ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Wednesday, July 10, 1996 TAG: 9607100056
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: PHILADELPHIA
SOURCE: Associated Press
Mike Piazza and his National League teammates were the ones who really hit it on the nose.
Piazza launched an upper-deck home run in his first at-bat and lined an RBI double his next time up, leading the Nationals to a 6-0 victory in the All-Star game Tuesday night for their first three-game winning streak since 1982.
``I can't describe it,'' said Piazza, voted the MVP. ``I'm really really happy and very humbled.''
The biggest blow for the American League, meanwhile, did not even come with a bat. Two hours before the game, Baltimore iron man Cal Ripken sustained a broken nose when he caught a forearm in the face from Chicago White Sox reliever Roberto Hernandez, who lost his balance on a platform during a team picture.
The bloodied Ripken was treated, and returned to play his 14th All-Star game. His streak of 2,239 consecutive games is expected to continue.
But the power-packed AL lineup did little at the plate, managing just seven hits against winning pitcher John Smoltz and eight relievers. Albert Belle became the first AL player to strike out three times since Mickey Mantle in 1956.
``Tonight just wasn't our night,'' AL manager Mike Hargrove said.
While the AL was handed its first shutout since 1987 - when it lost 2-0 in 13 innings in the last supposed year of a lively ball - the NL increased its overall lead to 40-26-1.
The Nationals hadn't done so well since they won 11 in a row from 1972-82. Who knows if their streak will continue next year when the All-Star game comes a few weeks after interleague play is scheduled to start?
Ken Caminiti, Lance Johnson and Chipper Jones, all playing in place of injured stars, each delivered key hits for the NL. Ozzie Smith, in his 15th and final All-Star game, drew the biggest cheer of the evening, a 45-second standing ovation that also included a handshake from opposing catcher Sandy Alomar Jr.
Smith, though no longer even the starting shortstop for the St. Louis Cardinals, clearly was the fans' favorite. With tears in his eyes, he stepped out of the batter's box to acknowledge the cheers in the seventh, the last he'll hear before retiring at the end of the season at 41.
``It's a very touching time, a very emotional time for me in my life,'' Smith said.
Johnson, in his first All-Star game at age 33, took Tony Gwynn's spot and doubled on loser Charles Nagy's first pitch. He later scored on Barry Bonds' groundout.
Jones, playing third base for injured Matt Williams, singled and scored in the second. Caminiti, added to the team when Williams was dropped from the roster, hit a leadoff home run in the sixth that made it 5-0.
Piazza, meanwhile, added to his fond memories of Veterans Stadium, where he attended many games as a youngster.
Having homered in his last All-Star at-bat last summer in Texas, he picked up where he left off with a long drive leading off the second inning. That made him the first player to homer in consecutive at-bats since Gary Carter in 1981, and the last to do it in two straight games since Fred Lynn in 1979-80.
Piazza's two-out double off Chuck Finley in the third put the Nationals ahead 4-0.
That 4-0 score was exactly what it was after three innings the last time the All-Star game was played at Veterans Stadium, back in 1976.
Piazza, born and raised in nearby Norristown, Pa., remembered watching that game on television while his dad, Vince, was there in person.
Vince Piazza was in the stands again Tuesday night to see his son, a four-time All-Star catcher for Los Angeles at age 27.
``It's hard to believe,'' Vince Piazza said. ``It's amazing. It's something that's hard to explain. I still can't accept it. It's like a dream.''
The AL, minus injured Ken Griffey Jr. and Frank Thomas, only had a couple of threats, and each time Belle made key outs.
Booed in pregame introductions and again every time he came to the plate, Belle struck out swinging against Smoltz, Atlanta teammate Tom Glavine and Montreal's Pedro Martinez, the last time with runners on first and third in the sixth.
Belle came up again with two on in the eighth and hit a hard line drive to center field that Johnson caught on the run.
Three of Atlanta's four pitchers - the most ever for one team - posted the first All-Star shutout since 1990, when the AL won 2-0 at Wrigley Field. All pitchers did a good job of putting the ball over the plate in the first All-Star game without a single walk.
LENGTH: Medium: 95 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: AP Los Angeles catcher Mike Piazza watches his homeby CNBrun during the second inning of the All-Star Game on Tuesday night
in Philadelphia. Piazza, voted the Most Valuable Player, is a native
of nearby Norristown, Pa. color. KEYWORDS: BASEBALL