SAN DIEGO _ In the moments after the second inning ended, after two baseballs had soared 762 feet into the cool sea air and the American League had seized control of this All-Star Game, Eric Hosmer bounced around inside the first-base dugout. He clapped his hands three times and nodded his head. The Royals' first baseman found his manager leaning on a railing near the bat rack.
As Hosmer approached Ned Yost, he stuck out a fist and let his words fly. He could not hide his jubilation.
"We've been on a big stage before!" Hosmer said, looking toward Yost. "We've been here before. We've been on a stage before!"
The scene was captured by a Fox microphones and beamed out to the world on Tuesday night. The moment summed up the proceedings fairly well. As the sun kissed the skyline here in downtown San Diego, the Royals took charge, leading the American League to a 4-2 victory in the 87th edition of the midsummer classic.
For Hosmer and Kansas City, the script was nearly perfect, like Yost had sketched it out before the night began. Eight months after hoisting the World Series championship in New York, they used Tuesday night's exhibition as a national encore, vanquishing an old teammate in the process.
In the span of minutes in the second inning, Hosmer and Salvador Perez had each crushed homers into the seats beyond the left-field wall. The blasts came off Giants starter Johnny Cueto, the former Royal who left a complicated legacy in Kansas City.
Hosmer took home Most Valuable Player honors after recording two hits and two RBIs, becoming the first Royals to win the award since Bo Jackson in 1989.
"It's so crazy," Hosmer said.
In his first All-Star appearance, Hosmer pounced first, jumping on a 90-mph cutter with one out in the second inning. The baseball exploded off Hosmer's bat at 100 mph, an opposite-field shot that traveled 389 feet. The homer tied the score at 1.
As Hosmer rounded the bases, he became the first Royal to homer in an All-Star Game since Bo Jackson's iconic leadoff homer in 1989. After waiting 27 years, the next homer came just two batters later.
After Boston's Mookie Betts singled to center field, Perez unloaded on a 93 mph fastball that stayed up in the strike zone. The ball soared 373 feet, the crack of the bat followed by a dramatic hush from the partisan National League crowd. The American League led 3-1.
Hosmer would follow with an RBI single in the third inning off Miami ace Jose Fernandez, finishing 2 for 3 with two RBIs.
Reliever Kelvin Herrera would throw a 1-2-3 inning in the sixth. Cueto would take the loss, allowing three earned runs in 1 2/3 innings.
Nearly 45 minutes after departing the game, Cueto moved through the bowels of Petco Park, stopping in front of a throng of media for a brief postgame interview. A reporter asked Cueto about the significance of allowing two homers to Hosmer and Perez, his former teammates in Kansas City. Cueto offered an awkward smile.
"I left two pitches up," Cueto said. "And I paid the price."
Cueto had earned the start after recording a 13-1 record and a 2.47 ERA for the San Francisco Giants during the season's first half. The performance had helped lift San Francisco to the best record in baseball and quieted any lingering concerns after a turbulent stay in Kansas City.
Last fall, of course, Cueto helped the Royals to the World Series championship with dominant outings in Game 5 of the American League Division Series and Game 2 of the World Series. Everything else was a borderline debacle. In 13 regular season stars, he posted a 4-7 record and 4.76 ERA. As his performance waned, he placed the blame on the positioning of Perez's glove.
In 2016, Cueto located his mojo in San Francisco. In 18 starts during the first half, he lasted fewer than six innings just twice. On Tuesday, he was tripped up in the second, allowing two homers before Mets manager Terry Collins summoned Fernandez.
The American League won its fourth straight All-Star Game, improving to 22-6-1 in the last 29 games. Hosmer was at the center of the victory.
When the night began, the focus had rested on two people: The late Tony Gwynn, the patron saint of the Padres, and Red Sox slugger David Ortiz, who was competing in his final midsummer classic.
In the hours before first pitch, a throng of bodies and cameras emerged from the first-base dugout in unison, pushing out toward the field. In the middle of the horde was Ortiz, the venerable face of the Red Sox, preparing to take his spot in the cage during batting practice.
This was Big Papi's 10th All-Star Game. He is set to retire when 2016 season is over. In a tribute, Yost sent Ortiz out to deliver the lineup card.
Four hours later, the stage _ the big one, that is _ belonged to Hosmer and the Royals.
