It’s been an “All-Star” retirement year for me, so far.  Never in my life have I attended one professional All-Star Baseball games, let alone two!  The major league event in Miami was all about New York Yankees rookie sensation Aaron Judge and his home run power.  Since that time, his batting average is hovering at .300 compared with .329 going into the break, but he still leads the regular season home run race with 34 to go along with a top .632 slugging percentage.  All that, despite getting off to a relatively “slow” second half start.  The American League won again, and Cubs pitcher Wade Davis let Robinson Cano’ steal the show.  It was an exciting first All-Star Game and Home Run Derby for me.

As an encore, I also got to attend the Northwest League (NWL)  versus Pioneer Baseball League (PBL) game in Hillsboro, Oregon (Portland).  Although it was a “Minor” affair as opposed to a “Major,” I found it to be just as enjoyable.  The temperature at Ron Tonkin Field, home of the Hops, was 102 degrees, as opposed to the air conditioned comfort of Marlins Park.  I was not familiar with many of the participants, having not yet attended a Hillsboro Hops game.  The only name that struck a connection for me was Craig Dedelow of the Great Falls Voyagers (PBL).  I knew him from my alma mater, Indiana University, and as a recent 9th round draft choice of the Chicago White Sox.  Just like the Futures game in Miami, it was a White Sox connection that drew me to the autograph table.  (See post #179)  Yoan Moncado was just promoted to the big league club and got his first major league home run the other night on a tough pitch by Jake Arrietta of Cubs.  It will be a while, if it all, before Dedelow makes that jump to join college teammates, Kyle Schwarber and Sam Travis.  The other White Sox future that I met was Anthony Villa, Dedelow’s current teammate.   Villa got a hit in the game in a pinch role, while Dedelow narrowly missed the finals of the Home Run Derby.

There were also a few future Cubs that I enjoyed chatting with at the autograph tables.  Gastavo Polanco, Aramis Ademan, and Luis Aquino all represented the Eugene Emeralds (NWL). None of them was a factor in the actual game.  The MVP was Luis Asuncion of the Tri-City Dust Devils (Padres PBL), his teammate Henry Henry (signed autograph as  H2) was credited for the win, and his other teammate, Jose Galindo got the save.  Seven Hops players made the squad, along with the entire coaching staff.  The NWL winning runs came in the bottom of the 5th, after the PBL took an early 4 run lead in the 2nd inning.  Daniel Jipping of the Boise Hawks (Colorado Rockies NWL) won the Home Run Derby, and the Northwest League (NWL) remains unbeaten in the All-Star Series games.

Next stop on the retirement tour is AT&T Park, where the Giants will host the Cubs in the opening game of a 3-game series.  Hopefully, the Cubs can continue to roll, and maintain their lead over the Brewers.  The Giants have the worst record in the National League, but the Cubs did manage to lose an entire series to the Padres, who were in that lowly position the last time the Cubs visited California.  Please leave the “Anchorman” costumes back in Chicago!” (See Post #101)