2021 Major League Baseball Home Run Derby

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2021 Major League Baseball Home Run Derby
DateJuly 12, 2021
Venue Coors Field
City Denver, Colorado
Winner Pete Alonso
Score23–22
Home Run Derby 2022  →

The 2021 Major League Baseball Home Run Derby was a home run hitting contest between eight batters from Major League Baseball (MLB). The derby was held on July 12, 2021, at Coors Field in Denver, CO, the site of the 2021 MLB All-Star Game.

Contents

The longest home run, among the total 309 hit by the eight players involved, covered a distance of 520 ft (158.50 m), and was hit by Juan Soto. This broke the record of longest home run hit in the derby, surpassing Aaron Judge's 513 ft (156.36 m) home run from 2017. [1]

This was the second derby since the format change in 2015 to feature tie-breaking rounds, as Juan Soto and Shohei Ohtani went to a swing-off in the first round. Winner Pete Alonso of the New York Mets tied his own record for most home runs hit in the final round with 23. He also broke the record for most home runs hit in the first round with 35, surpassing Vladimir Guerrero Jr.'s total of 29 from 2019. With the win, Alonso become the fourth player in history to win multiple derbies and the third to win back-to-back derbies (the 2020 Home Run Derby was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic). [1] [2]

Rules

The bracket is a single-elimination bracket with three rounds total. The higher seed in each matchup always hits second.

The contestants have three minutes in the first and second rounds and two minutes in the final round to hit as many home runs as possible. The timer begins with the release of the first pitch, and the round ends when the timer hits zero. A home run will count if the timer hits zero, so long as the pitch was released beforehand. If the second contestant in the matchup exceeds their opponents home run total, the round ends.

Each contestant receives 30 seconds of bonus time after the regulation time expires. Additionally, the contestants can receive an additional 30 seconds of bonus time if they hit at least one home run that equals or exceeds 475 ft (144.78 m) during regulation. Each contestant is entitled to one 45-second timeout in each regulation period. Timeouts cannot be called during bonus time.

Ties in any round are broken by a 60-second tiebreaker with no bonus time or timeouts. If a tie remains, the contestants will engage in successive three-swing swing-offs until there is a winner.

As with 2019, the prize pool for the contestants totals $2.5 million, with the winner receiving $1 million of that total. [3]

Bracket

Washington Nationals outfielder Juan Soto, Colorado Rockies shortstop Trevor Story, Baltimore Orioles first baseman Trey Mancini, New York Mets first baseman Pete Alonso, Kansas City Royals catcher Salvador Pérez, Oakland Athletics first baseman Matt Olson, Texas Rangers outfielder Joey Gallo and Los Angeles Angels two-way player Shohei Ohtani had been selected to participate in the derby. Alonso set a new first round record with 35 home runs in the first round. Ohtani and Soto went to a swing-off in the first round after tying with six home runs in the tie breaker. Soto prevailed by a score of 3-0 after Ohtani failed to hit a home run with his first swing.

Quarterfinals Semifinals Finals
         
1 Shohei Ohtani (LAA)28
8 Juan Soto (WSH)31*
8 Juan Soto 15
5 Pete Alonso 16
4 Salvador Pérez (KC)28
5 Pete Alonso (NYM)35
5 Pete Alonso 23
6 Trey Mancini 22
3 Matt Olson (OAK)23
6 Trey Mancini (BAL)24
6 Trey Mancini 13
7 Trevor Story 12
2 Joey Gallo (TEX)19
7 Trevor Story (COL)20

* Round went into a swing-off after Ohtani and Soto were tied 22–22 after regulation and 28–28 after first tiebreaker.

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References

  1. 1 2 "2021 MLB Home Run Derby results, takeaways: Pete Alonso defends crown vs. Trey Mancini; Ohtani ousted early". CBSSports.com. Retrieved September 11, 2021.
  2. ↑ Castrovince, Anthony (July 3, 2020). "All-Star Game Canceled; Dodgers to Host in 2022". MLB.com. Retrieved September 11, 2021.
  3. ↑ Castrovince, Anthony (July 7, 2021). "Can't remember the Derby rules? This will help". MLB.com. Retrieved September 12, 2021.
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