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2011 MLB All-Star Game: NL Beats AL For All The Marbles

Michael Pineda was named to the 2011 MLB All-Star Game on Sunday, joining Mariners teammates Felix Hernandez and Brandon League.

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2011 MLB All-Star Game Score: Michael Pineda Awesome, Brandon League Not In 5-1 AL Loss

If you're just tuning into the Michael Pineda show, welcome! On Tuesday night in the 2011 MLB All-Star Game, Pineda had his "hello world" moment, introducing the rest of America to what we already know here in Seattle: He's good, he's a Rookie of the Year candidate and he's got the kind of stuff to make some of the best hitters in baseball look foolish. All he did was pitch a scoreless third inning, fanning two and inducing a pop-out from Troy Tulowitzki.

Brandon League also got his work in, pitching the bottom of the seventh and surrendering a run. To be fair, Matt Wieters was charged with a passed ball on a League pitch, allowing Hunter Pence to take second and third. Pablo Sandoval ripped a ground rule double, bringing in Pence. League sat down his final two batters and was done for the day having pitched his inning.

As for the game itself, it mattered again, and will until it doesn't anymore when the next collective bargaining agreement is enacted. The National League won, 5-1, thanks to a three-run Prince Fielder home run. Two home runs were hit, Heath Bell slid into the mound when entering the game from the bullpen and Brian Wilson's beard showed up. The All-Star Game was actually the All-Star and a bunch of replacements because the original guys didn't show up game, as well. But it mattered!

Tyler Clippard got the win after facing one batter and surrendering a hit, only to see Hunter Pence gun down Jose Bautista at the plate. Wins matter, you guys. Joel Hanrahan pitched the ninth for the NL, creating a save situation so Wilson could come in and do what he does. The Beard slammed the door, earning the save by pitching 2/3 of an inning and retiring both batters he faced.

More on the game can be found in our 2011 MLB All-Star Game StoryStream. For live-coverage, head over to Baseball Nation's All-Star Game stream. To relive Lookout Landing founder Jeff Sullivan's Home Run Derby live-blog, head over here. It's an absolute must-read.

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2011 MLB All-Star Game: Start Time, TV Information, Rosters And More

The 2011 MLB All-Star Game gets underway on Tuesday night as some of baseball's best and brightest, as well as a boatload of replacements for those best and brightest, take the field at Chase Field in Arizona. The Midsummer Classic offers a chance to see many of the MLB's superstars gathered together in one place, battling for home-field advantage in the World Series. But who are we kidding? It's a glorified exhibition that people will watch, because nothing else is on, and that the players don't take very seriously.

Nevertheless, the 2011 MLB All-Star Game is sports and because we love sports, it'll be watched by many. Surprisingly, no position players from the Seattle Mariners roster made the game, despite about a full roster of players pulling out for one reason or another. However, two pitchers, three if you could Felix Hernandez, will be in Arizona for the game. Michael Pineda and Brandon League will each pitch and Hernandez is on the bench, ineligible to throw because he was Sunday's starter.

Here's the relevant information for the MLB All-Star Game.

Start time: The All-Star Game gets underway at 5 p.m. here on the West Coast, and will hopefully end sometime before the stroke of midnight. Roy Halliday and Jered Weaver will get the start for the NL and AL, respectively.

TV information: FOX has the broadcast of the game, which means no Chris Berman. After Monday night's Home Run Derby, consider yourselves lucky this one belongs to FOX. Then again, there's Joe Buck. If you're planning on watching, mute might be a safe option. Just make your own soundtrack. It'll probably be better.

Rosters: The initial roster for the American League, the team we care about, can be found here. But wait! It looks nothing like that anymore. For all the roster updates since the first announcement came down, head over here.

More on the game can be found in our 2011 MLB All-Star Game StoryStream. For live-coverage, head over to Baseball Nation's All-Star Gamee stream. To relive Lookout Landing founder Jeff Sullivan's Home Run Derby live-blog, head over here. It's an absolute must-read.

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MLB All-Star Game 2011: Michael Pineda Told To Be Ready For A Call, According To Report

Shortly after the initial rosters for the 2011 MLB All-Star Game were announced, I lamented Michael Pineda's exclusion from the game. Pineda has put together a strong rookie campaign with the Seattle Mariners, presenting himself as an early Rookie of the Year candidate while pitching like an ace in what's been a surprising season for the team. And while the Mariners did have two pitchers selected to the All-Star Game -- Felix Hernandez and Brandon League -- Pineda's name was left off the early rosters.

That may change, however. All-Star rosters are always fluid right up until just before the game, and plenty of players elect to skip the game for one reason or another. In the likely event a pitcher or two pulls out of the game, odds are Pineda will be called in as a replacement.

According to 710 ESPN's Shannon Drayer, Pineda has been told to be ready, an encouraging sign for his chances.

Final selections most likely not until Sun but hearing Michael Pineda has been told to be ready to be a possible replacement in the AS game

For Pineda, making the All-Star Game as a rookie would have to be a thrilling opportunity -- one that he truly does deserve. And at this point, it wouldn't be surprising to see him added as a late replacement in the next few days. Nothing is set in stone, but it looks promising for the young phenom.

For more on the rosters, check out the rest of our 2011 MLB All-Star Game StoryStream.

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