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He'l go up against Houston Astros third baseman Alex Bregman in the first round. Five of the players will also participate in Tuesday's MLB All-Star Game, while three will just swing away in Monday's derby. Nationals outfielder embraced the role of hometown hero for the Derby, earning a spot in the final with another solid showing the semis.
Cubs fans will want to tune in to see Javy Baez and Kyle Schwarber, who are competing on different sides of the bracket. That means there’s a chance we could have a Baez vs. Schwarber final, which would be a lot of fun for Cubs fans and a little less fun for everyone else. This year’s event follows the same eight-man, head-to-head format used by the league over the past few years.
No. 5 Kyle Schwarber vs. No. 8 Rhys Hoskins
Players can stop the clock with a 45-second timeout in each of the first two rounds. Participants in the championship round get a 45-second timeout and an additional 30-second timeout. The event has gone through several format changes, and Major League Baseball appears satisfied with the current format, which includes eight participants belting long balls in two brackets.
Schwarber, the first hitter in the final round, swatted 18 home runs, with a 453-footer ranking as his longest. Both Schwarber and Harper qualified for the 30-second bonus time in the final round, and Harper needed a furious run in the final minute to tie the score heading into his bonus time, where he pulled off the win. If two players are tied at the end of their matchup, each player will get an additional 60 seconds to break the tie. If the tie lasts beyond the bonus 60 seconds, the matchup will go to three-swing swing offs until a winner is determined. The winner will be successful in three one-on-one matchups, with each round lasting four minutes. Players can gain an additional 30 seconds of swing time by hammering a ball 440 feet or more on at least two occasions.
No. 2 Bryce Harper vs. No. 7 Freddie Freeman
He didn’t disappoint, blasting the winner to right-center on his second pitch of the extra round, then tossing his bat in celebration, for his first ever Home Run Derby win. Each matchup is single elimination with the player who hits the most home runs in four minutes advancing to the next round. Players can earn bonus time with long home runs and they’re entitled to a certain number of timeouts. Harper seemed to be in trouble for a bit there, but he absolutely came alive in the final minute with the crowd behind him to hit 18 homers before the end of normal time. That gave him 30 seconds to hit one homer with bonus time, which he did without strain.
Festivities for the2018 MLB All-Star Gamekicked off on Monday night when eight of baseball's top sluggers took their swings in the Home Run Derbyat8 p.m. Competitors who are tied at the end of the round will each get an additional minute to try to hit as many long balls as possible. If the score still remains tied, each batter will get three swings until the deadlock is broken. Bregman -- the lone AL representative -- appeared defeated with a minute left, but he mounted a late surge and lost when his final swing produced a drive that landed at the base of the center-field wall.
Round 1: Schwarber def. Bregman, 16-15
It was very smoky, presumably to reflect their SMOKIN’ HOT bats. The timeout paid off big-time for Hoskins, who finishes with 17 home runs. Mike Rosenstein may be reached Follow him on FindNJ.com on Facebook. Longtime pals, Ortiz and Hunter managed against each other in the All-Star Futures Game on Sunday.
In his second season with the Brewers, Aguilar already has surpassed his previous career home run total. The top seed will go up against another young slugger in Rhys Hoskins of the Phillies. The Home Run Derby will consist of an eight-player bracket, with four head-to-head matchups in the first round, two head-to-head matchups in the semifinals, and one final round between the two finalists. The Home Run Derby began with an upset when eighth-seeded Rhys Hoskins of the Phillies ousted top-seeded Jesus Aguilar of the Brewers. Aguilar had a solid showing, going for 12 home runs, but it wasn't enough to match Hoskins' 17. The hometown favorite moved on in his first-round matchup, with Nationals slugger Bryce Harper booming 13 home runs.
As the ball cleared the wall, the left-handed hitting Harper walked out of the batter's box and thrust both arms in the air. In a Home Run Derby without many superstars, Harper stands out as the biggest name in the competition. The hometown favorite and pending free agent will look to put on a show in front of National fans, while division rival Freddie Freeman of the Atlanta Braves will look to upset the powerful lefty. During Harper's bonus 30 seconds, he hit a pair of dingers to win it, including the clinching shot over the centerfield wall. Bryce Harper headlines the field for the 2018 Major League Baseball Home Run Derby in his home stadium.
Not only has he blasted 23 home runs this season, including one of the longest of the year with a 473-foot shot against the Phillies in May, but he’ll be looking to put on a show in front of the home-town crowd. The derby can also be watched on your computer via ESPN.com, or on your phone, tablet or streaming device via the ESPN app. Will be home to many bombs, dingers, blasts and moonshots on Monday night, as MLB’s best sluggers compete in the 2018 Home Run Derby. In the department of frivolities, I would like to note that Hoskins took advantage of his timeout to chug what appeared to be a clear Gatorade, which is easily a top-three flavor. Schwarber absolutely mashed a couple balls to wrap up his first round with 16 home runs.
In the first round and semifinals, hitters get one 45-second timeout. In the finals, hitters get two timeouts – one for 45 seconds and another for 30 seconds. WASHINGTON — Welcome to the Home Run Derby, the annual celebration of longballs, taters, dingers or whatever you may call them. Nationals Park plays host to the event this year, featuring some of the league's top sluggers. MLB's top sluggers will battle it out in the 2018 Home Run Derby at Nationals Park. You can sign up for a free 7-day trial right here, and you can then watch a live stream of the derby on your computer via the Sling TV website, or on your phone, tablet or streaming device via the Sling TV app.
Baez struggled to get his groove going initially but he crushed a 479-foot home run that put his amazing raw power on display, then added a 443-footer just afterwards to clinch bonus time. Freeman couldn’t really get going but at least made things interesting by hitting 12 home runs in the first round. He’ll probably have a tough time staving off Bryce Harper with the home crowd behind the Nationals star. Going into the break, there have been more strikeouts than hits in the majors. Batting averages are in the mid-.240s, possibly on track to be the lowest in nearly a half-century.
Schwarber hit 16 to edge Alex Bregman by one, and Max Muncy knocked out Javier Baez, walking out of the batter's box on his 17th homer with about 30 seconds left on the 4-minute clock. Wearing a District of Columbia flag bandanna on his forehead, Harper hit 13 homers at Nationals Park to eliminate Freddie Freeman in the first round of the competition the night before the All-Star Game. He hit six homers measured at more than 440 feet, the most of any competitor. The Chicago Cubs' Schwarber hit the most home runs in the derby with 55 through three rounds. Kyle Schwarber won't be an All-Star, but he's as good of a bet as anyone to put on a show in Washington. When he connects, his power takes over, and he'll likely put together a few highlight reel swings on Monday.
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