Winners and losers from 2019 MLB All-Star Game

This had to be an especially nice moment for Brantley, who played in Cleveland for more than a decade. All things considered, we’d call it a pretty good homecoming.

Loser: Whoever forgot to pack the juiced balls

Considering the number of sluggers on both teams, it seemed unfathomable that we’d have a 4-3 final. That’s exactly what we got, however. Yes, the bats came alive a little in the later innings, notably with home runs from Charlie Blackmon and Joey Gallo. Still, in a season that’s been defined by offense, we got only two home runs and three other extra-base hits.

Baseball can be a weird, unpredictable game. Still, it seemed a safe bet that the bats would come out in a game that tends to be offense-heavy. That was not the case. At least the game went quickly, checking in at less than three hours.

Winner: Jose Berrios gets into a jam, then gets tough

Trailing 1-0, the NL appeared to have a great chance to tie the game when Ketel Marte stroked a leadoff double against Berrios. Then, the Minnesota Twins ace got tough.

He struck out reigning NL Rookie of the Year Ronald Acuna Jr. and reigning NL MVP Christian Yelich. Then, with two outs, Berrios got his brother-in-law Javier Baez to fly out and end the threat. That loomed large in a game decided by only one run. We’d call that a pretty good day’s work for Minnesota’s ace.

Loser: Scoreboard operator has a rough night

This series of bloopers didn’t come through to the people on TV, but the fans in Cleveland were treated to a number of errors.

Colorado Rockies All-Star David Dahl was called “Davis Dahl” and Chicago Cubs catcher Willson Contreras was “Wilson Contreras.” Fortunately, New York Mets All-Star Jeff McNeil had his name spelled correctly. Unfortunately, the picture used was Jacob deGrom.

One option is that this person is trying to get canned by pulling a George Costanza. More likely, however, is that whoever was in charge of the scoreboard graphics has had better days.

Winner: Shane Bieber lights up the hometown fans

Bieber took the mound for the AL in the fifth inning and Cleveland’s right-hander was absolutely dominant. Not only was Bieber perfect, but he struck out the side as Contreras, Marte and Acuna Jr. looked completely overmatched.

Cleveland’s fans were not only treated to an American League win but got to see their hometown boy win the MVP.

It’s hard to imagine how Bieber could have put on a better show for those in The Land.