Major League Baseball's All-Star Game was in just its second year of existence when it set up shop in the Polo Grounds on July 10, 1934. Like many All-Star Games after it, this one would feature a slew of future Hall of Famers on both rosters. In total, 28 of the men who would suit up that day would eventually find their way to Cooperstown. But despite the final score, this day would belong to Carl Hubbell.
Starting for the National League in his stomping grounds, the Giants great had never been known to be a "strike-out pitcher", instead relying on the fielders behind him to make the necessary plays when the opposing batters slapped grounders around the field. In many ways, he was old school in his approach, playing a deadball era style of pitching.
This is why his performance in the 1934 All-Star Game is so puzzling. The man with more than 1,600 strikeouts over a 15-year career would find a way to strike out five straight future Hall of Famers in the 1934 All-Star Game. Beginning in the first inning and well into the second, he would strike out Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Jimmie Foxx, Al Simmons and the AL manager Joe Cronin. Those batters would combine to average.329, collect 13,452 hits and slam 2,208 home runs over the course of their incredible careers. Although the American League would eventually get out of their slump and win 9-7, Carl Hubbell's performance in that little stretch of time would echo for all eternity.
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