The 2015 Major League Baseball All-Star Game was the 86th edition of the

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 ...

. The game was played at

Great American Ball Park Great American Ball Park is a baseball stadium in Cincinnati, Ohio. It served as the home stadium of the Cincinnati Reds of Major League Baseball (MLB), and opened on March 31, 2003, replacing Cinergy Field (formerly Riverfront Stadium), the Reds ...

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

on Tuesday, July 14. It was televised nationally on Fox. 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 ...

All-Stars defeated 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 ...

All-Stars by a score of 6–3. On January 21, 2013, then-

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), ...

(MLB) Commissioner

Bud Selig Allan Huber "Bud" Selig (; born July 30, 1934) is an American baseball executive who currently serves as the Commissioner Emeritus of Baseball. Previously, he served as the ninth Commissioner of Baseball from 1998 to 2015. He initially served as ...

, announced the 2015 All-Star Game would be hosted by the Cincinnati Reds. This was the first time the city of Cincinnati has hosted the

All-Star Game An all-star game is an exhibition game that purports to showcase the best players (the "stars") of a sports league. The exhibition is between two teams organized solely for the event, usually representing the league's teams based on region or d ...

since the 1988 All-Star Game was played at

Riverfront Stadium Riverfront Stadium, also known as Cinergy Field from 1996 to 2002, was a multi-purpose stadium in Cincinnati, Ohio, United States that was the home of the Cincinnati Reds of Major League Baseball from 1970 Major League Baseball season, 1970 throug ...

. On July 15, 2014, Selig also announced that

Pete Rose Peter Edward Rose Sr. (born April 14, 1941), also known by his nickname "Charlie Hustle", is an American former professional baseball player and manager. Rose played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1963 to 1986, most prominently as a membe ...

would not be prohibited from participating in the 2015 All-Star Game ceremonies. Rose was an All-Star for 13 of the 19 seasons he played on the Reds and was a member of the

Big Red Machine The Big Red Machine is a nickname for the Cincinnati Reds baseball team that dominated the National League from 1970 to 1979 and is widely recognized as being among the best in baseball history. The team won six National League West Division ti ...

. In 1991, Rose was permanently banned from MLB for baseball betting. Rose, wearing a red sport coat, appeared on the field in front of the

pitcher's mound A baseball field, also called a ball field or baseball diamond, is the field upon which the game of baseball is played. The term can also be used as a metonym for a baseball park. The term sandlot is sometimes used, although this usually refe ...

before the game and received a standing ovation alongside former teammates Johnny Bench,

Barry Larkin Barry Louis Larkin (born April 28, 1964) is an American former professional baseball player. He played shortstop for the Cincinnati Reds of Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1986 to 2004. He briefly played in the minor leagues before making h ...

, and

Joe Morgan Joe Leonard Morgan (September 19, 1943 – October 11, 2020) was an American professional baseball second baseman who played 22 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Houston Colt .45s / Astros, Cincinnati Reds, San Francisco Giants, ...

. On May 12, 2015, the Reds announced that

Todd Frazier Todd Brian Frazier (born February 12, 1986), nicknamed "The Toddfather", is an American former professional baseball third baseman. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Cincinnati Reds, Chicago White Sox, New York Yankees, Texas Rang ...

would serve as the 2015 All-Star Game spokesperson. Mike Trout, an outfielder for the

Los Angeles Angels The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. Since 1966, the team h ...

, was named the All-Star Game Most Valuable Player for the second straight year.

Fan balloting

Starters

Balloting for the 2015 All-Star Game starters began online April 23 and ended on July 2. The top vote-getters at each position (including the designated hitter for the American League) and the top three among outfielders, were named the starters for their respective leagues. The results were announced on July 5. A record 620 million votes were cast, surpassing the record of 391 million votes in 2012.

