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Pinch me Blalock's blast delivers home-field advantage for ALPosted: Wednesday July 16, 2003 12:53 AMUpdated: Wednesday July 16, 2003 5:30 AM
CHICAGO (AP) -- A new Hammerin' Hank made his All-Star debut a memorable one. Both for himself and his league. Hank Blalock's pinch-hit homer in the eighth inning off Eric Gagne, one of baseball's top relievers, sent the American League to a 7-6 victory Tuesday night and ensured home-field advantage in the World Series. "To go out and do something like this in my first All-Star Game is really overwhelming for me," said Blalock of the Texas Rangers, whose team has virtually no shot at the postseason. "Even if my team isn't in the race, it doesn't mean you shut it down and not play hard in the All-Star Game. You have to respect the rest of the league," Blalock said. The rest of his AL teammates certainly respect Blalock. And the pennant winner will remember him in October for giving them home-field advantage. "He's a heck of a hitter, a young kid who is all baseball," AL manager Mike Scioscia said. "Unfortunately, he plays for a team in our division. He's going to be around a long time." Blalock, 1-for-7 with a double as a pinch-hitter in previous attempts, hit a 3-1 pitch from Gagne for a two-run homer, sending the AL dugout into a frenzy. He's the 12th player in All-Star history to homer in his first at-bat. "In a situation like that you can barely feel yourself run around the bases. I was just trying to get around without tripping," he said with a smile. "It's all sinking in right now. I was fortunate to come here in the first place and to do something like this is pretty special." Blalock wasn't even sure he'd get into the game. But after Garret Anderson doubled in the eighth and pinch-runner Melvin Mora scored on a double by Vernon Wells to cut the NL's lead to 6-5, Blalock got the call to bat for Troy Glaus. "That was my first time seeing Gagne besides seeing him on SportsCenter. I just knew he throws really hard with that great changeup," said Blalock, who's just 22. "I was just trying to make contact and get a hit to tie the game. I was lucky enough to hit it out. ... They just told me to be ready for any situation. I'm always antsy when I'm not in the starting lineup and I want to get in. I'm glad Mike gave me a chance." Blalock was plenty nervous Tuesday, as would be expected, admitting there were about a thousand butterflies in his stomach as he approached the plate in a tight game. "I think that's pretty natural. In anybody's first All-Star Game, you're going to be nervous walking to the plate," Blalock said. "Even if you've been in it for 10 years, you're going to have some jitters." Blalock hit .323 in the first half for the Rangers with 14 homers and 48 RBIs. Now he'll be known across baseball as the guy who determined home-field advantage in the World Series with a big homer.
"It was unbelievable," Texas teammate Alex Rodriguez said. "He's had a phenomenal first half and hopefully he can take that hit and finish strong."
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