Truist Park, Battery Host All-Star Weekend

It was worth the four-year wait.

The first-ever Major League Baseball All-Star Game at Truist Park, originally scheduled for July 2021 before MLB pivoted to Denver’s Coors Field for that year’s Midsummer Classic, was a splendid celebration of the national pastime, while introducing tens of thousands of visitors to The Battery Atlanta.

Though the feature showcase of the weeklong festivities, the 95th MLB All-Star Game on July 15 (won by the NL All-Stars 7-6 in a first-ever swing-off), was played within the confines of Truist, visiting fans, whether they hailed from Chicago, Detroit, Pittsburgh, Boston, or Toronto, soaked up the live music, dining options, and outdoor activities in the ballpark’s adjacent village. Indeed, few MLB ballparks offer such a dizzying array of entertainment for fans, many of whom aren’t even ticketholders, making Truist and The Battery an optimal setting for baseball’s crown jewel event.

“This [The Battery] is a great destination. I’ve been here several times and it’s just such a good fit as far as I’m concerned,” AL honorary coach and former Braves’ great Joe Torre said during media day.

Cincinnati Reds All-Star pitcher Andrew Abbott echoed Torre’s high praise: “It [Truist Park] just kind of translates into being a great atmosphere for something like this.”

After Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas (the site of last year’s ASG), Truist Park, by virtue of its 2017 opening, is the newest stadium MLB has unveiled. The consensus among this year’s All-Stars was that the Braves are fortunate to call Truist home 81 games a year.

New York Mets pitcher David Peterson: “I’ve always enjoyed playing here [Truist Park]. I’ve always thought it was one of the better atmospheres in the league.”

Colorado Rockies catcher Hunter Goodman: “I think the ballpark’s a beautiful ballpark. I think it’s a great place to be for this [All-Star Game].”

San Diego Padres pitcher Jason Adam: “It’s just beautiful. I mean they did a great job building it. It’s a fun place. It’s a fun atmosphere. The fans are great.”

The actual All-Star Game itself was fittingly awash in Atlanta culture and baseball history. Whether it was Chipper Jones throwing out the first pitch to Matt Olson, a Zac Brown Band national anthem, Ludacris and Jermaine Dupri introducing the lineups, or the beautiful late-game recreation of Hank Aaron’s 715th home run, this year’s game etched its place in Atlanta sports history.

Even the visiting American League All-Star team had an Atlanta presence as the AL coaching staff was headlined by the Hall of Famer Torre, who played in and managed the other two All-Star Games held in Atlanta, 1972 and 2000, respectively. For Torre, 85, who hasn’t managed since his final season in Los Angeles in 2010, the opportunity to tip his cap during pregame introductions to Braves fans, some of whom remember his prime years when the franchise was in Milwaukee, was impossible to pass up.

“When Boonie [AL All-Star manager Aaron Boone] asked me to be an honorary coach, it was exciting for me,” said Torre, who coached alongside Jewish former catcher and now current Yankees bench coach, Brad Ausmus.

As he skippered the dynastic New York Yankees of the late 1990s/early 2000s, Torre managed the AL All-Stars six times from 1997 to 2004. Though it’s hard for him to conjure up a specific memory from the 2000 game at Turner Field (during which Jewish catcher Mike Lieberthal paired up with Tom Glavine in the fifth inning), the All-Star Game in general still carries great significance – especially this year, which may be his last chance to participate.

“The only thing I’ve ever tried to do – and I get yelled at a time or two – is try to get every player in the game,” explained Torre. “We’ve won all the games, except the one we tied [2002], and that was sad for me, because it happened to be in Milwaukee and Bug Selig’s hometown. It was unfortunate. But I’ve been lucky. The guys that we picked to be on our side in the American League just happen to pull it out all the time for us. It was a great experience. It never got old, whether you’re playing in it or managing it. For me, it was always a very special occasion.”

The Braves had their three representatives — Matt Olson (also a Home Run Derby participant), Ronald Acuna, Jr., Chris Sale — but the game’s most hyped Atlanta connection was the return of wildly popular Los Angeles Dodgers first baseman Freddie Freeman, who started for the NL in his ninth All-Star Game.

“The last four years, every time I’ve come back, the fans have given me such great standing ovations,” Freeman said the day before the All-Star Game. “I’m not expecting anything [in Tuesday’s All-Star Game]; I’m just happy to be back and playing in front of these fans again. If they give me one, I’ll take it all in.”

The 41,702 fans on hand certainly did give Freeman (0-1 with a groundout) a resounding standing ovation when NL All-Star manager Dave Roberts popped out of the dugout to lift his starting first baseman with one out in the top of the third. Roberts, who managed Los Angeles in the 2021 NLCS against Atlanta, had just made a similar move an inning earlier when he removed southpaw Clayton Kershaw so that the crowd could acknowledge the future Hall of Famer in what may be his final season. Neither Jewish nor a former Brave, Kershaw has a close connection to the Jewish community as he has forged a now yearslong close bond with fellow Dodger legend Sandy Koufax, the gold standard of Jewish athletes. When Kershaw joined the 3,000-strikeout club in early July, Koufax was one of the first people he heard from.

“Sandy’s awesome,” said Kershaw. “He’s been so helpful to me in my journey with the Dodgers. He’s just a great man all the way around. He always calls and congratulates me, texts me or if he sees something watching the game, he’s always watching.”