Josh Donaldson Joshua Adam Donaldson (born December 8, 1985) is an American professional baseball third baseman for the New York Yankees of Major League Baseball (MLB). He previously played for the Oakland Athletics, Toronto Blue Jays, Cleveland Indians, Atla ...

was the leading vote-getter with 14,090,188 votes, breaking the record that

Josh Hamilton Joshua Holt Hamilton (born May 21, 1981) is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as an outfielder from to , most prominently as a member of the Texas Rangers teams that won two consecutive Americ ...

set in 2012 with 11,073,744 votes.

Bryce Harper Bryce Aron Max Harper (born October 16, 1992) is an American professional baseball right fielder and designated hitter for the Philadelphia Phillies of Major League Baseball (MLB). Prior to his arrival in Philadelphia, Harper played for the Wash ...

set a new NL record for votes this year with 13,864,950 votes. However, MLB canceled at least 65 million ballots on grounds of fraud and

ballot stuffing Electoral fraud, sometimes referred to as election manipulation, voter fraud or vote rigging, involves illegal interference with the process of an election, either by increasing the vote share of a favored candidate, depressing the vote share of ...

. At one point during the balloting, the top vote-getters for eight of the starting nine positions for the American League were Kansas City Royals players.

Final roster spot

After the rosters were finalized, a second ballot of five players per league was created for the

All-Star Final Vote The All-Star Final Vote was an annual Internet and text message ballot by Major League Baseball (MLB) fans to elect the final player for each team that participates in the Major League Baseball All-Star Game, after all other selections were m ...

to determine the 34th and final player of each roster. The online balloting were conducted from July 6 through July 10. Brett Gardner of the

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. They are one of ...

was removed from the ballot on July 9 after he replaced Alex Gordon on the roster due to injury. The winners of the All-Star Final Vote were Mike Moustakas of the Kansas City Royals (AL) and Carlos Martinez of the St. Louis Cardinals (NL).

Rosters

American League

National League

Andrew McCutchen was named starter in place of Giancarlo Stanton due to injury.
Kris Bryant was named as the roster replacement for Stanton.
Albert Pujols was named starter in place of Miguel Cabrera due to injury.
Mark Teixeira was named as the roster replacement for Cabrera.
Brett Gardner was named as the roster replacement for Alex Gordon.
Adam Jones was named starter in place of Alex Gordon due to injury.
Brian Dozier was named as the roster replacement for José Bautista due to injury.
DJ LeMahieu was named starter in place of Dee Gordon due to injury.
Troy Tulowitzki was named as the roster replacement for Dee Gordon.
Hector Santiago was named as a replacement for Sonny Gray due to Gray starting on Sunday.
Clayton Kershaw was named as a replacement for Max Scherzer due to Scherzer starting on Sunday.
Joc Pederson was named starter in place of Matt Holliday due to injury.
Ryan Braun was named as a roster replacement for Holliday.

:#: Indicates player would not play (replaced as per reference notes above).

Game summary

Mike Trout of the

Angels In various theistic religious traditions an angel is a supernatural spiritual being who serves God. Abrahamic religions often depict angels as benevolent celestial intermediaries between God (or Heaven) and humanity. Other roles incl ...

led off the game with a home run off

Zack Greinke Donald Zackary Greinke ( ; born October 21, 1983) is an American professional baseball pitcher who is currently a free agent. He made his MLB debut with the Kansas City Royals in 2004 and has also played in MLB for the Milwaukee Brewers, Los An ...

. The NL tied the score in the bottom of the second when Jhonny Peralta drove in

Paul Goldschmidt Paul Edward Goldschmidt (born September 10, 1987) is an American professional baseball first baseman for the St. Louis Cardinals of Major League Baseball (MLB). Lightly recruited out of The Woodlands High School in The Woodlands, Texas, Golds ...

with an RBI single off AL starter Dallas Keuchel. In the top of the fifth,

Prince Fielder Prince Semien Fielder (born May 9, 1984) is an American former professional baseball first baseman and designated hitter, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Milwaukee Brewers, Detroit Tigers, and Texas Rangers. He was selected in ...

