Home Run Derby Saturday night full of worthy contenders: Gunnar Henderson in Dallas because he has more home runs than Aaron Judge or Shohei Ohtani. Bobby Witt Jr. is among the most versatile players in the big leagues and in the conversation for AL MVP. Los Angeles Dodgers’ Teoscar Hernandez hits home runs in bunches; practicing for the event during the series in Detroit, Hernandez filled the left-field seats.
But while eight hitters are the stars of the show, success or failure tonight will be based on the efficiency of the pitchers they choose to throw. “There’s no doubt,” said Dino Ebel, the LA coach who will throw Hernandez. This is his fourth time serving as Derby’s batting practice pitcher, so he knows the pressure he’ll be under and everyone else throwing hitters. That’s even truer this year because of a new rule that limits each hitter to 40 pitches — not 40 swings, but 40 pitches — in a three-minute inning.
Standing in the middle of a loud and noisy football game can be a lonely experience, and there were instances in past derbies when BP players were overcome with nerves, struggling to place the ball where they liked it. If that happens under the new rules, it could sink the chances of hitters, who will no longer have the opportunity to make up for erratic pitchers by taking extra swings.
A few notes on the eight Derby contestants, including what we know about the pitchers selected. Clear: Experience the value of hitters.
Alonso is trying to join Ken Griffey Jr. as the only three-time Derby winners, and he will be reunited with former Mets coach Dave Jauss, who is on the mound for the second of Alonso’s previous victories. Jauss stays in touch with Alonso, and when he attended a Mets-Phillies game in England last month, he and Alonso discussed the possibility of reuniting.
How can Jauss take batting practice? Yes, Major League Baseball has used him to throw overseas exhibitions in the past.
Alonso will also have the advantage of experience: Adolis Garcia and Jose Ramirez have been to the Derby before, but this is Alonso’s fifth attempt. As he explained on ESPN’s preview show last week, he did it to honor his own wishes from his youth, when he loved watching the show and dreamed of being one of the sluggers on baseball’s biggest summer stage.
Big numbers for Alonso: Six seasons into his big league career, Alonso has amassed 210 homers, a club record of 37 or more in four seasons.
Average distance from home in 2024: 405 feet.
Bohm played in the 2016 Coastal Plain League while enrolled at Wichita State, and during that season, Bohm participated in the home run derby. Scott Wingo, one of Bohm’s trainers, threw him, and Bohm won.
So Bohm decided to reunite with Wingo, who played four years in the minor leagues after being selected in the 11th round by the Dodgers in 2011; Wingo is currently the recruiting coordinator for the Manhattan Jaspers. Bohm told the Philadelphia Inquirer, “I texted him and asked him how busy he was the next few weeks. He said he wasn’t too busy. He was excited.”
Bohm is not a prototypical home run hitter in the way that Judge or Alonso is; rather, he tends to spray the ball to the entire box. Among all hitters qualified for the batting title, he ranks 18th for the highest percentage of balls hit to the opposite field. Bohm understood the difference, of course, between hitting in the game and mashing in the Derby. “I’m just going to see how much I can get over the left field fence,” he told the Inquirer. “In the BP scenario, I feel comfortable – I wouldn’t say it’s a different swing, but that’s not the game.”
Big numbers for Bohm: The longest home run in the big leagues was 446 feet, on August 23, 2020. Bohm became only the third baseman to hit the feat; Todd Frazier was the first, in 2015.
Average distance 2024 HR: 3 98m.
Garcia has a home advantage in Arlington for this event, and said in a conversation last week that he expects Texas fans to support him very much. He will become the fourth player to win in his home park, after Ryne Sandberg in 1990, Todd Frazier in 2015, and Bryce Harper in 2018.
Interestingly, Garcia’s choice for a pitcher’s batting practice was up in the air in the middle of last week – through an interpreter, Garcia mentioned that he was considering various options. “But if nothing works,” he said, “then we’ll go with Tony Beasley.” This will be the Rangers’ third base coach, who, like Ebel, has been fired at Derby in multiple seasons.
Big numbers for Garcia: He had 67 home runs at Globe Life Park, in 269 games. And he’ll always be remembered for his absurd power in the postseason last year — eight homers (and 22 RBI) in 15 games.
Average distance 2024 HR: 402 m.
Orioles manager Brandon Hyde believes Henderson has a chance to win the Derby because of his power. And Globe Life Field is known to be friendlier to left-handed hitters than right-handed hitters — Henderson and Ramirez (switch hitters) are the only hitters on the field who can swing from the left side.
