The Stars will shine brightly Tuesday night in Kansas City
July 24, 1973.
It was the last All-Star appearance for Willie Mays --- the last of his 24 appearances in the Mid-Summer Classic. 24! Try out these numbers: Mays had 23 hits in All-Star games, with three homers, three triples, two doubles and a .307 average.
Willie Mays ... the name means baseball.
The National League won 7-1, thanks to home runs by Johnny Bench and game MVP Bobby Bonds --- a great birthday present for his son, Barry, who turned 9 the same day. This was long ago, when Barry was eating peanut butter and steroid sandwiches.
This was also the last time the All-Star Game was played in Kansas City. It's back Tuesday night for the third time; the first was in 1960 at old Municipal Stadium.
This will also be the first time since 1985 --- the last year the Royals made the playoffs --- that two good teams will actually be on the field at the same time in Kansas City. 27 years is a long time.
The Royals have had one winning season since 1993 and the drought won't end this year, either. If your two favorite teams are the Royals and Cubs, well, sorry.
Just wait 'til next year ... again.
Anyway, Kansas City, here they come --- the best baseball players on the planet. The Royals' All-Star is Billy Butler; the Cardinals have five --- former Royal Carlos Beltran, Rafael Furcal, David Freese, Matt Holliday and Lance Lynn. They could have had even more. Yadier Molina would have been there, but he's on bereavement leave due to the death of his wife's grandfather.
To be sure, the Royals have their issues, but so do the Cardinals. They have a roster full of All-Stars and yet they're in third place in the NL Central. Not so good, but not to worry.
Remember September?
The other players have some time off to do some fishing or play golf. Good for them. Millionaires need some down time, too.
(Speaking of golf, I recently joined the new millennium, dumping my 20 year-old Big Bertha for a state-of-the-art Titleist driver. This baby is sweet and can do it all. You hit it longer, straighter, it helps you lose weight and even whitens your teeth!
It cost more than my first car and is slightly bigger, too, but it's worth it. And for the first time in my life, I obtained a golf club that came with directions. It actually says: WARNING: READ INSTRUCTIONS COMPLETELY BEFORE USE. This was a head-scratcher. What, is it going to explode? Is it poisonous if you eat it? Are you not supposed to hit somebody over the head with it?)
The NL stars will be managed by Tony La Russa, his last hurrah after leading the Cardinals to the World Series championship last fall. He's the first manager to do it, retire on top.
This trip completes his baseball circle, as he made his MLB debut with the Kansas City Athletics in 1963. Crazy, huh?
The festivities got underway with the Home Run Derby on Monday night. Yawn. This thing has grown as tiresome as dunk contests and Joan Rivers.
How many times can you really listen to Chris Berman say: "Back, back, back, back ...?" Once is enough. 150 times is too many.
Still, this is a great showcase for Kansas City. When was the last time a baseball game in Kansas City was on national television? I can't remember, either.
Just wait 'til next year.
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