Pete Alonso dominates Home Run Derby for second straight win
Matthew Roberson, New York Daily News
Pete Alonso dominates Home Run Derby for second straight win
David Zalubowski
National League's Pete Alonso, of the New York Mets, holds the champions trophy after winning the MLB All Star baseball Home Run Derby, Monday, July 12, 2021, in Denver.
David Zalubowski
National League's Pete Alonso, of the New York Mets, holds the champions trophy after winning the MLB All Star baseball Home Run Derby, Monday, July 12, 2021, in Denver.
Under new ownership, Mets celebrate Bobby Bonilla Day
One of baseball’s fiercest competitors is playing out the final year of his contract on a middling Nationals team. Lounging around .500 for most of the season, the Nationals stand virtually zero chance of grabbing a wild-card spot from the mighty Giants, Dodgers or Padres.
Should the Nationals stumble in the early weeks of July, they’ll face a momentous decision regarding their longtime intimidator. Holding on to Scherzer in hopes of securing an unlikely NL East crown runs the risk of losing him for nothing this offseason. His 2021 numbers indicate that Scherzer has a lot left in the tank. He’s in his seventh straight season with a strikeout rate above 30% and has whittled his ERA down to 2.19, which would be a career best if it holds all season.
One of baseball’s fiercest competitors is playing out the final year of his contract on a middling Nationals team. Lounging around .500 for most of the season, the Nationals stand virtually zero chance of grabbing a wild-card spot from the mighty Giants, Dodgers or Padres.
Should the Nationals stumble in the early weeks of July, they’ll face a momentous decision regarding their longtime intimidator. Holding on to Scherzer in hopes of securing an unlikely NL East crown runs the risk of losing him for nothing this offseason. His 2021 numbers indicate that Scherzer has a lot left in the tank. He’s in his seventh straight season with a strikeout rate above 30% and has whittled his ERA down to 2.19, which would be a career best if it holds all season.
Under new ownership, Mets celebrate Bobby Bonilla Day
Aaron Gash
A .366 hitter with positional versatility on a last place team is the platonic idea of a trade deadline target. That’s what the Diamondbacks have in Marte, a poor defensive outfielder whose glove plays better in the infield, but whose switch-hitting bat is a seamless fit at the top of any lineup.
Marte is a rare modern hitter who does not strike out often, and even though his home runs have disappeared, his maximum exit velocity still ranks in the 95th percentile of the league, per Statcast.
Aaron Gash
A .366 hitter with positional versatility on a last place team is the platonic idea of a trade deadline target. That’s what the Diamondbacks have in Marte, a poor defensive outfielder whose glove plays better in the infield, but whose switch-hitting bat is a seamless fit at the top of any lineup.
Marte is a rare modern hitter who does not strike out often, and even though his home runs have disappeared, his maximum exit velocity still ranks in the 95th percentile of the league, per Statcast.
Under new ownership, Mets celebrate Bobby Bonilla Day
Andy Clayton-King
Since the start of the 2015 season, no player has more home runs than Nelson Cruz. While he has limitations as an exclusive designated hitter, the 40-year-old slugger and his .562 slugging percentage can instantly add some thump to any American League taker.
Minnesota has been the disappointment of the season, and with the Boomstick on a one-year deal, it serves them well to get something in return before his contract expires. The Oakland Athletics are in a vicious fight with the Astros for the American League West’s top spot. Replacing Mitch Moreland — the A’s primary DH this season who is slugging .365 and has been 28% worse than the league average hitter — is the exact type of move that could make Oakland’s postseason shortcomings a thing of the past.
Andy Clayton-King
Since the start of the 2015 season, no player has more home runs than Nelson Cruz. While he has limitations as an exclusive designated hitter, the 40-year-old slugger and his .562 slugging percentage can instantly add some thump to any American League taker.
Minnesota has been the disappointment of the season, and with the Boomstick on a one-year deal, it serves them well to get something in return before his contract expires. The Oakland Athletics are in a vicious fight with the Astros for the American League West’s top spot. Replacing Mitch Moreland — the A’s primary DH this season who is slugging .365 and has been 28% worse than the league average hitter — is the exact type of move that could make Oakland’s postseason shortcomings a thing of the past.
