Bill Center, longtime sportswriter for U-T San Diego, is an employee of the Padres.
For the third straight year, National League pitching dominated the American League hitters in the 1968 All-Star Game at the Astrodome in Houston Texas.
The American League got only three hits and the National League scored a tainted run in the bottom of the first for the first 1-0 win in series history in the first All-Star Game played indoors and on artificial grass.
The National League's sixth straight win continued a run of American League frustration at the plate. At the end of the 1968 game, the American League had scored only two runs over 34 innings in three straight one-run losses.
San Francisco Giants center fielder Willie Mays scored the game's lone run. Mays grounded a single to left leading off the bottom of the first against American League starter Luis Tiant of the Cleveland Indians.
The right-handed Tiant then apparently picked Mays off first, but his throw got past Minnesota Twins first baseman Harmon Killebrew, allowing Mays to reach second on Tiant's error. With No. 2 hitter Curt Flood still at the plate, Tiant threw a wild pitch to the Cardinals' left fielder on ball four allowing Mays to go to third.
With runners at the corners and no one out, Mays scored when Giants teammate Willie McCovey grounded into a double play.
None of the 48,321 in attendance knew it, but the game was essentially over.
Six National League pitchers combined on a three-hitter with no walks while recording 11 strikeouts.
Don Drysdale of the Dodgers opened the game with three scoreless innings, although he worked his way out of a jam in the top of the first after California Angels shortstop Jim Fregosi opened the game with a double and advanced to third on a ground out by Twins second baseman Rod Carew. But Drysdale froze Fregosi at third.
Juan Marichal of the Giants followed Drysdale and struck out three in two perfect innings. Steve Carlton of the Cardinals followed with a perfect sixth inning with a strikeout.
The American League got two hits in the next two innings against Tom Seaver of the New York Mets. But Seaver also struck out five hitters. Ron Reed of the Atlanta Braves got the first two outs in the ninth, including one by strikeout. Jerry Koosman of the Mets finished the game by striking out Boston's Carl Yastrzemski for the final out.
After the first, the closest the American League came to a run was the seventh when Minnesota right fielder Tony Oliva missed a home run by inches with a two-out double high off the left-field fence off Seaver, who then struck out Indians catcher Joe Azcue to end the inning.
There were a total of eight hits in the game and no player had two, although the National League drew six walks to go with its five hits.