Sports Redux: Home Field Advantage!

Big shock - American League wins the All-Star Game! Who knew? Who could have predicted? How could one have expected that the mighty National Leauge would fall in a 5-4 game at AT&T Park?

Ten straight, friends! Excluding the tie, of course.

Sure, it's become almost boringly expected that that AL is going to come out on top when the two leagues clash, but we were seriously worried about the pesky NK underdogs on Wednesday night. Kudos to the National Leaguers for making it a real game and showcasing the lineups both teams have to offer.

Special accolades for Alfonso Soriano, who made it too close an AL margin for comfort when he blasted a two-run homer off Seattle closer J.J. Putz and made it a 5-4 game. With the hit, Soriano joined Frank Robinson in the exclusive club of players who hit All-Star homers with three different teams.

But the AL was where it was at. Game MVP Ichiro Suzuki hit All-Star's first inside-the-park homer un in the fifth inning, racked up three hits and otherwise rocked the place, and the AL players took an early lead and managed to make it work.

Your quick Sox breakdown:
Mike Lowell - 1-1, run scored
David Ortiz - 0-2
Manny Ramirez - 0-1
Josh Beckett - 2 innings, 1 hit, 2 strikeouts
Jonathan Papelbon - 1 inning, 1 hit, 2 strikeouts
Hideki Okajima - no playing time, but we love him anyway

So now that we have home field advantage, all the Sox need to do is keep on winning and lead us into the playoffs. We'll clear our schedule for Rally Monday 2007 and keep the faith.

-- Troy Brown's knee looks like it's going to hold up, so the receiver will be back for another season, just as everyone had hoped. With his recovery from surgery going well, Brown will be set for his 15th season with the Pats, the second-longest streak in team history. The question now: which of the 13 receivers will wind up on the final roster?

Image from flickr user Slick Vic