The Ten Greatest Moments in All-Star Game History

MLB.com is featuring a campaign for fans to vote on the greatest moment in All-Star Game history, and it has come down to Cal Ripken's home run during his All-Star farewell in 2001 and Stan Musial's game-winning blast in Milwaukee in 1955 as the potential winners. I have been voting furiously for "Stan the Man," if only for the reason that I would like to hopefully see him make an on-field appearance for the final time, surrounded by both All-Star teams a la Ted Williams in 1999 and George Steinbrenner in 2008. Musial is 90 years old and has always been one of the more underrated legends in baseball history, and even though I do not particularly care for the St. Louis Cardinals, Musial is the embodiment of all that is good within their historic franchise and in Major League Baseball.

However, if I had my druthers, neither moment would be in my top three for the history of the All-Star Game. Here is my list of the top ten moments in All-Star Game history:



10.) Stan the Man ends the All-Star Game with a bang in Milwaukee, 1955.

Throughout the course of his illustrious career, Stan Musial would appear in a record 24 All-Star Games, along with hitting a record six home runs in the Midsummer Classic. However, his biggest All-Star moment came during the 1955 game at Milwaukee's County Stadium, when he lit up Boston's Frank Sullivan for a game-winning, solo home run in the 12th inning. The final score: National League 6, American League 5.



9.) Fred Lynn hits the first grand slam in All-Star Game history at Comiskey Park, 1983.

The All-Star Game was celebrating its 50th anniversary in 1983, and fittingly enough, it was held at Comiskey Park, home of the Chicago White Sox and the site of the inaugural All-Star Game in 1933. The American League was suffering through a record 11-game losing streak in the Midsummer Classic, as their last victory over the N.L. came in Detroit in 1971. However, the Junior Circuit's drought would come to an abrupt end this time, and the Angels' Fred Lynn would seal the deal with the game's first-ever grand slam in the third inning off of San Francisco's Atlee Hammaker. The slam capped off a seven-run inning for the American League, giving them a 9-1 lead. The A.L. ended their 11-game losing streak that night, crushing the N.L. 13-3.



8.) Dave Parker nails Brian Downing at the plate in Seattle, 1979.

Known as a five-tool player during his time with the Pittsburgh Pirates, right fielder and reigning National League MVP Dave Parker came through big with an outstanding defensive play for the National League. The game was knotted up at six apiece in the bottom of the eighth inning, with Cubs closer Bruce Sutter on the mound, Yankees third baseman Graig Nettles at the plate and runners on first and second with two out. Nettles lined a single to right field and the Angels' Brian Downing was making his way toward home plate from second base. His run would have been the go-ahead one for the American League, but Dave Parker would scoop up the ball and throw out Dowining at the plate on a one hop throw. The play ended the inning and preserved the tie. The N.L would go on to win the game 7-6, and Parker would be named the All-Star Game MVP.



7.) Torii Hunter robs Barry Bonds in Milwaukee, 2002.

Another great defensive play would take place at Miller Park in 2002, when in the bottom of the first, Giants slugger Barry Bonds crushed a 1-1 pitch from Boston's Derek Lowe deep into right center field. The ball would have easily been a home run, but Twins center fielder Torii Hunter leaped high above the wall to take it away from the game's most feared hitter. Unfortunately due to a shortage of available players, the game ended in a flat-footed tie in the 12th inning at 7-7.



6.) Babe Ruth begins the first All-Star Game with a bang at Comiskey Park, 1933.

The game would be billed as "The Game of the Century," as the festivities were held as a part of the World's Fair that was taking place in the Windy City that summer. The White Sox's Comiskey Park played host to the first-ever All-Star Game, and the first home run would be hit by none other than Babe Ruth, when he took Cardinals' starter Bill Hallahan deep in the third inning. The A.L. would go on to win the game, 4-2, and a Midsummer tradition was born.



5.) Boston's Pedro Martinez dazzles the hometown crowd with a flurry of strikeouts, 1999.