Buck Britton, brother of long pitcher Zack Britton and Triple-A manager in the Orioles’ organization, will throw for Henderson. Both have been practicing at Camden Yards, with Henderson’s close friend and teammate Colton Cowser serving as timekeeper.
Big numbers for Henderson: Only two shortstops had won the Derby before, and, like Henderson, he played for the Orioles. Cal Ripken won in 1991, and Miguel Tejada won in 2004.
Average distance 2024 HR: 401 m.
Teoscar Hernandez, Los Angeles Dodgers
Hernandez was the last participant to announce his participation in the Derby, but before it was announced publicly, he had asked Ebel if he could throw it if Hernandez’s entry became official. Ebel said yes, after enjoying three previous derbies – sharing the championship with Vladimir Guerrero Sr. in 2007, and threw to Albert Pujols in 2015 and Joc Pederson in 2019.
Over the weekend in Detroit, Hernandez and Ebel practiced somewhat informally, with both using the last round of batting practice to focus on the front. “Oh my gosh, it’s so powerful,” Ebel said. “His swing – short and quick to the ball.” When they were working there, Ebel said: “They hit seven, eight, nine in a row.”
Big numbers for Hernandez: He is a product of Cotui, Dominican Republic, and over the years, six players born in the DR have won the Derby — Sammy Sosa, Miguel Tejada, Vlad Sr., David Ortiz, Robinson Cano and Juan Soto. That’s an inheritance.
Average distance 2024 HR: 395 feet.
Jose Yepez, Atlanta’s bullpen catcher, will work with Ozuna. Catchers are generally known as good batting practice pitchers because they typically throw with an easy, over-the-top motion that makes the ball easy for hitters to track. “I’m just going to have fun and compete,” Ozuna told reporters last week. “I told Yeppy not to get too excited, just throw it in the middle and I’ll hit it anywhere.”
“I’ve been there before watching my friends do it, so I just want to do it this year to see how cool it is, especially for my kids. They want to have that experience and bring me some towels and water. .”
Big numbers for Ozuna: He is 33 years and 246 days old, and if he wins, he will be the fourth oldest to finish in the Derby. The oldest: David Ortiz, who was 34 years and 247 days old when he won.
Average distance 2024 HR: 409m only.
Junior Betances, the hitting coach for the Columbus Clippers, will throw to Ramirez, just as he did in 2022 when Ramirez was part of the outfield at Dodger Stadium. But that year, the switch-hitting Ramirez suffered a thumb injury that forced him to hit from the right side of the plate. This year, Ramirez can swing from either side — and according to MLB.com, he said he’ll wait until he sees how he feels on Derby day before deciding whether he’ll hit left-handed or right-handed.
Listed at 5-foot-9, 180 pounds, Ramirez is the shortest in the field, and usually, this event is for heavyweights and lightweights. But Ramirez is also known for having very consistent batting practice.
Big numbers for Ramirez: No switch-hitter has ever won the Derby outright, although Ruben Sierra shared with Eric Davis in 1989. Lance Berkman made it to the final in 2004, and last year, Adley Rutschman started the lefty in the first inning of the Derby. , then move to the right.
Average distance 2024 HR: 388 feet – the shortest average among the eight competitors.
Of all the Derby contestants, he probably has the most pitching talent available to him. His father, Bobby Witt, worked 16 seasons in the majors, winning 142 games while amassing 2,465 innings, and all the same, Witt Jr. But after throwing so many innings all year on the mound, Bobby Witt’s arm was “pretty beat up.”
Witt has three other relatives through marriage who have played in the big leagues, and landed on James Russell, who married Nikki Witt, Bobby Jr.’s sister. Russell played seven years in the big leagues, six with the Chicago Cubs, from 2010 to ’15. “He’s probably more fired up than I am,” said Witt, who has taken batting practice against Russell several times and knows his delivery. “He’s always been a good guy,” Witt said. “Left specialist, three-quarter arm slot.”
Witt had asked his friend Salvador Perez, who had been at Derby in the past, for advice, and Perez gave him a hint. “One percent you must do!” Perez told him.
Witt famously entered the home run competition in MLB’s Derby in 2018, against Rece Hinds — who recently broke into the big leagues with the Cincinnati Reds with a ton of home runs — and knows the pace. But Witt went through practice rounds at Fenway Park on Friday, trying to figure out when and when he wanted to call a timeout.
Big numbers for Witt: The Royals shortstop has 16 homers this season, the second fewest in the Derby field, but he has a lot of power — his average home exit velocity this season is 107.9 mph, according to Sarah Langs research.
Average HR distance: 418 feet – the highest for a hitter in the derby.