Morneau Wins HR Derby, But Hamilton Wows

(NEWSER) - Prince Fielder of Milwaukee captured tonight's All-Star Home Run Derby, scoring a 6-5 victory in the final round over Rangers outfielder Nelson Cruz, a former Brewers prospect. "I was just happy I was able to put on a show," said the first baseman, who did just that with the night's longest shot, a 503-foot drive that left the Busch Stadium crowd dazzled. More»

At 34, he's the youngest to ever do it

(NEWSER) - You can stop holding your breath, world. Alex Rodriguez at long last hit his 600th home run today. It's been 12 games since Rodriguez hit his 599th round-tripper, a stretch that seemed even longer because of the hype surrounding the impending milestone. But it's probably unfair to complain too much, since he is the youngest player to ever hit 600. It's also happens to be exactly three years to the day since A-Rod's 500th homer. More»

Papelbon says parties beat prez at game

(NEWSER) - Red Sox hurler Jonathan Papelbon says having the president around at the All-Star Game was “fun”—but not as fun as Playboy's hospitality, Subway Squawkers reports. “I enjoyed the parties more than the president, to be honest with you,” the skin mag's shindig being his favorite, Papelbon told a Florida radio station. Still, Obama helped “to kind of rejuvenate the midsummer game classic.” More»

http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/events/all_star/y2009/enhancedroster.jsp

(AP) - Tim Lincecum and Roy Halladay were selected today as the starting pitchers for tomorrow night's All-Star game in St. Louis. Lincecum, last year's National League Cy Young Award winner, is 10-2 with a 2.33 ERA for the San Francisco Giants; he got the nod from NL manager Charlie Manuel. Halladay, 10-3 with a 2.85 ERA for the Toronto Blue Jays, was chosen by American League manager Joe Maddon. More»

(NEWSER) - For the first time ever, four Jewish players could make baseball’s All-Star Game, Bloomberg reports. Boston’s Kevin Youkilis and Texas’ Ian Kinsler each lead the voting at their positions, Milwaukee’s Ryan Braun is second in voting among National League outfielders, and Colorado pitcher Jason Marquis has the most wins in his league. “We’re in a glory time for Jewish baseball players,” says Howard Megdal, author of The Baseball Talmud. More»