Giants pace NL to shutout of AL in All-Star Game

  

KANSAS CITY, MO -- It was the last All-Star game for star Atlanta Braves third baseman Chipper Jones and the first for looming stars Mike Trout of the Los Angeles Angels and Bryce Harper of the Washington Nationals.

But three San Francisco Giants were the key factors in the National League's 8-0 shutout of the American League at Kansas City on Tuesday night.

San Francisco's Pablo Sandoval had the big blow in the five-run first -- a three-run triple off Detroit's Justin Verlander -- to spark the NL's 8-0 victory. The NL roughed up last year's AL Cy Young Award winner for five runs during Verlander's 35-pitch first inning.

The 8-0 triumph was the most lopsided National League victory in All-Star history -- and third largest of all time.

San Francisco's Melky Cabrera added a two-run homer as the NL added three more in the fourth inning. He was named MVP. And the Giants' Matt Cain was the winning pitcher with two shutout innings. That was followed by a shutout inning apiece by Washington's Gio Gonzalez and Stephen Strasburg and the L.A. Dodgers' Clayton Kershaw.

Mets knuckleballer R.A. Dickey, who has authored two one-hitters this season, pitched a one-hit sixth inning. Cole Hamels, Craig Kimbrel, Aroldis Chapman, Wade Miley, Joel Hanrahan and Jonathan Papelbon finished the six-hitter.

The 40-year-old Chipper Jones got a standing ovation when he came to bat in the sixth inning. In his eighth and final All-Star game, Jones delivered a pinch-hit, seeing-eye single. He is retiring at the end of the season.

The National League how has a 43-38-2 advantage over the American League in All-Star competition.

That means the NL champion gets home field advantage in the World Series.

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