Why Doval's All-Star Game win is eerie Giants coincidence

Why Doval's All-Star Game win is eerie Giants coincidence originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

With a scoreless relief inning Tuesday night, Giants closer Camilo Doval helped the National League win its first MLB All-Star Game since 2012 with a 3-2 victory.

Doval pitched the seventh inning at T-Mobile Park in Seattle, throwing the game's eight fastest pitches and striking out the reigning AL Rookie of the Year, Julio Rodriguez, with a 101-mph fastball in front of the young phenom's home crowd.

And after Colorado Rockies catcher Elias Díaz hit his go-ahead, two-run shot in the eighth, Doval was awarded the win -- the first NL pitcher to do so since former Giants ace Matt Cain in 2012.

Not even a month removed from throwing the first perfect game in Giants franchise history, Cain started the All-Star Game on July 10, 2012, and earned the win after tossing two scoreless innings.

The 2012 campaign was one to remember for the Giants, as their outfielder Melky Cabrera was the All-Star Game MVP that year (before a 50-game suspension for using a banned substance) and San Francisco went on to win its second World Series title in three seasons. Pablo Sandoval and Buster Posey also were All-Star starters, along with Cain and Cabrera.

In 2023, the Giants are hoping they can recreate some of the magic found during the middle of the franchise's 2010s dynasty. They're 2 1/2 games back of the Los Angeles Dodgers and Arizona Diamondbacks for first place in the NL West, and they'll look to make a playoff push in the second half.

Doval, who leads MLB in saves, is a big part of that. He seemed calm, cool and collected as he made history during his first All-Star Game on Tuesday, which his manager Gabe Kapler pointed out on Twitter.

At 26 years old, Doval joined an exclusive list of Giants pitchers to earn an All-Star win: Cain (2012), Vida Blue (1981), Gaylord Perry (1966), Juan Marichal (1964,1962), Stu Miller (1961), Johnny Antonelli (1959) and Sal Maglie (1951) (h/t Sarah Langs).

And if this season has anything else in common with 2012, it's that the Giants' future is bright.

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