With the calendar turning to July, we place our focus on the upcoming 40-year anniversary of the 1986 MLB All-Star Game which took place at the Houston Astrodome.
The contest would feature future Hall of Famers and would also serve as a preview of things to come three months later in the fall classic with Roger Clemens locking up against Dwight Gooden as starting pitchers. Mike Krukow pitched close to 2,200 innings in his baseball career but nothing was special as that magical night in the Dome, which
would represent his lone All-Star Game appearance.
Q: What was the moment like for you to be finally recognized among your peers as an All-Star?
A: That was a special time for me. I had waited 10 years in the big leagues before I was chosen to a (All-Star) team. It was a big moment. They gave you two first class tickets at the time, and I flew into Houston for the game with my 7-year-old son and we were both like two little kids. We were on cloud nine. I went there with the idea that I wanted to pitch in the game.
Whitey Herzog was the manager, and his pitching coach was Mike Roarke. I told Mike that I wanted to pitch an inning. So, it went Gooden, Valenzuela, then Mike Scott threw an inning, and low and behold, Mike tells me that I’m going to pitch the 9th.
Q: So, you went out there and you were on fire. What do you most remember of that game?
A: I never felt more adrenaline in my life than I did when I got out there to pitch for the 9th inning. It was a surge. The dugout for the N.L. All Stars was on the first base side, so I walked over about 10 feet to the mound, and I started throwing and every pitch was 95 mph. I throw my curve, my change up, everything, and it’s just popping.
I told myself that I had better go sit down and calm down a little. I got in there and my first hitter was Cal Ripken Jr, and I got him on a comebacker, got the next two batters and it became a 1-2-3 inning.
That night was one of the highlights of my life and I never felt at any time in my career that adrenaline. Not even on opening day, not a playoff game, or a rivalry game, that night was special.
Q: It was of course a homecoming that night for Roger Clemens. What do you remember about his performance?
A: At the time, the two best fastball hitters in the National League were Tony Gwynn and Ryne Sandberg. We have them at the top of our lineup that night. I just remember watching Clemens getting loose in the dugout and he’s throwing harder than anyone I’ve ever seen.
He blows away Gwynn and Sandberg and I’m looking at Chili Davis and I asked him jokingly if he wanted to go and grab a bat and he says “No, I’m good right here.”
Q: The N.L. scored a pair of runs in the 8th, you went out there in the 9th, did you feel like you had the momentum?
A: We totally had the momentum. Chris Brown his last at bat hit a rocket but it turned into a double play. If that thing goes through, he would’ve been the MVP because he had a double early in the game.
You know, I never personally really had a whole lot of luck in Houston. I didn’t have many wins in the Astrodome during the regular season either because of how good the Astros were.
Q: Even with the loss, you had something pretty cool happen before the game in the clubhouse. What do you remember of that moment?
A: They announced that Vice President George Bush wanted to come in and talk to us. So, everyone stops and the Secret Service comes in, and here comes V.P. Bush, and he literally spoke to everybody in that room individually. He took his time and encircled the room.
When he got done with the last player, he went right to the clubhouse kids and did the same thing. He made everyone feel special and I was always so impressed with that. It was remarkable.
