Top Cubs and White Sox All-Star Game moments
Ever since Major League Baseball played its first All-Star Game in 1933 at Comiskey Park, the Cubs and White Sox have sent parades of players to the Midsummer Classic.
Unfortunately, this season’s honors belonged only to the Cubs’ Shota Imanaga and the White Sox’s Garrett Crochet.
In past seasons, Chicago players have had a major impact on the game’s outcome. This week’s High Five looks at the top All-Star game moments by Cubs and Sox players.
5. Frank Thomas, 1995
At the Ballpark in Arlington, the White Sox’s Hall of Fame first baseman puts on a stunning display in the home run derby. He takes home the title in a showdown against Albert Belle.
The next day — after more than 60 seasons of MLB All-Star games — Thomas becomes the first White Sox player to homer in the actual game. He rockets a 2-run shot down the left-field line off Reds pitcher John Smiley that drives in Carlos Baerga.
The American League loses 3-2 to the National League, but the Big Hurt leaves his mark.
4. Hank Sauer, 1952
Sauer wins the NL MVP in 1952, but before he does, the Cubs’ left fielder provides the game-winning hit in a rain-shortened All-Star Game.
Sauer hits a 2-run homer off Bob Lemon to give the NL a 3-2 lead in the bottom of the fourth inning. In a downer of an ending, that becomes the final score.
After about an hour rain delay in Philadelphia, the game is called after five innings to give the NL the victory.
3. Jimmy Dykes, 1933
The first All-Star Game features lineups loaded with legends, from Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig to Lefty Gomez and Carl Hubbell. Even the managers — John McGraw and Connie Mack — are in the Hall of Fame.
But it’s Dykes, the White Sox’s third baseman, who makes history in front of the home crowd at Comiskey Park by scoring the first run in All-Star Game history. In the bottom of the second inning, Dykes walks and later scores on a single by Gomez.
In a game meant to be a one-time thing as part of the Chicago World’s Fair, the AL wins 4-2.
2. Bill Madlock, 1975
The Cubs’ third baseman shows why he’s one of the NL’s top hitters.
Facing wicked White Sox reliever Goose Gossage in the top of the ninth inning, Madlock singles to left field to break a 3-3 tie. Al Oliver and Reggie Smith score, and the NL tacks on another run for a 6-3 lead.
Madlock, who goes on to lead the league in batting with a .354 average, and pitcher Jon Matlack, who pitches two scoreless innings of relief to earn the win, are named co-MVPs of the game.
1. Jim Hickman, 1970
Hickman’s lone All-Star Game appearance is a doozy.
The game goes to extra innings after the NL scores three runs in the bottom of the ninth inning. The score stays 4-4 until the bottom of the 12th when Pete Rose and Billy Grabarkewitz both single.
Hickman steps to the plate and singles up the middle, scoring Rose from second base with the game-winning run. Hickman, however, isn’t the one most remembered for the play.
Rose plows over AL catcher Ray Fosse, allowing him to score the decisive run. In an iconic moment in baseball history, the collision breaks Fosse’s shoulder.