Last summer of course we saw some of our favorite events fall by the wayside in the interest of safety with the pandemic dominating all aspects of life. Now with things slowly going back to normal day by day, we're able to once again welcome those events back to our daily lives. And one of them is the wondrous MLB All-Star Week, with its crown jewel event, the All-Star Game, happening on Tuesday the 12th. 

We've seen here and here that some of the game's most memorable moments happen on this night, when regular season games are in abeyance and every fan's eyes are watching this one game. Hopefully we'll have some new memories to look back upon after this year's edition is in the books. But for now, let's revisit some Midsummer Classics of eld, and look back upon other All-Star Game moments that brought smiles to our faces.

1. Johnny Callison Walks It Off (1964) – Although Shea Stadium was the home of the National League's New York Mets for 45 seasons, it only had the honor of hosting the All-Star Game during one of them. However, that All-Star Game proved to be one of the most exciting ones ever played. A see-saw affair, the American League (trailing 3-1 in the top of the 6th), tied the score up on a two-run triple by Brooks Robinson. An inning later they took a one-run lead over the National Leaguers, when Jim Fregosi drove in Elston Howard with a sac fly. That one-run lead would still be intact come the bottom of the 9th, as Dick Radatz (entering his 3rd inning of work), tried to nail down the save and the win. But two batters into this frame, Orlando Cepeda's RBI single scored Willie Mays, tying the game once more at 4-all. Four batters later, pinch-hitter Johnny Callison came to the plate with two outs and two on. The rest was history. Callison deposited a Radatz offering  over the rightfield wall, as Shea Stadium's one and only All-Star Game in the ballpark's history came to a close. As of this writing, Callison's blast was also the last walkoff home run in All-Star Game history.

Shea Stadium Remembered: The Mets, the Jets, and Beatlemania by Matthew Silverman

 

 

 

2. JR Richard Impresses At Dodger Stadium (1980) – Houston Astros hurler J.R. Richard was one of the best pitchers of the mid-to-late 1970s. From 1976 to 1979, Richard averaged a 2.88 ERA over the 149 starts he made, finished in the top seven of the Cy Young voting three times, and received MVP votes twice. Once the curtain was drawn on baseball's 1980 season, Richard seemed to take things to a new level. Entering the All-Star break, he sported a 1.90 ERA over 17 starts, with 10 wins and a 0.924 WHIP, receiving a well-deserved start for the National League at the 1980 All-Star Game. And Richard impressed there too, tossing two scoreless innings while striking at out three, including future Hall of Famers Reggie Jackson and Carlton Fisk. Tragically however, this would be the penultimate appearance of his major league career. After one more regular season start (where he only lasted three and a third innings due to dead arm) and a placement on the disabled list, Richard would suffer a stroke while warming up at Veterans Stadium prior to a game. From there he was rushed to the hospital, where surgery was performed to remove a life-threatening blood clot in his neck. That unfortunately would spell the end of Richard's career as a big leaguer. Let's at least take a little solace in the fact that prior to his health woes in 1980, Richard was the best, and he got to showcase this at the Midsummer Classic.

City of Dreams: Dodger Stadium and the Birth of Modern Los Angeles by Jerald Podair

 

 

 

 

3. Tommy Lasorda Takes A Tumble (2001) – Tommy Lasorda was one of the game's most colorful personalities of all time. Best known for his many years serving the Dodger organization in a variety of roles (including the team's skipper from 1976–1996), the Hall-of-Famer was a beloved figure on the field for his success, and off of it to due to his comedic tirades and charismatic nature. And sometimes he didn't even have to try. Case in point—the 2001 edition of the MLB All-Star Game. Lasorda was the National League's third-base coach at the request of team manager Bobby Valentine (who played for Tommy in the Dodger minor league system in the late '60s, early '70s). In the top of the 6th, Montreal's Vladimir Guerrero stood at the dish facing  Mike Stanton of the Yankees. Guerrero broke his bat on Stanton's 1-2 offering, with a large portion of the bat sent hurtling in Lasorda's direction down the third base line. He got clipped all right, but after tumbling over onto his back, Lasorda popped right back up with a smile on his face, all while putting smiles on the faces of baseball fans worldwide. Just another day in the life for the late, great Lasorda.

They Bled Blue: The 1981 Los Angeles Dodgers: Fernandomania, Strike-Season Mayhem, and the Weirdest Championship Baseball Had Ever Seen by Jason Turbow

 

 

 

4. Barry Bonds Gets Robbed (2002) – The 2002 Major League Baseball All-Star Game is remembered more for the disappointment it brought fans, rather than the game itself unfortunately. In the top of the 11th inning, with both the AL and NL squads down to their final pitchers and the score knotted up at 7, it was announced that if the NL was unable to score in the frame, the game would be deemed a tie. That is precisely what happened, leading to much aggravation among fans, and a complete overhaul of what the All-Star Game would mean starting next season. But nonetheless, the 2002 game did provide a really memorable moment that fans today still remember well. In the bottom of the 1st, San Francisco's Barry Bonds launched a high drive out to right that was destined to be a home run. However, Minnesota's Torii Hunter ranged way over to his left, leaped right at the wall, and hauled it in, making an absolutely brilliant catch that ended the inning. As Hunter made the jog back to his dugout, Bonds playfully lifted Hunter off the ground for a couple of seconds, holding him over his shoulder in acknowledgement of his fine play.

The Slide: Leyland, Bonds, and the Star-Crossed Pittsburgh Pirates by Richard Peterson and Stephen Peterson

 

 

 

5. Derek Jeter's Final Bow (2014) – And with Derek Jeter's delayed-but-pending Hall of Fame induction ceremony coming up this September, it's only right we wrap this list up with his final All-Star Game performance. And it was an impressive one at that. A former All-Star Game MVP in 2000, Jeter made his 14th and final All-Star Game appearance in '14, being voted into the starting lineup by the fans. And what a way to go out. Leading off the game in the 1st, Jeter laced an Adam Wainwright fastball into the right field corner for a standup double. There were rumors in the ensuing days that Wainwright "grooved" the pitch to Jeter (meaning the pitch was intentionally hittable for the batter, right down the middle), but hey, you try hitting a 90 MPH pitch in general. Later in the game, Jeter added a bloop single to his ledger. Prior to the start of the top of the 4th, Jeter was subbed out of the game at shortstop, allowing him to walk off the field to an ovation one final time in an All-Star Game, much to the delight and joy of the sellout crowd in Minnesota's Target Field. His career would end later that fall.

Jeter Unfiltered by Derek Jeter

 

 

 

 

Enjoy the All-Star Game everybody! To check out NYPL's newest baseball selections, please visit our catalog.