Mike Trout MVP, American League Wins All-Star Game

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Published on July 15 2015 6:19 am
Last Updated on July 15 2015 6:27 am

It was Mike Trout's night. It was Mike Trout's All-Star Game. And it's now, officially, Mike Trout's sport.

So just for the record, in case he's wondering, his fellow big leaguers remain eternally grateful that he continues to let them play in it, too.

"I just sit there and laugh when he goes out there and does what he does," Detroit Tigers pitcher David Price said late Tuesday night, after watching Trout become the first man in history to win back-to-back All-Star MVP awards -- at age 23 -- in the American League's 6-3 thumping of the National League.

"I'll shoot him a text," Price went on. "And I'll be like, 'Hey, you do know that this is the highest league? There's not a higher league, in case you're bored right now.' But he has to keep playing with us, keep playing with us common guys."

On this night, those "common guys" around him included five MVPs, 5 Cy Young award winners, 5 rookies of the year, one World Series MVP, three League Championship Series MVPs and one All-Star Game MVP. And they all managed to fade into the background of this latest, greatest Mike Trout All-Star show.

"He's just an unbelievable player," the Minnesota Twins' Brian Dozier said. "Good for him, man. He's a joy to watch."

Trout's box-score line might not have looked as impressive as, say, Lorenzo Cain's (2-for-3, with a huge RBI double), or Prince Fielder's (1-for-1, with a sacrifice fly and two RBIs). But here's what the MVP did do, in his own inimitable, aw-shucks way -- with a smile on his face and his engine always running:

Exactly four pitches into the game, Trout flipped Zack Greinke's 94-mph fastball, on the outside corner, into the seats in right field. It was the sixth leadoff home run in All-Star history, not to mention the first run Greinke had given up in more than a month.

Then, four innings later, Trout might have done something even more impressive, in his own subtle way. He found a gear that enabled him to go roaring down the first-base line like Usain Bolt, to beat out what looked like a routine double-play ball -- which led, of course, to a game-changing, two-run inning.

And then, finally, in the seventh inning -- when Trout was, not coincidentally, the only starter left in the game for either team -- he drew a leadoff walk off Francisco Rodriguez that set up yet another two-run rally, which helped put this game away for good after the NL had drawn to within one run a half inning before.


Pete Rose Treated Like King

Pete Rose Pete Rose came home for the All-Star Game and made a rare on-field appearance in the place where he's still treated like a king.

Rose, baseball's all-time leader in hits, was voted one of Cincinnati's Franchise Four players as part of a Major League Baseball promotion. Rose and Hall of Famers Johnny Bench, Barry Larkin and Joe Morgan were introduced on the field at Great American Ball Park before the All-Star Game on Tuesday night.

Rose, 74, was last out of the American League dugout. Fans started chanting, "Pete! Pete!" when they saw him reach the top step, wearing a red jacket and tie.

What's next for Rose? He still has no idea.

Rose received a lifetime ban for betting on baseball in 1989 and has a longstanding application for reinstatement pending. Commissioner Rob Manfred said Tuesday that he hasn't yet scheduled a meeting with Rose to discuss it.

Manfred, who replaced Bud Selig in January, said he's reviewing material developed in the various investigations of Rose's gambling.