DENVER — Shohei Ohtani made history. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. nearly beheaded a Hall of Famer, then unleashed his unparalleled power into the thin air of Coors Field.
Together, that was more than enough for the American League to capture the narrative of this 91st All-Star Game and continue its dominance of the National League.
The AL seized control early behind winning pitcher Ohtani and registered a methodical 5-2 victory Tuesday evening, its eighth consecutive triumph over the NL and 15th in the last 18 games.
While the stage was set for two-way legend Ohtani – the Los Angeles Angels star was the first player in history to earn election to the game as a pitcher and hitter – it was Guerrero who captured the buzz, obliterated a baseball and made off with the game MVP award.
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At 22 years and 119 days, Guerrero became the youngest to be named MVP of the All-Star Game. Ken Griffey Jr. was 22 years and 236 days old when he won the award in 1992.
After Ohtani led off the game with a groundout, Guerrero, the Toronto Blue Jays’ slugger whose 28 first-half homers were second to Ohtani’s 33, unloaded on a pitch from Washington Nationals ace Max Scherzer.
It was 111.1 mph off the bat, and just inches from Scherzer’s head. In the regular season, the sequence might have inspired Mad Max to stomp a couple laps around the man.
In this exhibition, he accepted Guerrero’s loving embrace on his way back to the dugout.
“I’m alive,” Scherzer, famously heterochromiatic, said after his scoreless inning. “That’s the success story. I’m just grateful I still have a blue eye and a brown eye.”
Said Guerrero: "At the Home Run Derby, he was joking with and said, hey, take it easy on me tomorrow. After the line drive, I just wanted to give him a hug."
Guerrero’s average exit velocity of 95.2 mph ranks second in the majors and nobody’s hit more than the 45 balls of at least 110 mph he struck in the first half.
His first rocket nearly damaged Scherzer; his second just did damage to the NL.
Guerrero blasted a Corbin Burnes pitch 468 feet to left field in the third inning, giving the AL a 2-0 lead, sending a murmur through the Coors Field crowd and inspiring a drive-by exchange with Padres shortstop Fernando Tatis Jr., his fellow second-generation superstar.
He’d later drive in Blue Jays teammate Teoscar Hernandez with an RBI groundout, while Tampa Bay Rays catcher Mike Zunino clobbered a home run off Mets right-hander Taijuan Walker.
Angels outfielder Jared Walsh ended the last serious threat, making a nifty sliding catch of a sinking Kris Bryant line drive to bail Red Sox reliever Matt Barnes out of a bases-loaded situation in the eighth.
Ohtani? He made some memories of his own, pitching a scoreless first inning, grounding out twice but also reveling in the experience, which came a day after his Home Run Derby debut.
Seguing from the batter's box to the pitcher's mound looked so simple Tuesday. His colleagues know better.
"We're all still in awe of his ability to do that," said AL and Tampa Bay Rays manager Kevin Cash. "The way he handled everything was pretty remarkable."
Ohtani's every movement was greeted raucously by the 49,000 fans packing Coors Field Monday and Tuesday nights.
“I was simply thankful for all the cheers and all the support I get,” he said.
The most meaningful support Tuesday came from a hard-hitting machine they call Vladito.
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