 2012: Melky Cabrera Lights Up All-Star Game To Give NL Early Lead

It's gotta be the shoes.

San Francisco Giants center fielder Melky Cabrera showed up in the batters box for the National League at the All-Star Game wearing bright orange shoes. After the way he's been hitting, he may not take those shoes off for the rest of the season.

Cabrera singled in the first to jump-start a five-run rally against Detroit Tigers' ace Justin Verlander. Then in the fourth inning, Cabrera drilled a pitch from Texas Rangers' left-hander Matt Harrison out of the park for a two-run homer, to give the National League a commanding 8-0 lead through four innings of play.

The NL did all of their damage against Verlander and Harrison, collecting eight hits to score their eight runs. Matt Cain, Gio Gonzalez and Stephen Strasburg have combined to shut out the American League, allowing just two hits.

Cleveland Indians shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera has yet to play while closer Chris Perez may only be needed for mop up duty at this point.

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• 11 months ago
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2012 MLB All-Star Game: Lineup, TV Schedule, Streaming And More

Futures Game, Celebrity Game and Home Run Derby now complete, the 2012 MLB All-Star Game is set for Tuesday night at Kansas City's Kauffman Stadium.

Fox will televise the event, and MLB.com will have live streaming -- each starting at 7:30 Eastern. ESPN Radio will have radio coverage.

While Cleveland don't have any All-Star starters, two Indians will be on hand: shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera and closer Chris Perez.

The starting lineups are:

American League

1 - Derek Jeter, New York Yankees

2 - Robinson Cano, New York Yankees

3 - Josh Hamilton, Texas Rangers

4 - Jose Bautista, Toronto Blue Jays

5 - Prince Fielder, Detroit Tigers

6 - Adrian Beltre, Texas Rangers

7 - David Ortiz, Boston Red Sox

8 - Mike Napoli, Texas Rangers

9 - Curtis Granderson, New York Yankees

National League

1 - Carlos Gonzalez, Colorado Rockies

2 - Melky Cabrera, San Francisco Giants

3 - Ryan Braun, Milwaukee Brewers

4 - Joey Votto, Cincinnati Reds

5 - Carlos Beltran, St. Louis Cardinals

6 - Buster Posey, San Francisco Giants

7 - Pablo Sandoval, San Francisco Giants

8 - Dan Uggla, Atlanta Braves

9 - Rafael Furcal, St .Louis Cardinals

Justin Verlander will start for the AL, Matt Cain for the NL.

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• 11 months ago
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Home Run Derby 2012: Prince Fielder Wins Second Career Home Run Derby

Prince Fielder of the Detroit Tigers is the 2012 MLB Home Run Derby champion. In the final round on Monday night, he beat Jose Bautista 12-7 to join Ken Griffey Jr. as the only players in MLB history to win the competition more than once.

Fielder was the champ in 2009 as a member of the Milwaukee Brewers. He is the only player to win the Derby on behalf of both the American and National Leagues.

Fielder squeaked into the second round with five runs, then hit 11 in the second.

Bautista hit 11 home runs in the first round, then only managed two in Round 2. He advanced to face Fielder after beating the Los Angeles Angels' Mark Trumbo in a swing-off.

Along with Trumbo, the Cardinals' Carlos Beltran was eliminated in the second round. The Rockies' Carlos Gonzalez, the Pirates' Andrew McCutchen, the Dodgers' Matt Kemp and the Yankees' Robinson Cano didn't make it out of the first.

For more on the Cleveland Indians, check out Let's Go Tribe. For more news and analysis on the upcoming All-Star Game as well as everything going on during the break, check out Baseball Nation.

• 11 months ago
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Home Run Derby 2012: Jose Bautista Leads Pack With 11 In 1st Round

The first round of the 2012 MLB Home Run Derby is over. Jose Bautista (Toronto Blue Jays), Carlos Beltran (St. Louis Cardinals), Mark Trumbo (Los Angeles Angels) and Prince Fielder (Detroit Tigers) will advance to the second round.

Bautista is the leader of the pack, with 11 in Round 1. Beltran and Trumbo had seven each.

Fielder managed five, including the longest home run of the night, a 454-foot blast.

Carlos Gonzalez (Colorado Rockies) and Andrew McCutchen (Pittsburgh Pirates) were both eliminated with four home runs, as was Matt Kemp (Los Angeles Dodgers) with one.

Last year's champion, Robinson Cano of the New York Yankees, didn't hit a single home run. If that wasn't enough, he was booed by the Kansas City crowd after every attempt. Ouch.

