In addition, thanks to his relationship with Harper, Lin Guanglai also got to know many of the Washington Nationals' players — in this All-Star ga, the Nationals shone brightly due to their outstanding performance in the first half of the season, with five mbers selected, second only to the Dodgers in number.
Among the Nationals players, the ones who left the deepest impression on Lin Guanglai were naturally their two ace pitchers: one of them, 32 years old this year, is Max Scherzer, a likely Hall of Fa pitcher who has won the Cy Young Award twice; the other is Stephen Strasburg, nicknad "Young Genius," both are top-level Major League pitchers.
Coincidentally, Lin Guanglai has also been a Cy Young-caliber pitcher this season, so when the three of them ca together, it was only natural that they began discussing pitching topics; Lin Guanglai absorbed a lot of insight from the experienced veteran Scherzer, preparing to put them into practice in the upcoming official gas.
Following dia Day was the league's official partnership with the governnt of the All-Star site to launch community outreach projects, assigning the All-Star selected players to local baseball fields to interact with Miami's youth baseball teams.
The purpose of this initiative is to delve into the community, promote the developnt of youth baseball, and to so extent foster future talent for MLB — after all, among the children participating today, so might one day play alongside Lin Guanglai and these star players or even surpass their achievents.
"I never expected that you, the dia-proclaid bad boy, would be so friendly in front of kids..." Looking at Harper beside him, whose face was full of love and enthusiasm while interacting with the kids, Lin Guanglai exclaid — it was the first ti he'd seen this side of his friend.
"Lin, you little brat, just wouldn't understand the feelings we family guys get when we see kids..." Harper simply shook his head and shrugged in response to Lin Guanglai.
"You're only two years older than , speaking as if you have lots of parenting experience..." Lin Guanglai felt quite indignant and imdiately retorted back at Harper.
Who would have thought, this sentence hit Harper's sweet spot perfectly; seeing the skilled batter chuckle and deliver a ho run: "Well, I'm indeed about to beco a dad — how did you know I got a ssage from my wife last night saying she's pregnant?"
Saying this, Harper glanced at Lin Guanglai with a teasing look while continuously mocking the person in front of him: "Oh, I forgot, don't ntion wife and kids, and a warm bed, you don't even have a girlfriend, Lin... I an seriously, with such a good-looking face, how co you don't have a steady partner? You make kind of worried..."
Lin Guanglai, who had been hit by constant blows, didn't feel like talking much at this mont and just looked at Harper resentfully: "It's not my problem, it's the author's problem..."
The day before the All-Star ga started, MLB officially rolled out the red carpet along the entire road leading to the ballpark at the Miami Marlins' ho field (yes, you read that right, it really is called that), setting up fan interaction zones—this was also an opportunity for MLB players to showcase their fashion sense.
For instance, Lin Guanglai's teammate Aaron Judge wore a rather formal double-breasted white striped suit, and despite not wearing a tie, it could almost be replicated for a high-end cocktail party;
Another selected player, Luis Severino, dressed in a style typical of African-Aricans, apart from the eye-catching big gold chain on his chest, his black suit hugged his fra well and had a hip-hop flair;
As for Harper, who had been almost inseparable from Lin Guanglai these days, he chose to show up bare chest under a casual suit — as he himself said, "After all, Miami isn't cold, and dressing like this shows masculinity."
Lin Guanglai wore a similar laid-back outfit, opting for a light pink casual suit, with a simple white shirt underneath, no tie, and the most classic white sneakers — such an ensemble could easily beco a fashion crash, but Lin Guanglai carried it off effortlessly with his looks and physique.
After interacting with fans along the red carpet for quite so ti, when Lin Guanglai reached the outside of the venue, the official host from MLB TV stopped him for a simple interview with this rising star — and it was during this interview that Lin Guanglai had the chance to et his childhood idol—
As Lin Guanglai's interview reached halfway, a familiar yet sowhat unfamiliar voice sounded beside him: "Oops, I seem to have co a bit early?"
The newcor was about half a head shorter than Lin Guanglai and was wearing the simplest Nike polo shirt and sweatpants, with no sense of fashion; but when Lin Guanglai turned his head to look, his face instantly showed an incredible look of excitent — a look only fans eting their idols have.
"Ken, my old friend, it's been a long ti, can't believe I'm seeing you here!" After being taken aback for a mont, the host showed a warm smile, swiftly pulling the guest into the cara:
Ken Griffey Jr., the 1990s face of MLB, with a career boasting 13 All-Star selections, 10 Gold Gloves, 7 Silver Slugger Awards, and 4 Ho Run titles, revered as the "Michael Jordan of baseball," a superstar.
Before suffering from injuries in the latter part of his career, he was once considered most likely to break Hank Aaron's ho run record, even surpass the historical top outfielder Willie Mays.
Unparalleled skills, a sunny smile, the most aesthetically pleasing swinging action in baseball, and maintaining untainted integrity in the dark "steroid era," all made Griffey Jr. a childhood idol for a whole generation of baseball fans, Lin Guanglai included.
Despite being born in 1995 and never seeing Griffey Jr. in his pri with the Seattle Mariners, Lin Guanglai still grew up watching this legendary star; once upon a ti, even when swinging at bat, he would deliberately imitate Griffey Jr.'s actions.
As a forr MLB iconic figure, even after retiring for years, Griffey Jr.'s popularity among fans has never diminished; having entered the Hall of Fa last year with the highest vote count in history, he ca to Miami this ti to support the league in promotional events.
eting his childhood idol for the first ti in real life, Lin Guanglai appeared quite thrilled, acting entirely like a devoted fan; while the slightly plumper retired Griffey Jr. showed great affability, even agreeing with Lin Guanglai on a batting coaching session during the offseason.
With everyone gathering, the 2017 All-Star Week officially kicked off:
Scheduled the day before the main event was the appetizer, the widely anticipated Ho Run Derby, featuring stars including Aaron Judge, Giancarlo Stanton, Charlie Blackmon, taking the stage, Lin Guanglai's teammate, and the current season's ho run king Aaron Judge seized victory.
Compared to the diverse and colorful prega activities, the main ga the next day wasn't particularly exciting, with every player participating just to show face as the Arican League beat the National League 2:1 for the win.
The special nature of baseball determines it can't be as visually entertaining as basketball All-Star gas, and revamping the All-Star system has been a consideration of MLB in recent years:
Previous years tied World Series ho-field advantages to the All-Star ga, attracting many to follow it; but ever since last year's World Series incident when the 103-win Cubs had one less ho ga than the 94-win Indians, that decision was rescinded.
After the All-Star ga ended, Lin Guanglai bid farewell to familiar faces and new acquaintances, returning to the usual rhythm of preparation; as the season's officially crossed halfway, it's ti to ramp things up!
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