Seattle Mariners pitcher Felix Hernandez was excited about the prospect of pitching in the All-Star game after missing out the past two times he was selected to the Midsummer Classic and Jim Leyland made sure he got in there, putting the King into the game after Max Scherzer and Chris Sale started it off.
Hernandez flew to the game on a private jet along with Mike Trout and the two both contributed to the 3-0 win for the American League, the first time in three years the league won. The team snapped a 17-inning scoreless streak and now the team has home field advantage in the World Series, something that has played out in 22 of the past 27 championships.
Hisashi Iwakuma was forced to sit out after pitching on Sunday, while Hernandez got into the game for the first time since 2009 after making the past two teams for the same reason. He needed just 13 pitches to retire the side of Brandon Phillips, who grounded out, then Joey Votto did the same before David Wright added another for the trifecta. Carlos Beltran got the lone hit off him, Andrew McCutchen of the Pirates ran for Beltran and ended up on third before the inning ended. Mariano Rivera pitched the eighth and won MVP.