, who was pinch hitting for

Nelson Cruz Nelson Ramón Cruz Martínez Jr. (born July 1, 1980) is a Dominican-American professional baseball designated hitter and right fielder who is currently a free agent. He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Milwaukee Brewers, Texas ...

, hit a go-ahead RBI single off

Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Established in 1883 in the city of Brooklyn ...

ace

Clayton Kershaw Clayton Edward Kershaw (born March 19, 1988) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Los Angeles Dodgers of Major League Baseball (MLB) . He has played for the Dodgers for the entirety of his MLB career. A left-handed starting pi ...

that scored Trout to give the AL a 2–1 lead. The next batter,

Lorenzo Cain Lorenzo Lamar Cain (born April 13, 1986) is an American professional baseball center fielder who is a free agent. He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Milwaukee Brewers and the Kansas City Royals. The Brewers drafted him in the ...

, hit an RBI double to score Albert Pujols to make it a 3–1 ballgame. In the bottom of the sixth,

Andrew McCutchen Andrew Stefan McCutchen (born October 10, 1986) is an American professional baseball outfielder who is a free agent. He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Pittsburgh Pirates, San Francisco Giants, New York Yankees, Philadelphia ...

homered off

Chris Archer Christopher Alan Archer (born September 26, 1988) is an American professional baseball pitcher who is a free agent. He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Tampa Bay Rays, Pittsburgh Pirates and Minnesota Twins. Archer attended Cla ...

to make it a one-run game. In the top of the seventh, Trout walked and was lifted for pinch runner

Brock Holt Brock Wyatt Holt (born June 11, 1988), nicknamed "The Brock Star", is an American former professional baseball player. Well known for his role as a utility player, Holt played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Pittsburgh Pirates, Boston Re ...

who scored on an RBI double by Manny Machado to give the AL a 4–2 lead. Machado then scored on a sac fly by Fielder to make it a 5–2 game. In the top of the eighth inning, the

Twins Twins are two offspring produced by the same pregnancy.MedicineNet > Definition of TwinLast Editorial Review: 19 June 2000 Twins can be either ''monozygotic'' ('identical'), meaning that they develop from one zygote, which splits and forms two em ...

Brian Dozier James Brian Dozier (;born May 15, 1987) is an American former professional baseball second baseman. The Minnesota Twins selected Dozier in the eighth round of the 2009 Major League Baseball Draft. He made his MLB debut in 2012 and he played in ...

hit a home run to make it a 6–2 ballgame. In the bottom of the ninth,

Ryan Braun Ryan Joseph Braun (born November 17, 1983) is an American former professional baseball left fielder who played his entire career for the Milwaukee Brewers of Major League Baseball (MLB) from 2007 to 2020. Braun also played right field and f ...

led off with a triple to right field off of Twins closer

Glen Perkins Glen Weston Perkins (born March 2, 1983) is an American former professional baseball pitcher and a television analyst. He played his entire career in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Minnesota Twins. He made his major league debut with the Min ...

, then scored on a sacrifice fly by Brandon Crawford to make it a 6–3 score. The next batter, Cubs rookie

Kris Bryant Kristopher Lee Bryant (born January 4, 1992), nicknamed "KB", is an American professional baseball third baseman and outfielder for the Colorado Rockies of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the Chicago Cubs and San ...

, flied to right for the second out, and finally, Joe Panik lined out to left field to seal the AL's third straight victory and earn home-field advantage in the World Series.

Starting lineup

Line score

References

External links

Official website of the All-Star Game2015 Major League Baseball All-Star Game at ESPN
{{Major League Baseball on ESPN Radio Major League Baseball All-Star Game

Baseball in Cincinnati Major League Baseball All Star Game 2010s in Cincinnati July 2015 sports events in the United States Sports competitions in Cincinnati