For more on the Cleveland Indians, check out Let's Go Tribe. For more news and analysis on the upcoming All-Star Game as well as everything going on during the break, check out Baseball Nation.

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Home Run Derby 2012: Contenstants, TV Schedule, Start Time And More

With Sunday's group of games in MLB finished, the All-Star break has begun fully, and Monday night will bring Kauffman Stadium the Home Run derby. There won't be any Cleveland Indians players in this season's derby, but it's still star studded and should provide a good show.

The American League will send out a team captained by Yankees star Robinson Cano. Cano's squad features Prince Fielder of the Tigers, Mark Trumbo of the Angels and Jose Bautista of the Blue Jays.

The National League will counter with a team led by Matt Kemp of the Los Angeles Dodgers. His team will have Carlos Gonzalez of the Rockies, Carlos Beltran of the Cardinals and Andrew McCutchen of the Pirates on it. Originally, Marlins slugger Giancarlo Stanton was on the NL team but had to be pulled due to injury. McCutchen ended up being his replacement.

The derby will begin at 8:00 p.m. ET on Monday at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City. It will be televised on ESPN.

For more on the Cleveland Indians, check out Let's Go Tribe. For more news and analysis on the upcoming All-Star Game as well as everything going on during the break, check out Baseball Nation.

• 12 months ago
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MLB All-Star Futures Game: U.S. Futures Stars Defeat World 17-5

The U.S.-born players dominated the World roster in the Major League Baseball Futures game to kick off the All-Star week in Kansas City. The U.S. won easily 17-5, but Indians' first base prospect Jesus Aguilar contributed to the World team at Kauffman Stadium.

Aguilar is having an excellent season at the Class A Advanced level with the Carolina Mudcats in the Carolina League. he is batting .305 with 11 home runs as the 22-year old native of Venezuela earned the start for the World team. He was 1 for 3 with a walk and a run scored in four plate appearances.

Aguilar signed with the Indians as an undrafted free agent in 2007 and led all Cleveland prospects with 82 RBIs during the 2011 season. He split last year between the Midwest League and the higher Carolina League and had had 23 home runs and 131 hits as one of Cleveland's top prospects.

2011 first round draft pick Francisco Lindor also got one at bat and delivered a late single. Lindor is currently playing with the Lake County Captains of the Midwest League.

For more on the Indians, head over to Let's Go Tribe. For more MLB coverage throughout the All-Star break, visit Baseball Nation.

• 12 months ago
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MLB Futures Game 2012: Rosters, TV Schedule, Start Time And More

The 14th annual All-Star Futures Game will get underway on Sunday evening in Kansas City, as dozens of baseball's top prospects from around the world will take the field to show their stuff.

Featuring 31 players from MLB.com's Top 100 Prospects List, the game will include budding talents from around the league such as Manny Machado, Trevor Bauer, Dylan Bundy and Gerrit Cole. All 30 of Major League Baseball's organizations will obviously be represented at the event, as the Cleveland Indians will send a pair of youngsters, infielders Jesus Aguilar and 2011 first-round pick Francisco Lindor, to play for the World team.

Managing the U.S. Team will be former Royals great George Brett, while Bernie Williams will take the reigns for the World Team. Along with Lindor and Aguilard, the World Team will be comprised of players from as many as 11 non-U.S. countries, including eight from the Dominican Republic alone. A total of 88 players have gone on to later play in the MLB All-Star Game after having once starred in the Futures Game, so this is a prime opportunity to check out the next wave of baseball superstars.

Time: Sunday, July 8, 5:00 p.m. E.T.

Location: Kauffman Stadium, Kansas City

TV: ESPN 2

Stream: MLB.com

Full rosters for the game are available here.

For more on the Indians, head over to Let's Go Tribe. For more MLB coverage throughout the All-Star break, visit Baseball Nation.

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Chris Perez Will Be Accompanied By PR Rep At All-Star Game To Deflect Attendance Questions

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2012 MLB All-Star Game: Jason Kipnis Biting Tongue About All-Star Game

Cleveland Indians shortstop Jason Kipnis, who was left off the American League All-Star team despite a stellar first half of the season, is not pouting about what some have called a snub.

Kipnis' path down the high road was detailed in this MLB.com article and this Plain Dealer article. The MLB.com article reads:

When asked if he was disappointed he didn't make it, Kipnis declined to answer.

"I'm gonna leave that one alone," he said.

