The 2013 MLB All-Star Game is taking place at Citi Field, home of the New York Mets. The festivities begin on Friday, July 12th with the All-Star FanFest and will conclude with the 84th MLB All-Star Game on Tuesday, July 16th. Without a doubt, the most exciting aspects of All-Star weekend are the All-Star Futures Game, Home Run Derby and the All-Star Game itself.
All-Star Futures Game
The first of the three major All-Star events is the All-Star Futures Game, which will take place at 2:00 PM EST on Sunday, July 14th. This will be the 15th edition of the Futures Game, which features some of Major League Baseball’s top prospects from all over the globe. Last season, Team USA dominated Team World 17-5 at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City, MO, and has won the past three games dating back to 2010.
Overall, the Future’s Game has been fairly even - with Team USA barely edging Team World with eight wins over the last fourteen seasons. There are 24 players participating in the game that are featured in MLB.com’s Top 100 Prospects list, including three from the top 10: Cardinals outfielder Oscar Taveras (no.3, World), Mariners right-hander Taijuan Walker (no.5, USA), and Reds outfielder Billy Hamilton (no.10, USA). Team World features players from 11 different countries: Dominican Republic, Chinese Taipei, Brazil, Venezuela, Panamá, Puerto Rico, Aruba, South Korea, Colombia, Canada, and Cuba.
Home Run Derby
The Home Run Derby is arguably the most popular and exciting event of the All-Star festivities - which will go down on Monday, July 15th at 8:00 PM EST on ESPN. Robinson Cano and David Wright, appropriately representing both of New York’s franchises, were selected as the Home Run Derby captains for the American League and National League respectively. Here are who the captains opted to go with for the 29th annual event:
American League
National League
Pedro Alvarez (Pirates)
Michael Cuddyer (Rockies)
Prince Fielder and Jose Bautista put on a show last season, with Fielder coming out on top to win the Derby trophy for the second time in his career.
All-Star Game
The main event is the 84th MLB All-Star Game - featuring the game’s top players for the first half of the 2013 season. The National League has won the past three All-Star games, outscoring the American League 16-2 since 2010. Prior to that, the American League had won 12 of 13 games played from 1998-2009 (the game ended in a controversial tie in 2002). After the infamous All-Star Game tie, MLB implemented a rule stating that whichever League won the All-Star game earns home-field advantage for that season’s World Series.
Here are how the two rosters are put together and how many times each player has been selected to the All-Star Game throughout their career:
American League
Infielders: Chris Davis (Orioles-1), Edwin Encarnacion (Blue Jays-1), Prince Fielder (Tigers-5), Robinson Cano (Yankees-4), Jason Kipnis (Indians-1), Dustin Pedroia (Red Sox-4), Ben Zobrist (Rays-2), Miguel Cabrera (Tigers-8), Manny Machado (Orioles-1), J.J. Hardy (Orioles-2), Jhonny Peralta (Tigers-2)
Designated Hitter: David Ortiz (Red Sox-8)
Pitchers: Clay Buchholz (Red Sox-2), Brett Cecil (Blue Jays-1), Bartolo Colon (A’s-3), Jesse Crain (White Sox-1), Yu Darvish (Rangers-2), Steve Delabar (Blue Jays-1), Felix Hernandez (Mariners-4), Hisashi Iwakuma (Mariners-1), Justin Masterson (Indians-1), Matt Moore (Rays-1), Joe Nathan (Rangers-6), Glen Perkins (Twins-1), Mariano Rivera (Yankees-13), Chris Sale (White Sox-2), Max Scherzer (Tigers-1), Justin Verlander (Tigers-6)
National League
Catchers: Yadier Molina (Cardinals-5), Buster Posey (Giants-2)
Infielders: Joey Votto (Reds-4), Allen Craig (Cardinals-1), Freddie Freeman (Braves-1), Paul Goldschmidt (Diamondbacks-1), Brandon Phillips (Reds-3), Matt Carpenter (Cardinals-1), Marco Scutaro (Giants-1), David Wright (Mets-7), Pedro Alvarez (Pirates-1), Troy Tulowitzki (Rockies-3), Everth Cabrera (Padres-1), Jean Segura (Brewers-1)
Outfielders: Carlos Beltran (Cardinals-8), Carlos Gonzalez (Rockies-2), Bryce Harper (Nationals-2), Dominic Brown (Phillies-1), Michael Cuddyer (Rockies-2), Carlos Gomez (Brewers-1), Andrew McCutchen (Pirates-3)
Pitchers: Madison Bumgarner (Giants-1), Aroldis Chapman (Reds-2), Patrick Corbin (Diamondbacks-1), Jose Fernandez (Marlins-1), Matt Harvey (Mets-1), Jason Grilli (Pirates-1), Clayton Kershaw (Dodgers-3), Craig Kimbrel (Braves-3), Jeff Locke (Pirates-1), Cliff Lee (Phillies-4), Adam Wainwright (Cardinals-2), Travis Wood (Cubs-1), Jordan Zimmerman (Nationals-1)
To find what bats these players will be swinging, check out JustBats.com, where we offer fast, free shipping everyday! Check out what these All-Stars have been swinging:
The 84th MLB All-Star Game will take place on Tuesday, July 16th at 8:00 PM EST on FOX. Be sure to tune in and watch your favorite All-Stars battle it out for home-field advantage for the 2013 World Series!
If you have any questions about what the pros are swinging, or about bats in general, feel free to contact our team of bat experts via phone, chat, or email. Our toll free phone number is 1-866-321-2287.
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