1988 was the first time I watched the baseball All-Star Game. It was also the last time the All-Star Game was played in Cincinnati. The Midsummer Classic makes a long overdue return to the Queen City next week.
I remember watching the 1988 game with my mother and grandmother. Mom and I snacked on Munchos. Grandma smoked Chesterfields. We all drank glass bottles of red and blue labeled Pepsi Free. Oakland A's catcher Terry Steinbach wore his specially protective batting helmet, hit a home run, and walked away with the MVP trophy in a 2-1 American League victory. The AL's win in 1988 kickstarted a six-game winning streak in the series for the Junior Circuit.
From the Video Vault this evening is a clip of ABC's opening to their coverage of the 1988 baseball All-Star Game, which includes a brief summary and montage of the game's history in Cincinnati, narrated by Al Michaels.