This was the sixty-seven All-star Game played, a game made up of the greatest hitters and pitchers, and the first where neither league allowed a single base on balls. The Midsummer Classic was played on July 9, 1996 at Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Neither pitching staff allowed a single walk during the entire game, an All-Star Game record. The American League could only manage seven hits, and the seven American League players with 20 or more home runs at the break went a combined 3 for 14 [.214]. The 1996 All-Star Game was more than simply a rare pitcher’s game in a hitters year. For Philadelphia baseball fans, it was a chance to celebrate the old and the new, this was the fourth All-Star game played at Philadelphia, and a chance to recognize some of the men who had filled this historic city with countless historic baseball moments over the years. Five of Philadelphia’s finest; Ritchie Ashburn, Jim Bunning, Steve Carlton, Robin Roberts and mike Schmidt were on hand to throw out five ceremonial first pitches.

Dodgers’ catcher Mike Piazza, who grew up nearby Norristown, Pennsylvania, enjoys quite a home coming at Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia. Piazza nails a 445-foot home run off Cleveland’s Charles Nagy his first time up, then doubles home the National League’s fourth run off Chuck Finley in his second at-bat to go 2 for 3 and was awarded the Most Valuable Player Honor. He became the first player to homer in consecutive All-Star Games since Fred Lynn in 1979 and 1980. Combined with his homer in his last-bat in the 1995, he also became the first to homer in consecutive All-Star at-bats since Gary Carter in 1981. This was the seventh Midsummer Classic shutout, the fifth by the National League, and the first All-Star shutout since the 1990 All-Star Game. The National League Shuts out the American League, 6-0. Despite the National League’s eventual 6-0 triumph, the American Leaguer pitchers more than held their own, eight National Leaguers were retired on strikes, four at the hands of California’s Chuck Finley. The game would have had a lot more, if not for the absence of Ken Griffey, Jr., Tony Gwynn, Frank Thomas and Matt Williams due to injuries. The victory was the National League third in a row and extends its series lead to 40-26-1.