And The Plain Dealer:

When the teams were announced Sunday, and he didn't make it, Kipnis refused to talk to reporters. On Monday it was more of the same as the Indians started the last seven-game homestand before the All-Star break with a three-game series against the Angels.

"It's not something I'm going to talk about," said Kipnis.

Kipnis, who is hitting .272 with 47 RBI and 11 homers, certainly had an argument to be an All-Star. But it's not like the AL will be sending scrubs onto the field with All-Star shortstops Ian Kinsler and Robinson Cano.

Cano has the highest batting average among qualified short stops -- .313, which is .033 higher than second-place Howard Kendrick -- as well as the most home runs among all MLB shortstops (20).

Kinsler, meanwhile, is third in RBI (40, behind only Cano's and Kipnis' 47), tops in runs scored (61) and second in on-base plus slugging (.786).

Even if he did deserve to make the cut, the 25-year-old Kipnis doesn't appear to be sulking. He shot out this tweet Monday:

A lot of things I want to say... But just gonna limit it to wishing CP and Cabby the best! Have been studs the whole year! #welldeserved

— Jason Kipnis (@TheJK_Kid) July 2, 2012

CP would be closer Chris Perez and Cabby is shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera, who will be the Indians' two All-Star representatives.

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• 12 months ago
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2012 MLB All-Star Game: National League Home Run Derby Field Announced

The most exciting event of the MLB All-Star festivities is the home run derby. On Sunday, Matt Kemp of the Los Angeles Dodgers, who is also the captain of the team announced the competitors for the National League:

1. Giancarlo Stanton - Miami Marlins
2. Carlos Beltran - St. Louis Cardinals
3. Carlos Gonzalez - Colorado Rockies

Kemp has been sidelined since May 30th with a hamstring strain in his left leg but still plans on participating in the derby. He has 12 homers so far this season. Stanton of the Marlins has 19 home runs, Carlos Beltran has 20 and Carlos Gonzalez has 17.

The American league field is set to be announced on Monday.

The 2012 State Farm Home Run Derby will take place on July 9 at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City.

For more 2012 MLB All-Star game coverage, stay locked with this StoryStream. And for more MLB news and expert analysis, be sure to check out Baseball Nation.

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MLB All-Star Game Voting Results: Chris Perez Expects Boos From Kansas City Crowd

Chris Perez was selected to go to the 2012 MLB All-Star Game -- his second straight appearance in the ASG -- thanks to a sublime record throughout the year that has included 23 saves, tied for the lead in the AL.

With the game being in Kansas City, he might not be getting the most welcome reception from the hometown crowd at Kauffman Stadium. Perez has been caustic all season long to just about everybody including his own fans in Cleveland -- whom he ripped for not showing up to games early in the campaign -- but has saved a special trolling flair for the Kansas City Royals. From tweets making fun of the Royals after losses to making gestures toward the Royals faithful that he stole from the wrestling ring, he hasn't exactly made himself a loved figure around KC.

For that reason, Perez is expecting a couple of boos if and when he enters the diamond on July 10.

"I'm prepared to get booed," said Perez, who celebrated his 27th birthday Sunday. "I'm hoping there's a lot of national baseball fans at the game. Not just Kansas City fans."

Fortunately for Chris, the ASG is decided on numbers rather than what you say, so he can continue to troll Royals fans as much as he wants as long as he keeps the saves flowing.

For more 2012 MLB All-Star game coverage, stay locked with this StoryStream. For more Indians coverage, head over to Let's Go Tribe. And for more MLB news and expert analysis, be sure to check out Baseball Nation.

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MLB All-Star Game Voting: Jason Kipnis, Asdrubal Cabrera Moving Up In Balloting

Last week, Asdrubal Cabrera was the only representative that the Cleveland Indians had in the All-Star Game voting process that will be concluding on June 22. Cabrera sat as the fifth highest voted short stop with 344,065 votes, which had him trailing the likes of Alcides Escobar, J.J. Hardy, Elvis Andrus and Derek Jeter. In the most recent update published on June 11, Cabrera has earned around 200,000 extra votes and has surpassed Escobar for fourth with 514,741.

However, Cabrera is no longer the only Indian vying for votes. Second baseman Jason Kipnis has bumped off Chris Getz of the Kansas City Royals for the fifth most votes amongst second baseman; Kipnis currently has 357,651 votes.

These votes will determine who the starters will be for the 83rd MLB All-Star Game, which will be held on July 10 in Kansas City. The final results will be announced on July 1 on the 2012 MLB All-Star Game Selection Show presented by Taco Bell, televised nationally on TBS.

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