The 2004 MLB All-Star game was full of excitement from some of the league’s best players. Houston’s Minute Maid Park hosted this all-star game. Houston held its third all-star game in 2004, the first two coming in 1968 and 1986. Twelve future Hall of Famers played in the 2004 All-Star game, as well as a few who could be nominated for Cooperstown in the near future. Seven of these Hall of Famers played in the National League. Long-time Cincinnati Reds shortstop Barry Larkin would play his 12th and final all-star game in Houston.
Florida Marlins manager Jack McKeon became the oldest manager to manage an all-star team after becoming the oldest manager to win a World Series with the 2003 Florida Marlins. New York Yankees manager Joe Torre helped coasted the American League to a 9-4 victory, giving the AL home-field advantage during the 2004 World Series. It was Joe Torre’s fifth victory as manager of the AL all-star team. The previous times were in 1997, 1999, 2000, and 2001. Let’s look at who shined during this 2004 all-star game matchup.
AL Dominates Straight From the Get-Go
Ichiro Suzuki started the 2004 All-Star game off with a leadoff double. Iván Rodríguez ripped a triple to right field in the next at-bat, allowing Suzuki to score. Two batters later, Manny Ramirez thumped a two-run homer out to left field. With two outs and runners at the corners, Alfonso Soriano smacked a three-run home run, giving the AL a 6-0 lead in the first inning. This would be the first time in his career that Roger Clemens allowed six runs to score home in one inning. The National League scored one run home in the bottom of the first inning when Sammy Sosa hit an RBI single to right field.
NL Starts to Come Back
The AL would extend their lead in this 2004 All-Star game to 7-1 in the top of the fourth inning. Third baseman Alex Rodriguez belted a triple to center field, allowing David Ortiz to score. However, the NL would attempt to make this game more enticing by staging a comeback. First, with runners at first and second base, Édgar Rentería hit a ground-rule double, allowing one run to score. As a result, Albert Pujols would score two runs off a double he hit into left field. After all that, the NL still trailed by three runs in a 7-4 ballgame.
AL Closes This Ballgame Out
David Ortiz came to the plate in the top of the seventh inning with a runner on first with all the confidence in the world. Ortiz thrashed a two-run home run, giving the American League a 9-4 lead, eventually winning. After being slaughtered for six runs in the first inning, Roger Clemens lost for the National League. AL’s Mark Mulder won after pitching two innings, allowing two hits, and striking out one batter. Three American League players homered, while nobody in the National League did. Alfonso Soriano was named the MVP of the 2004 All-Star game. Soriano went two for three with a home run and three runs batted in.
Main Photo Credits: Kareem Elgazzar/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK
