The Midsummer Classic

There are few things I care less about — in the world of baseball, or in the world in general — than the Home Run Derby. At its best, it's a fun and pleasant diversion for the fans, much like the original Home Run Derby TV show was, back in the 1960s. But the sheer amount of breathless hype that's pumped into it for weeks ahead of time (WILL MATT KEMP PICK BRYCE HARPER FOR THE HOME RUN DERBY?!?) is silly and grating, as are the endless punning bloviations of the execrable Chris Berman, who was airlifted to Kansas City apparently for the sole purpose of running through his arsenal (emphasis on the "arse") of home run calls during the contest. Seriously, this guy makes Hawk Harrelson sound like Noel Coward...

But despite that — and despite the many negative things I have to say about the All-Star Game in the most recent installment of "High and Tight," my baseball and rock n' roll column for Rolling Stone Online — I'm actually looking forward to the Midsummer Classic. I always do, even though it's often a dull and disappointing affair, probably because I will never entirely disassociate it with the All-Star Games of my youth. Sure, some of those were pretty boring, as well — like 1976, when Mark Fidrych started the ASG against Randy Jones, and wound up getting the "L" as the NL cruised to a 7-1 victory. But I'll never forget the thrill of seeing all those famous players introduced in their colorful uniforms, many of whom I'd never actually seen play (on TV or in person) before... and I still get a glimmer of that today, even with all the crap that surrounds it.

So in tribute to the All-Star Game — or rather, what it once was, I'm gonna offer up a few of the great 70s ASG clips that I've been able to find out there, starting with Fritz Peterson facing Willie McCovey in the 1970 Midsummer Classic...

Followed by Pete Rose's mad dash to win it all...

And the 1971 ASG, which featured Dock Ellis, Reggie Jackson and maybe the greatest collection of true All-Stars in history...

Here's another great clip from 1971, with the late Don Wilson performing some 8th inning fireballing heroics...

And of course, no round-up of 70s All-Star Games can be complete without a clip from the 1979 game, featuring Dave "The Cobra" Parker and his cannon arm...

The pic at the top of this post, by the way, is of the '79 NL squad, a truly stellar collection of players posing in a truly eye-popping collection of uniforms. Parker, Dave Winfield and George Foster in the outfield, Steve Garvey, Davey Lopes, Mike Schmidt and Larry Bowa in the infield, a starting battery of Steve Carlton and Bob Boone, with guys like Bruce Sutter, Gaylord Perry, Joaquin ANdujar and Stever Rogers in the bullpen, and Keith Hernandez, Gary Carter, Pete Rose, Joe Morgan, Ron Cey, Johnny Bench, Dave Kingman, Lou Brock and Lee Mazzilli on the bench. So yeah, there's no chance in hell that the 2012 ASG in Kansas City is gonna live up to that. But a man can remember... and dream.

Comments

[Joe Bonomo]

Great stuff. I bet that it decades from now Ichiro's inside-the-park homer will be a great memory for kids who watched. And Kruk versus the Big Unit.

[PepeFreeUs]

The '79 game has always been a favorite for me, because it was a good game (especially Dave's fabulous throws) and also because it was the first season I followed the Braves and I was happy to see my favorite player on the team, the very cool and funky Gary Matthews, on the NL squad.