LOS ANGELES — Baseball's All-Star Game was a sweet treat, a refreshingly icy blast on a hot July afternoon, a nod to the game's tradition that featured enough new wrinkles and fresh personalities to make it entertaining and help keep the All-Star format vibrant for years to come.
This year's version might even have provided a sneak peek of a potential Dodgers-New York Yankees World Series matchup in October. How sweet would it be to see Clayton Kershaw strike out Aaron Judge again, and for Tony Gonsolin to get another chance against Tujunga native Giancarlo Stanton after the Yankees outfielder tagged him for a two-run home run in the fourth inning on Tuesday?
The game's result — a 3-2 victory for the American League over the National League — will quickly fade from memory. But it was a fun break from the tension of division and wild-card races, a few happy hours for fans to forget about injuries and speculation about the Aug. 2 trade deadline and simply enjoy watching the sport's best players while a torrid day faded into a gentle Tuesday twilight against the picturesque backdrop of Dodger Stadium.