Under new ownership, Mets celebrate Bobby Bonilla Day
Aaron Gash
Perhaps the game’s most anonymous star, Frazier woke up on Friday morning with the most hits in Major League Baseball. The Athletic reported that Frazier is “the next one to go” from Pittsburgh’s sinking ship, and his value has never been higher.
Buyers need to be wary of this, as well as the fact that Frazier’s batting average is 100 points higher than it was in 2020, so this first-half breakout carries the scent of mirage. Still, any team looking for a high on-base guy should call about Frazier, and they should be able to get him for a lesser package than it would take to get Marte.
Aaron Gash
Perhaps the game’s most anonymous star, Frazier woke up on Friday morning with the most hits in Major League Baseball. The Athletic reported that Frazier is “the next one to go” from Pittsburgh’s sinking ship, and his value has never been higher.
Buyers need to be wary of this, as well as the fact that Frazier’s batting average is 100 points higher than it was in 2020, so this first-half breakout carries the scent of mirage. Still, any team looking for a high on-base guy should call about Frazier, and they should be able to get him for a lesser package than it would take to get Marte.
Under new ownership, Mets celebrate Bobby Bonilla Day
Joe Puetz
Today’s brand of postseason baseball calls for a heavy dosage of relief pitchers. In Rodriguez (Pirates), Kennedy (Rangers) and Garcia (Marlins), who are all in contract years, teams have their choice of an assortment of right-handers to bolster their bullpens.
Among qualified relief pitchers, Rodriguez has the second lowest walk rate in the NL, music to any manager’s ears. The Pirates’ relief ace won’t overpower anyone with his fastball, but he’s shown a supreme ability to avoid barrels, and an elite reliever certainly doesn’t have much value on a non-competitive team like the Pirates.
Kennedy has been another diamond lying in the rough of a bad team’s bullpen. A starter for the first 12 years of his career, Kennedy excelled after becoming the Royals’ closer and notching 30 saves in 2019. He’s handling the ninth inning for Texas now — and doing so with a 2.59 ERA — though his bad habit of throwing gopher balls could scare teams away.
For the floundering Marlins, owners of one of baseball’s worst records in June, cutting ties with Garcia is a no-brainer. Unlike Rodriguez, he does possess a fastball with extra cheese, and like Kennedy, Garcia also has postseason experience. None of these relief options have the name recognition of Detroit’s Michael Fulmer, a former Rookie of the Year and another converted starter in a walk year. But Rodriguez, Kennedy, and Garcia could all be the difference between a team’s playoff run evaporating late in a game and locking down the critical outs that propel them closer to glory.
Joe Puetz
Today’s brand of postseason baseball calls for a heavy dosage of relief pitchers. In Rodriguez (Pirates), Kennedy (Rangers) and Garcia (Marlins), who are all in contract years, teams have their choice of an assortment of right-handers to bolster their bullpens.
Among qualified relief pitchers, Rodriguez has the second lowest walk rate in the NL, music to any manager’s ears. The Pirates’ relief ace won’t overpower anyone with his fastball, but he’s shown a supreme ability to avoid barrels, and an elite reliever certainly doesn’t have much value on a non-competitive team like the Pirates.
Kennedy has been another diamond lying in the rough of a bad team’s bullpen. A starter for the first 12 years of his career, Kennedy excelled after becoming the Royals’ closer and notching 30 saves in 2019. He’s handling the ninth inning for Texas now — and doing so with a 2.59 ERA — though his bad habit of throwing gopher balls could scare teams away.
For the floundering Marlins, owners of one of baseball’s worst records in June, cutting ties with Garcia is a no-brainer. Unlike Rodriguez, he does possess a fastball with extra cheese, and like Kennedy, Garcia also has postseason experience. None of these relief options have the name recognition of Detroit’s Michael Fulmer, a former Rookie of the Year and another converted starter in a walk year. But Rodriguez, Kennedy, and Garcia could all be the difference between a team’s playoff run evaporating late in a game and locking down the critical outs that propel them closer to glory.
