The 1978 Major League Baseball All-Star Game was the 49th midseason exhibition between the
all-stars of the
American League
The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league ...
(AL) and the
National League
The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team ...
(NL), the two leagues comprising
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL) ...
. The game was played on July 11, 1978, at
San Diego Stadium
San Diego Stadium was a multi-purpose stadium on the west coast of the United States, in San Diego, California. The stadium opened in 1967 as San Diego Stadium and was known as Jack Murphy Stadium from 1981 to 1997. From 1997 to 2017, the stadium ...
in
San Diego
San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United States ...
, home of the
San Diego Padres
The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team based in San Diego. The Padres compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1969, the club has won two NL penna ...
of the National League. The game resulted in a 7–3 victory for the NL.
This was the first All-Star Game to be played in San Diego. It would return in
1992
File:1992 Events Collage V1.png, From left, clockwise: Riots break out across Los Angeles, California after the police beating of Rodney King; El Al Flight 1862 crashes into a residential apartment building in Amsterdam after two of its engines ...
to be played in the same stadium, though it was renamed ''Jack Murphy Stadium'' by that time.
The honorary captains were
Brooks Robinson
Brooks Calbert Robinson Jr. (born May 18, 1937) is a former third baseman in Major League Baseball who played his entire career for the Baltimore Orioles from 1955 to 1977. Nicknamed "the Human Vacuum Cleaner" or "Mr. Hoover", he is generally c ...
(for the AL) and
Eddie Mathews (for the NL).
American League roster
The American League roster included 9 future
Hall of Fame players, denoted by ''italics''.
[''All-Star Results – 1978''](_blank)
@mlb.com; accessed 11 November 2008
Elected starters
Pitchers
Reserve position players
Coaching staff
National League roster
The National League roster included 8 future
Hall of Fame players, denoted by ''italics''.
Elected starters
Pitchers
Reserve position players
Coaching staff
Game
Umpires
Starting lineups
While the starters were elected by the fans, the batting orders and starting pitchers were selected by the managers.
[''All-Star Game Box Score – 1978''](_blank)
@baseball almanac.com; accessed 13 November 2008
Game summary
The American League opened the scoring immediately off of NL starter Vida Blue. Rod Carew
tripled, and scored when George Brett
doubled. Brett advanced to third base on a Jim Rice
ground out. Richie Zisk
walked. Fisk hit a
sacrifice fly
In baseball, a sacrifice fly (sometimes abbreviated to sac fly) is defined by Rule 9.08(d):
"Score a sacrifice fly when, before two are out, the batter hits a ball in flight handled by an outfielder or an infielder running in the outfield in fair ...
to Joe Morgan, permitting Brett to score.
[''1978 All-Star Game Play-by-Play''](_blank)
@baseball-almanac.com; accessed 13 November 2008[''1978 All-Star Game Summary''](_blank)
@baseball-reference.com; accessed 13 November 2008
The AL added another run in the top of the third inning, again started by a Rod Carew
lead off triple. George Brett followed up with a sacrifice fly to George Foster that allowed Carew to score and extend the AL lead to 3–0.
The lead was very short lived as the NL tied the game in the bottom of the third inning. Larry Bowa
singled. With Reggie Smith
pinch hitting
In baseball, a pinch hitter is a substitute batter. Batters can be substituted at any time while the ball is dead (not in active play); the manager may use any player who has not yet entered the game as a substitute. Unlike basketball, American ...
for Vida Blue, Bowa stole second base. Smith
struck out. Pete Rose grounded out, moving Bowa to third base. Joe Morgan walked. George Foster walked, pushing Morgan to second base; loading the bases. Greg Luzinski walked sending Foster to second base, Morgan to third base, and scoring Bowa. Steve Garvey singled, scoring Morgan and Foster, and sending Luzinski to second base. AL manager Billy Martin replaced starting pitcher Jim Palmer with
relief pitcher
In baseball and softball, a relief pitcher or reliever is a pitcher who enters the game after the starting pitcher is removed because of fatigue, ineffectiveness, injury, or ejection, or for other strategic reasons, such as inclement weather d ...
Matt Keough, though no further scoring occurred.
The score remained tied at three until the bottom of the eighth inning, when Goose Gossage came in to pitch for the AL. Steve Garvey led off the inning with a triple, and scored when Gossage threw a
wild pitch
In baseball, a wild pitch (WP) is charged against a pitcher when his pitch is too high, too short, or too wide of home plate for the catcher to control with ordinary effort, thereby allowing a baserunner, or the batter (on an uncaught third st ...
with Dave Concepción batting. Concepción walked. Dave Winfield singled sending Concepción to third, with Winfield advancing to second on an
error
An error (from the Latin ''error'', meaning "wandering") is an action which is inaccurate or incorrect. In some usages, an error is synonymous with a mistake. The etymology derives from the Latin term 'errare', meaning 'to stray'.
In statistic ...
by Chet Lemon. Bob Boone singled, scoring Concepción and Winfield. Boone advanced to second when Ron Cey grounded out. Davey Lopes singled, scoring Boone and ending the scoring for a 7–3 NL victory.
Game notes and records
Bruce Sutter was credited with the
win. Goose Gossage was charged with the
loss.
The two triples hit by Rod Carew, and the one hit by Steve Garvey marked the first time that three triples had been hit in a single All-Star Game.
References
External links
1978 All-Star Game summary @baseball-reference.com1978 All-Star Game summary @baseball almanac.com1978 All-Star Game box score @baseball almanac.com1978 All-Star Game play by play @baseball almanac.com
{{Major League Baseball on CBS Radio
Major League Baseball All-Star Game
The Major League Baseball All-Star Game, also known as the "Midsummer Classic", is an annual professional baseball game sanctioned by Major League Baseball (MLB) and contested between the all-stars from the American League (AL) and National ...
Major League Baseball All-Star Game
Baseball in San Diego
Major League Baseball All Star Game
Sports competitions in San Diego
July 1978 sports events in the United States