Giants ace Logan Webb makes good in his second All-Star Game appearance

San Francisco Chronicle​

4 days ago

ATLANTA — Logan Webb was displeased with his All-Star Game performance last year. The San Francisco Giants starter gave up three runs in that affair, relinquishing the National League's early lead and the team went on to lose.
Webb was determined to have a better outing Tuesday at Truist Park, but when Junior Caminero cracked a single on Webb's first pitch of the third with the NL up 2-0, it was hard not to think of last year. Webb was having none of it. He got Javier Baez to ground out, the A's Jacob Wilson to fly out and Gleyber Torres to ground out.
'Last year, I wasn't throwing many strikes,' Webb said after coming out of the NL's precedent-setting tiebreaking home run derby win, which was necessitated after the teams finished nine innings knotted at 6-6. 'I didn't have great command last time. It's the same mentality that I always have when I'm throwing: strike one, and then go from there.'
In the tiebreaker, the NL outslugged the AL 4-3 with the Phillies' Kyle Schwarber earning game MVP honors by homering on all three of his swings.
The Giants pitcher to continue the team's ongoing Atlee Hammaker All-Star pitching curse was reliever Randy Rodriguez. Having allowed only four earned runs all season, Rodriguez came in with two men on in the seventh and gave up a three-run, pinch-hit homer to A's outfielder-DH Brent Rooker then walked a batter and allowed another run on a groundout. He left with his family before speaking to reporters.
The NL also got a three-run homer, a shot by Mets first baseman Pete Alonso in the sixth off Royals lefty Kris Bubic, who played at Mitty High School and Stanford.
The other two Bay Area pitchers, Bryan Woo (Alameda, Mariners) and Joe Ryan (San Anselmo, Twins) threw 1-2-3 innings.
Webb's second time around brought greater familiarity, but he still had some nerves, he said. With 'every guy throwing 95-plus with nasty stuff, hitters are probably happy when I come in the game,' he joked.
He needed only 11 pitches to get through his inning, which he likened to a between-starts bullpen session. He last started Friday and he said he's not slated to go Friday at Toronto, so he'll get some extra rest after Tuesday's event.
Working with Dodgers catcher Will Smith was a blast for Webb, who's faced Smith 36 times, leading to a lighthearted exchange. 'He came out to the mound and said, 'What do you throw? '' Webb said with a laugh. 'I didn't throw to him last year, but he warmed me up and I threw one about 58 feet, not on purpose, I think I was nervous. I was happy to throw to him this year.'
Most of the players behind Webb were from the NL West, with five starters in the lineup. 'That shows we've got a pretty damn good division,' he said
Tuesday's game brought the return of players wearing their own team's jerseys in the game, something that had been abandoned after the pandemic. Webb, Rodriguez and Robbie Ray all sported the classic Giants clean pants and jerseys, Ray's including his trademark snug fit.
'I am a big fan of the uniforms, that's what I grew up watching,' Webb said. 'For us Giants, we get to wear the cream uniforms, which is my favorite uniform. I think everyone wanted this; if I'm a Yankees fan, I would like to see Aaron Judge wearing pinstripes.'
Ray wasn't eligible to play in the game because he'd started Sunday for the Giants, but he was an enthusiastic participant in every other event, and he handled pregame interview duties for the San Francisco squad. Among other things, he said his son, Asher, had had a blast at the Home Run Derby the night before, running a Gatorade out to Derby champ Cal Raleigh and getting his favorite player, Shohei Ohtani, to sign his hat. 'I'm like 10th on his list,' Ray said. 'I'm just happy I cracked the top 10.'
Another development Tuesday: The use of the automatic balls and strikes (ABS) system. Most players said they'd probably forget it was in use in the game, and A's shortstop Wilson, the No. 9 hitter, said with guys like Aaron Judge in the lineup, he probably would cede any challenges to them.
When AL starter Tarik Skubal and catcher Raleigh challenged a ball call to Manny Machado in the first inning, Wilson didn't forget — out at shortstop, he patted his hat for a replay along with them, and the call was reversed for an inning-ending strikeout. In the fifth, Wilson challenged a strike call successfully before grounding out.
Webb said he was comfortable using the ABS system, citing his successful challenge during the spring, but he didn't get a chance Tuesday. 'I think they swung at everything,' he said with some comic exaggeration.
The second inning brought a nice moment for one of the game's greats, Dodgers lefty Clayton Kershaw, who earned a 'legends' spot on the NL roster. He took over from Paul Skenes, got two quick outs, and walked off to a nice ovation, waving to the crowd as he did.
Kershaw addressed the NL team before the game at the behest of NL-Dodgers manager Dave Roberts, and, Webb said, 'He was pretty much telling us we're all a lot younger than him, so he was saying, 'Don't take this for granted.' It was really cool, really special.'
Just before first pitch, the crowd cheered former Braves first baseman Freddie Freeman, now Kershaw's teammate, as he was interviewed about coming back to Truist Park for the event, and Freeman raved about the Atlanta fans to roars. In the third, Roberts gave Freeman an ovation moment of his own, lifting him with one out in the inning so he could leave the field to cheers.
The All-Star Game initially was pulled from Atlanta in 2021 over the state's restrictive voting laws, which remain on the books. Asked Tuesday why MLB changed tacks, commission Rob Manfred told members of the Baseball Writers' Association of America that 'there was really a need to come back here' based on 'the level of interest, the level of excitement, the great facility, the support this market has given to the Atlanta Blaze and baseball generally.'