San Diego put a really good show tonight at Petco Park. No noticeable hiccups. The fans were awesome. The display of military presence at the beginning of the game was impressive, and the flyover by the Thunderbirds stole the show.

Then, in an announcement kept secret by the league, the AL and NL batting champion awards are now named after Rod Carew and Tony Gwynn. To see Carew out on the field waving to fans had to be a treat back home for Twins fans. Let's face it, he was the All-Star of the night for Minnesota. And the crowd erupted when Tony Gwynn's name was announced. Just a great moment.

``It surprised the heck out of me," said Carew, who was presented with his own award to take home. ``I'm glad that Tony was the other one. We were good friends and close friends. To honor us like this is unbelievable."

And the game wasn't bad either.

We saw Kris Bryant homer off of Chris Sale. We saw home runs by Eric Hosmer and Salvador Perez. In fact, players from the two central division teams accounted for five of the six runs on Tuesday.

I was really impressed with the AL bullpen. I guess it goes for either team. Now that relievers are more prevalent in the All-Star Game, the team that leads in the late innings has a huge advantage. Kelvin Herrera - flamethrower. Dellin Batances - flamethrower. Andrew Miller - high velocity and nasty (although he ended up in a jam in the eighth). Zach Britton - mid-90's heater with sink. That's quite the group to go through.

The game was basically over after the fifth inning, in my opinion. And the talk before the game was how much better the NL roster looked compared to the AL roster. All it takes is a few good bullpen arms to deal with that.

Make sure you check out the video of Eduardo Nunez that was shot after the game. He really enjoyed All-Star week. His clubhouse stall was next to his friend, Robinson Cano, and the two were yucking it up over there on Tuesday. And, in what probably was more than a coincidence, Nunez replaced Cano for the ninth inning.

Nunez's family and friends, all wearing his All-Star workout jersey, were waiting for him after the game. They all were grinning ear-to-ear. Had to be a thrill that he was able to get on the field.

That's it from Petco Park. It's back to MSP for me, although I've already been notified that my early-morning flight has been delayed. :(