Ninety-three Major League Baseball All-Star Games have been played since the inaugural one in 1933. The American League (AL) leads the series with a 48–44–2 (.521) record, and a 388–380 run advantage.[1] The NL has the longest winning streak of 11 games from 1972 to 1982; the AL held a 13-game unbeaten streak from 1997 to 2009 (including a tie in 2002). The AL previously dominated from 1933 to 1949, winning 12 of the first 16. The NL dominated from 1950 to 1987, going 33–8–1, including a stretch from 1963 to 1982 when they won 19 of 20. Since 1988, the AL has dominated, going 28–7–1. In 2018, the AL took their first lead in the series since 1963.
The "home team" has traditionally been the league in which the host franchise plays its games; however, the AL was designated the home team for the 2016 All-Star Game, despite it being played in Petco Park, home of the National League's San Diego Padres. This decision was made following the announcement of Miami as host for the 2017 All-Star Game, which was the third consecutive year in which the game is hosted in an NL ballpark. The criteria for choosing the venue are subjective; for the most part, cities with new parks and cities who have not hosted the game in a long time—or ever—tend to get the nod. In the first two decades of the game there were two pairs of teams that shared ballparks, located in Philadelphia and St. Louis. This led to some shorter-than-usual gaps between the use of those venues: The Cardinals hosted the game in 1940, and the Browns in 1948. The Athletics hosted the game in 1943, and the Phillies in 1952.
A second game was played for four seasons, from 1959 through 1962. The All-Star Game Most Valuable Player (MVP) Award was introduced in 1962 and the first recipient was Maury Wills of the Los Angeles Dodgers. The 2008 game featured the longest All-Star Game by time: 4 hours 50 minutes, and tied for innings at 15 with the 1967 game.