It’s sooo long to the Bronx; AL wins in 15

NEW YORK -- The next pitcher into this game, this artificially meaningful exhibition to decide home-field advantage in the World Series, would have been J.D. Drew.

Drew won the most-valuable-player award in Tuesday’s All-Star game, but little did everyone know just how valuable he might have been.

The American League had used its last available pitcher. The National League had used its last available pitcher. The longest game in All-Star game history was approaching comic relief, and the time was approaching two in the morning.

In the 15th inning, Michael Young joined Hall of Famer Ted Williams as the only AL players to produce the walk-off run in an All-Star game. Young delivered the sacrifice fly that gave the AL a 4-3 victory on Tuesday at Yankee Stadium, extended its All-Star game unbeaten streak to a record 12 games and securing home-field advantage in the World Series.

Brad Lidge, the last available NL pitcher, took the loss. Scott Kazmir, the last available AL pitcher, worked one inning for the victory, after making 104 pitches on Sunday.

Justin Morneau, who won Monday’s home run derby, singled to start the 15th inning and eventually scored the winning run -- at 1:37 a.m. The game lasted four hours and 50 minutes, breaking the record by more than an hour. The 1967 game at Anaheim Stadium -- the only other 15-inning game in All-Star history -- lasted three hours and 41 minutes.

Drew won the MVP award in large part for his two-run homer in the seventh inning, snapping an NL shutout and tying the score, 2-2. But, as Tuesday night turned into Wednesday morning and the managers emptied their benches, Drew reminded AL Manager Terry Francona -- his manager with the Boston Red Sox -- that he would be happy to pitch if needed.

“He’s been bugging me for a long time to pitch,” Francona said. “We were close.”

Drew said he had not pitched since high school.

“I would have thrown some stuff up there,” he said. “I’ve got a little sneaky stuff here and there. I don’t know if I would have gotten anybody out.”

The AL survived a hail of missed opportunities.

In the 10th inning, the Americans had the bases loaded with none out and did not score, with two runners forced out at home.

In the 11th, center fielder Nate McLouth threw out the would-be winning run at the plate, with Russell Martin expertly blocking the plate to prevent his predecessor as Dodgers catcher, Dioner Navarro, from scoring.

In the 12th, the AL had a runner at third base with one out and did not score when Evan Longoria struck out and Ian Kinsler grounded out.

In many ways, this should have been a glorious farewell to Yankee Stadium, to the ballpark Commissioner Bud Selig calls “the most famous sports cathedral in the world.”

This was a night to celebrate greats past and present, from New York and beyond, from Yogi Berra and Hank Aaron to Derek Jeter and Josh Hamilton.

But a New York newspaper and the Yankee Stadium fans conspired to tarnish an otherwise spectacular event, with Jonathan Papelbon of the rival Red Sox enduring a ridiculous amount of abuse.

Papelbon, the Boston closer, gave a perfectly reasonable if not entirely modest answer during Monday’s interview session, to the question of which AL closer should work the ninth inning on Tuesday.

“If I was managing the team, I would close,” he said. “I’m not managing the team, so it doesn’t matter.”

This was not considered an appropriate answer, since Papelbon said something other than the ninth inning in Yankee Stadium should be left to Yankees closer Mariano Rivera, so the New York Daily News labeled him “PAPELBUM” on its back cover Tuesday, in big letters.

Papelbon told reporters he was taunted and threatened during Tuesday’s All-Star parade in Manhattan. He entered the game in the eighth inning, to loud boos. After giving up a flare single, a sellout crowd announced at 55,632 viciously mocked him by chanting “over-rated, over-rated!”

The provincialism did not carry the day. The MVP was a guy from the Red Sox.

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