2000 All-Star Game
In the year 2000, a new century of All-Stars took the field in Atlanta, though this time it was played at Turner Field instead of Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium as it had been twenty-eight years before. Surprisingly, this game allowed only one homerun, which came from the Brave's Chipper Jones who became the thirteenth player to hit an All-Star home run in his home ballpark. Despite this local hero's performance, the star of the game was Yankee Derek Jeter who was only filling in for an injured Alex Rodriguez. Seven additional All-Stars voted to starting lineups by the fans were also injured and missing including Mark McGwire, Ken Griffey Jr., Barry Bonds, Mike Piazza, Pedro Martinez and Greg Maddux. Despite the Yankees All-Star legacy, Jeter became the first in blue pinstripes ever to win an All-Star Most Valuable Player Award. He collected three hits, drove in two runs and scored another en route the honor. During the game the National League stars managed nine hits off of eight American League pitchers, but couldn't break find their way home. Defensively, they contributed to their own downfall with two errors and a difficult third inning during which Dodgers right-handed Kevin Brown walked three batters. On the other side, a combination of timely hitting, clutch pitching and capitalizing on poor defense lifted the Americans to their fourth straight All-Star victory and tenth in thirteen games.
|
