Wed, Jul 13, 2005 page20

• 'Next wave' of players set to shine at All-Star game

  • AP
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  Barry Bonds, Sammy Sosa and Ken Griffey Jr are nowhere to be seen. Derek Jeter and Jason Giambi aren't around, either.

  Instead, there was a whole bunch of new kids on the block for Major League Baseball's All-Star game yesterday at Comerica Park. There's Derrek Lee and Brian Roberts, who lead their leagues in batting average. And there's Chris Carpenter and Mark Buehrle, the starting pitchers.

  Twelve of the 20 players in the lineup have never started an All-Star Game before, including seven in the American League.

  "It could be the next wave. It has to happen at some point. Guys can't play forever," Lee said before Monday's workout.

  Of course, there are some exceptions. Roger Clemens, a month shy of his 43rd birthday, was picked for the 11th time. Given permission to arrive yesterday, Clemens played in his first All-Star Game in 1986, when Lee was just 10.

  And then there's 40-year-old Kenny Rogers, who received the most attention at the All-Star media availability, held at the hotel in suburban Dearborn where the players are staying. He was suspended on July 1 for 20 games and fined US$50,000 for an outburst that sent a television cameraman to the hospital and prompted a police investigation. Because the players' association appealed, Rogers can't be penalized until after a hearing and a decision by commissioner Bud Selig.

  He spent 45 minutes answering and avoiding questions.

  "I figured everyone would be at this table. I'm sure the rest of the guys love this, because they don't have to worry about it. I'll take whatever shots people give me, and at the end, I'll still be standing," he said.

  National League manager Tony La Russa looked forward to seeing how the young studs would do.

  "I think the first-timers are some of the most fun for either squad. These guys are not going to be cool and `What's the big deal?'" he said after taking an overnight flight from San Francisco.

  Atlanta's John Smoltz, a Detroit native, recalled his first All-Star trip, to Anaheim in 1989.

  "I was so fish-out-of-water. I didn't know if I was coming or going," he said.

  La Russa's St. Louis Cardinals have four players in the starting lineup for the 76th All-Star Game, with Carpenter joining center fielder Jim Edmonds, shortstop David Eckstein and designated hitter Albert Pujols -- it would have been five if third baseman Scott Rolen hadn't pulled out because of a sore right shoulder.

  Boston, which swept St. Louis in the World Series, also has four starters: Left fielder Manny Ramirez, center fielder Johnny Damon, designated hitter David Ortiz and catcher Jason Varitek.

  No team had placed that many players in the starting lineup since the 1976 Cincinnati Reds had five, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.

  Terry Francona earned the right to manage the American League team because he led Boston to its first World Series title since 1918.

  "After 86 years of passion, frustration, fanatical fans, and a lot of genuine love for their team, I'm very excited and honored," he said.

  For the third straight season, the league that wins the All-Star Game gets homefield advantage in the World Series. The AL has won the last seven All-Star games played to a decision, and the Red Sox started their Series sweep last year with two wins at Fenway Park.

  "I think that if we had started the series in St. Louis, maybe we would have lost in five," La Russa joked.
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