ARLINGTON -- Hunter Greene was a pitch away from producing a perfect inning in his first career All-Star Game appearance. But the Reds’ pitcher was quickly reminded how damaging one mistake can be when facing the best of the best.

Greene was wearing a cowboy hat and a smile as he exited Globe Life Field on Tuesday night. He had surrendered the Jarren Duran go-ahead homer that gave the American League a 5-3 win over the National League about an hour earlier. But one bad pitch didn’t ruin what was a great experience.

“[Reds shortstop Elly De La Cruz] was saying, ‘Man, it’s the All-Star Game,’” Greene said. “It’s the best hitters. I just wasn’t able to get out of there as clean as I wanted. But I had a really great time.”

• Pure speed meets pure heat: Check out Elly's insane All-Star cleats

Greene savored the opportunity he gained last week when he replaced injured Dodgers pitcher Tyler Glasnow on the NL roster. He entered the game to begin the bottom of the fifth and promptly got both Riley Greene and Corey Seager to fly out to center field. Seager’s Statcast-projected 402-foot drive would have been a home run in 17 of 30 big league parks.

Anthony Santander then extended the inning when he snuck a single through the infield’s right side on an 0-2 count. This set the stage for Duran, who ranks fifth among all Major Leaguers with 47 extra-base hits. The Boston veteran looked at a 95.9 mph fastball for a called strike and then drilled a splitter that stayed flatter than desired.

“I knew he threw really hard, so I was just praying he would throw me a first-pitch fastball, so I could see how hard it was,” Duran said. “After that, I was hoping to get a pitch up. He happened to leave a pitch up. I happened to put a good swing on it.”

Duran’s two-run shot was a bit of a rarity. Greene hasn’t allowed a home run against any of the 33 splitters he has thrown to end a plate appearance this year. It’s a pitch the Cincinnati pitcher added to his arsenal this year.

Greene averages 97.7 mph with his fastball. That is the second-highest average among pitchers who have thrown at least 750 fastballs, trailing only the Angels’ José Soriano (98.1 mph).

As Greene progresses through his third season, he is showing why many are so high on his future.

“Being an All-Star is a huge privilege,” Greene said. “It means a lot. It’s a blessing. When you can get an All-Star [selection] this early in your career, I think it propels you in a lot of different ways.”

Greene has produced a 3.34 ERA and a 27.6 percent strikeout rate through his 19 starts for Cincinnati. He has allowed just one run through his first 13 innings in July.

As Greene attempts to help the Reds make a postseason run over the regular season’s final 2 1/2 months, he’ll draw from this experience that allowed him to interact with many of the game’s top pitchers, including the Braves’ Chris Sale, who has started three All-Star Games.

“He’s just that OG that has that great perspective on life and baseball,” Greene said. “He was like, ‘Handle your business, but enjoy your time and understand you’re a big leaguer for a reason.’ His experience in the game has been fantastic.”