National League Trounces American League

"Enough was enough," said St. Louis' Adam Wainwright. Indeed. The National League captured its first Midsummer Classic since 1996 with a 3-1 victory last night. Brian McCann earned MVP honors with a three-run double in the seventh inning, and right fielder Marlon Byrd alertly threw out David Ortiz to slow a ninth-inning rally. In a year of dominant pitching, young starters David Price and Ubaldo Jimenez set the tone—and got even more help from the tricky shadows.

Nearly the entire field at Angel Stadium was bathed in odd patterns of sunlight for a twilight first pitch, creating more awkward swings and misses than usual in baseball's annual talent show. The Yankees All-Stars wore black armbands after the death of longtime New York owner George Steinbrenner; pictures of The Boss showed on two video screens before a pregame moment of silence, and flags hung at half-staff. The win gives the National League, which leads the overall All-Star game series 41-38-2, home-field advantage in the World Series.
(More All-Star stories.)