A collection of Major League Baseball’s best will be showcased on Tuesday in the annual All-Star Game. Though the midsummer classic is an exhibition, the American League has had the better of their counterparts from the senior circuit recently winning the last eight games and 20 of the previous 23 games that didn’t end in a tie. While the overall series is close with the AL up 46-43, there have been some major runs. In the early part of the game the NL won 20 of 21 games.
Once a highlight on the summer calendar, the game lost some of its appeal over the years. Interleague play took away the mystery between leagues and with star players from both sides opting out the games became less exciting. More scoring will change that and some of the biggest bashers will take the Dodger Stadium field.
The total hit the board at eight with the teams combining to go over that number just twice in the previous 13 editions. Prior to that, the teams exceeded the number in five of six games. Check out the latest MLB All-Star Game odds at BookMaker.eu when you’re ready to place a wager.
2022 MLB All Star Game
Date and Time: Tuesday, July 19, 2022, 8 p.m. ET
Location: Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles, CA
Probable Pitchers: Shane McClanahan (AL) vs. Clayton Kershaw (NL)
Opening MLB Odds: AL +101, NL -111, O/U 8
All Star Game TV Coverage: FOX
American League
There is no shortage of talent on the AL side, and most of it comes from the East Division, mainly the Yankees. New York tops the best division in baseball with a MLB best 64 wins behind the highest scoring offense. Aaron Judge leads baseball with 33 homers and is joined in the outfield by teammate Giancarlo Stanton, who has 24 dingers. The AL will miss Mike Trout and Jose Altuve, who will not play due to injury, but offense is certainly a strong suit for this club with a majority of players hitting above .300. The team is locked at the corner infield spots with Vlad Guerrero Jr. and Rafael Devers, two more AL East stars. Devers is hitting .324 with 22 bombs while Guerrero has 20 homers. And the bench is stacked with batting leader Luis Arraez, Xander Bogaerts, Corey Seager and Andrew Benitendi.
The AL may need to score runs to back a young pitching staff. Veterans Justin Verlander and Gerrit Cole will not pitch leaving Tampa’s Shane McClanahan as the likely starter. He’s deserving of the honor going 10-3 with a MLB best 1.71 ERA. The rest of the staff has good numbers but it doesn’t appear to be a strong overall unit as we’ve seen in years past. If you’re looking for an MVP pick Shohei Ohtani might be your guy. Named as both a pitcher and position player he has two ways of earning meaningful numbers toward the award.
National League
The senior circuit hasn’t won an All-Star Game since taking a third straight in 2012. Since 1988 the NL is 6-26, which is hard to believe since there is little difference in the talent level between leagues. And playing in a NL park hasn’t helped. The NL hasn’t won in the last six games hosted by a NL team. You could say the odds are in favor of the senior circuit getting a win and oddsmakers agree posting the NL as -111 favorite. And if good pitching stops good hitting, as the old saying goes, this might be it. On paper, at least, the NL has an edge on the bump.
Three starters rank among the top-5 in ERA and probable starter Clayton Kershaw isn’t one of them. Starters haven’t been announced but I’d be surprised if Kershaw doesn’t get the nod. He’s been spectacular over his last three starts and for the second time this season tossed seven perfect innings, beating the Angels in his last start. Sandy Alcantara (1.76) and Tony Gonsolin (2.02) are among the top-5 in ERA with Kershaw in that range, though he doesn’t have enough innings to qualify. Pitching is the NL’s strength, but there are some big sticks in the lineup. Kyle Schwarber (29) and Austin Riley (27) rank second and third in homers and hometown favorites Trae Turner and Mookie Betts are table setters.
2022 MLB All Star Game Prediction
For the first time in several years I’m actually looking forward to the All-Star Game. And even though it’s an exhibition, players have a sense of pride and want to win. That’s especially true for the NL, which has been embarrassed in recent years. I do like the overall makeup of the NL roster with a solid pitching staff to go along with a great roster of position players.
Even the replacement players are strong. One area that doesn’t stand out is the relief corps, but considering the strength of the starters I doubt that group will have a huge impact. We haven’t seen a lot of scoring in recent games, but I like the number of offensive stars on both sides.
MLB All Star Game Prediction: NL 6, AL 4