During the Steroid Era, there were not too many pitchers who stood out for their on-mound excellence. However, the Red Sox's Pedro Martinez would be one of the few exceptions, as he would finish 1999 with one of the best seasons in recent memory by a pitcher. His performance in the All-Star Game would be the defining moment of his Cy Young season that year, striking out the first four N.L. hitters (Barry Larkin, Larry Walker, Sammy Sosa and Mark McGwire) in perhaps one of the most intimidating All-Star lineups in history. The A.L. won 4-1 and Martinez would garner the All-Star Game MVP for his impressive effort.



4.) A 15-inning thriller in the Bronx, 2008.

Old Yankee Stadium's final year was in 2008, and it would not go out quietly hosting its final All-Star Game, as the contest lasted 15 innings in what could arguably be the finest Midsummer Classic ever played. The N.L. appeared to be on the fast-track to winning the game in the bottom of the seventh, when Reds' pitcher Edinson Volquez could not hold the lead, surrendering a two-run homer to Boston's J.D. Drew to tie the game. In the following frame, the N.L. would re-take the lead on a Adrian Gonzalez sacrifice fly, but the A.L. rallied to tie the game again in the bottom of the eighth, when an Evan Longoria ground-rule double scored Grady Sizemore to even things up at three.

The game marched on to extra-innings, and the drama continued. Rockies pitcher Aaron Cook managed to work out of a bases-loaded, no out jam in the bottom of the 10th, while Pirates center fielder Nate McClouth made his best Dave Parker impression in the bottom of the 11th, throwing out Tampa Bay's Dionner Navarro at the plate. Both teams managed to get people on, but neither one could scratch another run across until the bottom of the 15th, when Michael Young's sac fly scored Justin Morneau to win the game. Fittingly enough, the final play even had plenty of drama, as Morneau barely slid in ahead of the throw from Milwaukee's Corey Hart.



3.) Pete Rose takes out Ray Fosse at home plate in Cincinnati, 1970.

Riverfront Stadium was not even a month old when it hosted its first All-Star Game in 1970, and what a game it was! The game would mark the first time since 1957 that the fans could vote for the game's starters, and the people of Cincinnati were treated to a classic, as the game was tied at four heading into the 12th. With Pete Rose on second and two out, the Cubs' Jim Hickman lined a Clyde Wright offering into center field for a base hit. Royals center fielder Amos Otis came up firing and there would be a dramatic play at the plate. Rose, demonstrating the hard-nosed style of play that endeared him to fans in Cincinnati, crashed into Cleveland's Ray Fosse at home, scoring the game-winning run. The National League won by a score of 5-4, but the promising career of Ray Fosse would be nearly lost, as he suffered from a severely injured shoulder as a result of the collision. While Fosse would play another nine seasons and capture two World Series rings with the Oakland A's, he would never regain the level of play that made him so promising during the 1970 season.



2.) Reggie Jackson's titanic blast at Tiger Stadium in Detroit, 1971.

Sure there have been other gargantuan blasts hit in All-Star competition (Johnny Bench's center field, upper deck shot during the game as Jackson's blast and Bo Jackson's titanic shot in Anaheim 18 years later come to mind), but neither one holds a candle to Reggie's moon shot. In the bottom of the third with one on, Jackson connected with a hanging slider from Pittsburgh's Dock Ellis that wound up hitting the light standard high above the right center field roof. The home run went an estimated 520 feet, and it would help spur the A.L. to a 6-4 victory, their first since 1962.



1.) Carl Hubbell strikes out a quintet of future Hall of Famers at the Polo Grounds, 1934.

In one of the defining moments of the career of Hall of Fame lefty Carl Hubbell, the screwballing lefty would strike out Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Jimmie Foxx, Al Simmons and Joe Cronin all in succession during the first and second inning of the second-ever All-Star Game. All five hitters would go on to make the Hall of Fame, and in an era where players did not strike out nearly as much as they do today, the feat is all the more impressive. The record of five consecutive strikeouts would only be matched by the Dodgers' Fernando Valenszuela in 1986, but the five he struck out (Don Mattingly, Cal Ripken, Jr., Jesse Barfield, Lou Whitaker and pitcher Ted Higuera)- while impressive- does not hold a candle to what "King Carl" did before his home crowd on July 10, 1934.