By Kevin Kelly
The Cincinnati Enquirer

PHOTO GALLERY

Photos of Tuesday's game

CHICAGO - The executives said it would mean more, that this time it counted. With home-field advantage in the World Series at stake for the first time, the All-Star Game on Tuesday at U.S. Cellular Field produced a made-for-TV finish.

The AL came back and won 7-6 on the strength of a two-run homer by Rangers third baseman Hank Blalock in the bottom of the eighth.

A year removed from a controversial tie, and with teams given more players to work with to avoid a repeat, managers for both the American and National League warned the new circumstance might force them to manage the exhibition more like Game 7.

Eleven players did not get into the game, but the crowd of 47,609 - the largest in the 13-year history of the stadium - still got its due.

There were five home runs, dominating pitching performances highlight-reel plays in the field.

And there was AL manager Mike Scioscia arguing, really arguing, a questionable call in the fifth.

That was the inning in which the NL scored five times to take a 5-1 lead, an advantage that vanished by the bottom of the eighth.

In his first All-Star at-bat, Blalock hit a two-run homer off Dodgers closer Eric Gagne to give the AL a one-run lead. His homer, the first by a pinch-hitter since 1995, traveled 427 feet into the right-field stands.

Yet Angels outfielder Garret Anderson was named the game's MVP. He was 3-for-4 with a home run and two RBI.

NL pitchers held the AL to just three hits and struck out nine through the first five innings.

Jason Schmidt of the Giants started for the NL. The right-hander was chosen both as a reward for his on-field ability (9-4, 2.37 ERA in the first half) and emotional strength in the wake of his mother Vicki's death from a malignant brain tumor in April.

Schmidt struck out three of the eight batters he faced during his two scoreless innings.

AL starter Esteban Loaiza was equally impressive opposite of his former teammate in Pittsburgh.

The right-hander, who signed with the White Sox for $500,000 prior to this season and already has matched his career high for victories in a season with 11, allowed one hit and struck out one in his two innings work. He drew a standing ovation while walking off the field in the second inning.

Last-minute replacement Roger Clemens took over for Loaiza in the third. For the five-time Cy Young Award winner, who was called in to replace Barry Zito and cut a fishing trip short to accommodate, it was his eighth and final career All-Star appearance.

Only Jim Bunning, Don Drysdale, Juan Marichal and Tom Seaver have pitched in as many All-Star games as Clemens, who struck out two in his inning.

The American League took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the third and kept it until the fifth.

The NL scored five runs in the fifth - four off Mariners reliever Shigetoshi Hasegawa.

A two-run homer by Todd Helton was the highlight offensively of the inning.

Andruw Jones of the Braves hit a two-run double, and the Cardinals' Albert Pujols singled him home off Guardado to make it 5-1.

Scioscia argued that Rafael Furcal shouldn't have scored on the play since a fan touched the ball as it rolled down the leftfield line. Furcal had passed second base.

The AL scored two in the sixth on a homer by Anderson, who had won the Home Run Derby the night before, and made it 6-4 with a solo homer by Yankees first baseman Jason Giambi in the seventh.

Gagne allowed a pair of doubles that led to a run before Blalock came up.

Reds third baseman Aaron Boone batted in the eighth and flew out to end that inning.

NATIONAL	AB	R	H	BI	BB	SO	Avg.
Renteria ss	2	0	0	0	0	1	.000
Furcal ph-ss	3	1	1	0	0	1	.333
Edmonds cf	2	0	1	0	0	1	.500
AJones ph-cf	2	2	2	3	0	0	1.000
Pujols lf	3	0	1	1	0	0	.333
LGonzalez lf	1	0	1	0	0	0	1.000
Bonds dh	3	0	0	0	0	0	.000
White ph-dh	1	0	0	0	0	0	.000
Sheffield rf	1	1	0	0	1	0	.000
PrWilson rf	2	0	1	0	0	1	.500
Helton 1b	2	1	1	2	0	1	.500
Sexson 1b	2	0	0	0	0	0	.000
Rolen 3b	2	1	1	0	0	0	.500
Lowell 3b	1	0	1	0	0	0	1.000
ABoone ph-3b	1	0	0	0	0	0	.000
JLopez c	2	0	0	0	0	0	.000
Lo Duca ph-c	2	0	1	0	0	0	.500
Vidro 2b	2	0	0	0	0	2	.000
LCastillo 2b	2	0	0	0	0	0	.000
Totals	36	6	11	6	1	7

AMERICAN	AB	R	H	BI	BB	SO	Avg.
ISuzuki rf	1	1	0	0	2	0	.000
MOrdonez ph-rf	1	0	0	0	0	0	.000
ASoriano 2b	3	0	0	0	0	1	.000
JaGiambi 1b	1	1	1	1	0	0	1.000
CDelgado 1b	3	0	1	1	0	1	.333
RaHernandez c	1	0	0	0	0	0	.000
ARodriguez ss	3	1	1	0	0	1	.333
Garciaparra ss	1	0	0	0	0	0	.000
GAnderson lf	4	1	3	2	0	1	.750
Mora pr-lf	0	1	0	0	0	0	---
EMartinez dh	2	0	0	0	0	2	.000
CEverett ph-dh	1	0	0	0	0	0	.000
Matsui cf	2	0	1	0	0	0	.500
Wells pr-cf	2	1	1	1	0	0	.500
Glaus 3b	3	0	0	0	0	2	.000
Blalock ph-3b	1	1	1	2	0	0	1.000
Posada c	2	0	0	0	0	2	.000
BBoone 2b	2	0	0	0	0	1	.000
Totals	33	7	9	7	2	11

National	000	050	100	-6	11	1
American	001	002	13x	-7	9	0

E-Furcal (1). LOB-National 4, American 5. 2B-AJones (1), Lowell (1), GAnderson (1), Wells (1). HR-Blalock (1), off Gagne; JaGiambi (1), off Wagner; AJones (1), off Mulder; GAnderson (1), off WWilliams; Helton (1), off Hasegawa. RBIs-AJones 3 (3), Pujols (1), Helton 2 (2), JaGiambi (1), CDelgado (1), GAnderson 2 (2), Wells (1), Blalock 2 (2). GIDP-White, Sexson.

DP-American 2

National	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	NP	ERA
Schmidt	2	1	0	0	0	3	26	0.00
Wolf	1	1	1	1	1	2	17	9.00
Wood	1	1	0	0	0	2	16	0.00
RuOrtiz	1	0	0	0	1	2	20	0.00
WWilliams	1	2	2	2	0	1	15	18.00
Wagner H, 1	1	1	1	1	0	0	10	9.00
Gagne L, 0-1	BS, 1	1	3	3	3	0	1	24	27.00

American	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	NP	ERA
Loaiza	2	1	0	0	0	1	27	0.00
Clemens	1	0	0	0	0	2	15	0.00
Moyer	1	0	0	0	0	1	10	0.00
Hasegawa	2/3	3	4	4	1	1	23	54.00
Guardado	1/3	2	1	1	0	0	8	27.00
Mulder	2	5	1	1	0	1	32	4.50
Donnelly W, 1-0	1	0	0	0	0	1	11	0.00
Foulke S, 1	1	0	0	0	0	0	14	0.00

Inherited runners-scored-Guardado 2-2.

HBP-by Schmidt (EMartinez). WP-Wolf.

T-2:38. A-47,609 (47,098).