My quick takes on the All Star game...

1) Papelbon was a tool for saying on the record that he thought he should get the close. It was Rivera's game to close, Papelbon knew it, Francona knew it, only Francona actually handled it correctly.
2) YankeeFan was way past toolness in the way they treated the Red Sox players and families in the parade. Crass, unacceptable, and vomitous.
3) Terry Francona was a class act, stem to stern. From the way he took Jeter and A-Rod out in the middle of innings so they could take a bow, to the way he put Rivera in mid-inning so he could walk in to his music (though that one bit him hard, because it turned out he needed more work from F. Rodriguez…), to the way he very respectfully and gingerly handled the starting pitcher from a heated division rival that had just thrown 104 pitches just 2 days earlier) and limited him to 14 pitches…
4) Dioner Navarro almost had a disaster of a game, with 2 Ks and a wild throw into center trying to gun down a baserunner, but redeemed himself with a GREAT throwout of another for the 3rd out in the 9th off the strikeout from Rivera, and the walk, and the clutch base hit in the 15th.
5) Longoria looked like the little kid he is, having a great time. It was great to see him, on the slo-mo replay of the double, crack into a smile before the ball passed 3rd base… He's gonna be a great player for a long time. He had volunteered to go in and pitch for Kaz, if Kaz needed relief, he pitched in high school.
6) How about JD Drew, man? Monster game… He also volunteered to pitch.
7) Pittsburgh's center fielder had a monster game too… (He gunned Navi down at the plate, though Navi had just barely beaten the tag on the replay…. )
8) Roy Halladay was completely unhittable.
9) Josh Hamilton had an All-Star experience for the ages… How many people have EVER hit the back wall of the bleachers at Yankee Stadium? I bet less than five.
10) Dan Uggla has got to be in a very deep cavern somewhere in the Everglades right now; very VERY drunk. That was one of the most pathetic performances I've ever seen in a baseball game...
11) Youkilis looked good, should have been in the game longer.
12) Zambrano's loopy slow curveball at ManRam was really funny; wish I knew the history.
13) Was the most intense, well-played all star game I've ever seen.
14) Softball game with legends and celebs on Monday was a hoot. Even with Kenny Mayne.