Nearly every pitch Mets bench coach Dave Jauss threw was in Pete Alonso’s wheelhouse, and the duo made light work of the Home Run Derby for Alonso’s second straight win.
Nobody was having more fun than Alonso, who knocked off Salvador Perez, Juan Soto and Trey Mancini to defend his title from 2019.
His 35 home runs was the highest total of the first round, helping him beat Royals’ catcher Perez, whose second-best 26 dingers fell victim to the luck of the draw. Alonso was dancing and singing along to the stadium’s booming tunes during his round and letting out some primal polar bear roars after the more diabolical destructions.
The players were not constricted by Coors Field’s humidor, an apparatus that houses the baseballs before each game in Colorado to suppress the high-altitude effects and try to keep them in the yard. Alonso ended up hitting 15,659 feet of home run in the first round alone. Nine of the 35 went 475 feet or longer. The secret weapon was Jauss and his pinpoint, deadeye accuracy. Alonso wanted the balls to be middle-up. Jauss told him to say less.
In the second round, Alonso outdid Soto with relative ease, beating his division rival’s total with time to spare. At one point, he called his one allotted timeout simply to goad the crowd into cheering even louder for him. Alonso stepped out of the box, turned to the swath of fans packed behind home plate, and raised his arms to the sky while cupping a hand behind his ear.
With the pandemic cancelling last year’s Derby, Alonso had plenty of time to prepare for this one.
He had a very calculated approach to the exhibition that many players treat like a fun novelty act. This is serious business for Alonso, and he had a plan. From selecting Jauss’ cool hand over his cousin Derek that threw to him for the 2019 win, to the meditative rest he took between rounds, Alonso clearly set out to become the fourth multi-time winner of the derby and accept no alternatives.
In the final round, Alonso came head-to-head with the Orioles’ Trey Mancini. After missing last season with colon cancer, Mancini said he wanted to compete this year to show the world that there’s life after cancer and chemotherapy. His 22 home runs in the final round were an amazing display of resiliency that undoubtedly lifted thousands of viewers’ spirits.
He just ran into the new undisputed king of the Home Run Derby.
With his blue and orange bat and balls belted over the left field seats onto the concourse, Alonso looked pleasantly at home. He’ll have another Home Run Derby trophy (and an iced out chain) with him when he flies out of Denver.
The night was an overall smashing success for Major League Baseball. The beauty of the Home Run Derby, particularly when a star of Shohei Ohtani’s caliber is involved, is the ability to draw in casual fans.
From the theatrics between Ohtani and Soto, to the hometown heroics from Rockies’ shortstop Trevor Story and his 518-foot launch, to the feel-good story of Trey Mancini, everything went swimmingly for the league that can never seem to get out of its own way. With every player wearing No. 44 to honor the late Hank Aaron, it was a night of baseball that would have made the Hammer proud.
During Monday night’s affair, Twitter was flooded with posts from people saying they don’t normally watch or care about baseball, but had tuned in to watch Ohtani. While his first-round matchup with Soto produced some of the best drama of the evening, those casual fans were treated to an experience that hardcore fans have known about for years.
As has been the case time and time again, Ohtani wowed everyone with his ridiculous talent, but ultimately did not win.
Ohtani lost to the eighth-seeded Soto in a three-swing runoff, ending his night in disappointment like so many of his games with the Angels do. Both he and Soto clobbered 22 homers in the first round. That spawned a one-minute swingoff, during which they tied again. In the final decider, which gave each hitter three swings, all three of Soto’s produced a home run. Ohtani rolled over on his very first, ending the night for baseball’s first-half home run king.
That doesn’t mean Ohtani’s performance lacked star power, though. He hit six home runs longer than 500 feet, the most ever in a single Home Run Derby. HIs longest flew a majestic 518 feet. That ended up being no match for Soto, who both beat him in home runs and distance. Soto’s killer kaboom sent a ball 520 feet away. That was good for the farthest home run ever tracked by Statcast. Not just in the Derby, but ever.
