Becoming the first Giants and A’s pitchers to surrender a home run in the same All-Star Game wasn’t the kind of history Will Smith and Liam Hendriks were looking to make Tuesday night.
Both Bay Area relievers had their first All-Star Game appearances spoiled by the longball in Cleveland as they gave up the only two home runs at Progressive Field, where the American League prevailed 4-3 in the 90th All-Star Game.
When Hendriks allowed a sixth-inning homer to the Rockies’ Charlie Blackmon and Smith was touched for a solo shot by the Rangers’ Joey Gallo an inning later, it marked just the second time in All-Star Game history pitchers from the same two-team market gave up a home run.
“I didn’t quite think he got it, but then it kept going so …” Hendriks told the Chronicle about Blackmon’s 384-foot drive. “It counts on the scoreboard.”
Ted Williams’ three-run, walk-off homer off the Cubs’ Claude Passeau in the 1941 midsummer classic in Detroit made Passeau and Eddie Smith of the White Sox the first pitchers from any of baseball’s multiple-team markets to both give up home runs.
Before Tuesday, the only other time it had happened was in 1951 when the New York Giants’ Sal Maglie and the Yankees’ Eddie Lopat each gave up two home runs in Detroit after Ty Cobb threw out the ceremonial first pitch.
Neither the Yankees and Mets nor the Dodgers and Angels have ever had their pitchers give up an All-Star Game longball in the same game. Same goes for the old-time markets in St. Louis (Cardinals and Browns) and Philadelphia (Phillies and A’s).
Sadly for the Giants, Gallo’s home run off Smith continues a troubling trend of being on the wrong end of All-Star blasts.
Who can forget Atlee Hammaker giving up the first grand slam in All-Star Game history to the Angels’ Fred Lynn in 1983? Or Rick Reuschel turning to watch Bo Jackson’s mammoth home run to begin the 1989 All-Star Game?
Reuschel gave up two home runs that year in Anaheim to begin an ignominious five-year stretch when Giants pitchers — including Jeff Brantley, John Burkett and Rod Beck — allowed eight All-Star runs in just three innings.
More recently, Johnny Cueto had his own home run troubles when he started and took the loss in the 2016 game in San Diego after the Royals’ Eric Hosmer and Salvador Perez homered off him during his 1 2/3-inning stint.
Hendriks, who struck out the side in between Blackmon’s home run Tuesday, snapped a string of seven straight scoreless All-Star Game appearances by A’s pitchers. Before Tuesday, Justin Duchscherer in 2008 was the last Oakland pitcher to allow a run to the National League.
