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Unless you're new to Major League Baseball, you know the American League has been unbeatable against the National League in the All-Star Game for the last 13 years.

Excluding the 2002 contest that ended in a tie and featured the infamous Bud Selig shrug, the Junior Circuit has won every game since being shutout in 1996.

Obviously, a 12-game winning streak that spans over a decade has a litany of explanations. For example, the AL has been quite a bit stronger at times during the run and Lady Luck has played her role as she always does on the diamond.

By Larry Barnes | Yankees 'n More  and The Yankees Daily-Press

By Larry Barnes | Yankees 'n More  and The Yankees Daily-Press
Though he certainly wasn't alone on the list of Yankees employees who screwed up big time during Sunday afternoon's 7-6 win over the Toronto Blue Jays, third-base coach Rob Thomson was on top of the mountain.

First off, let me preface the rest of this post by saying that I am vehemently opposed to requiring that each team have a representative in the MLB All-Star game.

Here are two MLB players, A and B, and their numbers through the first half of the season:

A is batting .311 in 56 games, with one home run, 22 RBIs, and 3 stolen bases. He has a .343 OBP and a .378 SLG, giving him a .721 OPS.

B is batting .312 in 77 games, with 19 home runs, 57 RBIs, and 7 stolen bases. He has a .412 OBP and a .572 SLG, giving him a .984 OPS.

The Mets will send two players to the All-Star Game, however neither of them are named Mike Pelfrey or R.A. Dickey.

David Wright and Jose Reyes will represent New York in Anaheim. Wright is hitting .313, with 14 homers and 64 runs batted in. Reyes is dealing with an oblique strain right now, and it is unknown if he will be able to play. Hs return date keeps getting pushed back.

A few players could provide your club with a nice boost if you are willing to scan the waiver wire. Coco Crisp and his fresh legs could provide steals. Tom Gorzelanny’s newfound rotation opportunity could provide strikeouts. And Aubrey Huff is a surprising source for most offensive stats, along with a little position flexibility.

While Brewer fans and management go back-and-forth on the merits of dealing Prince Fielder away for young, controllable pitching, there is little to no room for debate on Corey Hart. 

Hart was named to his second All-Star team on Sunday, and is on pace to have the best season of his career. The Brewers need to sell high on Hart, and begin to bring good pitching to Milwaukee. The San Francisco Giants are the perfect counterpart to make such a deal happen, and each team would benefit from making a deal as soon as possible.

From the moment I watched my first game of baseball, I was mesmerized by the importance of the pitcher. To win games you need to have a consistent pitcher, something that Dontrelle Willis wasn't for the Detroit Tigers or the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Dontrelle Willis was the most exciting lefty pitcher to watch from 2003 to 2007, when he played for the Florida Marlins.

With the Florida Marlins he played magnificently, winning the Rookie of the Year and leading the Marlins to their second World Series title in 2003.

When he first came into the league as a 20-year-old, starting in the back of the rotation for the Cleveland Indians, many people said that CC Sabathia needed to lose weight if he wanted to be successful in the major leagues. He tried that. 

A few years later, when he didn't get the calls that he felt should go his way, and threw immature tantrums on the mound, many other people said that Sabathia needed to mature as an individual before he could succeed in the major leagues. He did that.