Love it or hate it, the Home Run Derby will be back to ruin players swings for the second half of the season when it kicks off the All-Star Game festivities on Monday night with ESPN’s Chris Berman repeatedly yelling “back, back, back, back, back” to annoy all who watch until the exhibition’s conclusion.
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Mike Trout won’t participate. Bryce Harper won’t participate. Josh Donaldson won’t participate. Kris Bryant won’t participate. See the ongoing theme here? Those four are amongst the best home run hitters throughout the first half of the season, yet none of them want anything to do with this marathon exhibition. Makes you wonder if it’s even worth having one with the lesser tier of players coming in to put on a show.
It comes as a bit surprising with last year’s edition one of the more memorable after hometown here Todd Frazier outlasted Joc Pederson 15-14 to claim the 2015 Home Run Derby championship. It’s possible some of the guys passing on the opportunity to participate are looking at Pederson’s second half which saw him get benched before going on the DL.
The head-to-head bracket with a clock is to return for the 2016 contest. Unfortunately, David Ortiz won’t be there in his Swan Song season making this exhibition all the more disappointing. While Todd Frazier’s season to date failed to earn him a trip to the All-Star game, the reigning champ will be back to defend his title and said he’s thrilled to do so.
That’s the type of reaction most professional ball players should have when being asked if they’d like to partake in the festivities. When I was a kid, I was pissed if I wasn’t asked to strut my stuff. Why the best of the best turn their nose up at the event now is baffling to say the least – it doesn’t affect your swing dagnabbit!
Some players that have already confirmed that they’ll give it a go this season are Mark Trumbo and rookie Corey Seager.
The former currently leads all of baseball with 26 home runs after launching two more against the Dodgers on Wednesday to help lead his club to the extra innings victory. It will mark the second time he’s participated in the Derby after finishing in third back in 2012 when Jose Bautista beat him in a swing-off to get into the final round.
Named to his first All-Star game, Seager will look to add some flare to the lineup with the youngster already going yard 17 times to date. While that only ranks him at No. 15 in the NL in that category, he certainly possesses the pop to make an impact in this contest.
Some other likely candidates to be asked to participate are Nolan Arenado, Robinson Cano, George Springer and Wil Myers who will play the hometown hero role Frazier played to perfection last season.
The biggest invitees of them all however would be the Marlins Giancarlo Stanton who last participated back in 2014. With him starting to heat up at the dish in launching four home runs in his last two games, the confidence is at an all-time high. All he needs now is an invitation as he said he’s accept without a doubt and looks forward to participating.
He’d be tough not to want to back as it sounds like he’s determined to make a statement after struggling for most of the first half of the regular season.
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