Post-game
And that’s it. Stanton gets to stand in front of a big check heading to charity, before Joe Torre’s mic goes out while presenting him the trophy.
Nobody at ESPN really knows what to say to Stanton, because while it’s fun to watch, it counts for absolutely nothing. So let us call it a night with a meaningless stat: Stanton hit a record 61 homers in the Derby. Nice.
For all of us here at the Guardian, good morning, good afternoon and good night.
No5 Giancarlo Stanton is the 2016 Home Run Derby champion, 20-13!
Stanton has done it - the title moves east to Miami and Giancarlo, who hit homers covering over five miles (but who’s counting?)
No5 Giancarlo Stanton v No2 Todd Frazier
A HR after the break, but then an o-4 stretch. It’s not going to happen for Frazier - the champ is going down!
No5 Giancarlo Stanton v No2 Todd Frazier
No room for error here, but Frazier is struggling, calling for time with 1:24, needing his 10 to tie. The ToddFather still doesn’t have his 30 seconds of bonus time, needing a pair of 440 foot blasts to earn it.
No5 Giancarlo Stanton v No2 Todd Frazier
Frazier needs a run or three to stay alive. Half way through he’s got nine after picking up the pace post-time out!
No5 Giancarlo Stanton v No2 Todd Frazier
So this is it. Frazier, who seems to live for this, steps in to take his shot at earning back-to-back Derby titles. Can he hit blackjack?
He’s off to a good start, his first goes out to left.
Then he can only manage another two in the first minute: one of those was ruled a non-homer, but looked out to me. Controversy?
Frazier calls time with 2:51 remaining as Stanton looks on.
No5 Giancarlo Stanton puts up 20!
Stanton’s first swing makes it 20, before finishing up with an 0-3 stretch.
So Stanton puts 20 on the board. Can the champ defend his title?
No5 Giancarlo Stanton v No2 Todd Frazier
WOW! Stanton, out of the time out with a flurry - three straight, with authority and sinsane distance.
He finishes with 19, has a drink and gets set for the 30 second bonus round after putting on an mammoth smoke show.
No5 Giancarlo Stanton v No2 Todd Frazier
Post TO, Stanton nearly breaks a window in the building out in left. That really almost happened.
Here’s a streak - boom, boom, BOOM! He’s up to 14 just like that! What a run with a minute left!
Stanton takes his final timeout with 15 in the can, 46 seconds in the hand, and a 30 second bonus in the bush.
No5 Giancarlo Stanton v No2 Todd Frazier
Frazier hits last, which is helpful. Stanton, instant impact, deep to left immediately.
He’s on, early here: three jacks inside 30 seconds.
Reminder, each batter gets two time outs in the final round.
Stanton has six and then takes a breather with teammate Jose Fernandez consulting the slugger.
Channeling my 😍 for the XFL.. Next #HRDerby they should use metal bats and lacrosse balls #hehateme
— Michael Montanti (@MichaelMontanti) July 12, 2016
Getting warmer...it would be sight, 40,000 fans in body armor.
No2 Todd Frazier through to the final round, 16-15!
But now he’s 0-4 after the break before parking one in left, not once, or twice, but three times!!
We’re tied!
A laser beam wins it, one just over the wall in the left field corner. Frazier is through to this third consecutive final round!
This is probably the match-up you wanted when you looked at this bracket at the start of the night.
No3 Adam Duvall v No2 Todd Frazier
The champ steps in, still hatless. His first homer is416 feet to right center field.
Now he’s heating up! Back-to-back-to-back! He’s got four jacks in the first minute.
Frazier is firing up in earnest - he zooms to 12 after finding his groove and calls for a time out with 1:30 and a bonus 30 in his pocket.
No3 Adam Duvall v No2 Todd Frazier
Frazier emerges from the batting cages to watch Duvall finish up.
One swing, one home run. Then a pair of line drive outs. The next pitch is in the seats in left field!
Now he’s up to 15 as time winds down and his last swing falls just short of a 16th home run.
So Frazier has a fairly decent if not spectacular tally to aim for here in the semis.
No3 Adam Duvall v No2 Todd Frazier
The current Reds slugger takes on the raker from Reds past here in the semis. Can the kid sneak into the finals and get past the defending champ?
Duvall has three homers in the first minute. He’s finding a rhythm here with six blasts, a series of line drives before a blast deep to left is followed by another mammoth shot, but foul!
No time out yet with under 1:3o to go and 10 in the can.
Finally, with 1:08 be takes a break with 11 total home runs. He needs another 440 foot blast to get a bonus 30 seconds.
Updated
No5 Giancarlo Stanton through to the final round, 17-14!
Trumbo has one gone, then takes a pitch. This isn’t gonna happen for the O’s slugger - it’s all over! Stanton is in the finals as the top seed is ushered out by the Marlins masher!
No5 Giancarlo Stanton v No1 Mark Trumbo
Trumbo is slumping - approaching a minute to go and needs seven. He shakes his head, frustrated at the lack of jacks. An opposite field bid is short, a shot to left doesn’t have the distance.
Trumbo is teetering - he needs five in his 30 seconds of bonus time. Possible? Do you believe in miracles?
No5 Giancarlo Stanton v No1 Mark Trumbo
Stanton hit the ball out of the park four times, now Trumbo has hit the scoreboard (!!!) and has two quick jacks out of the box! His third comes as the first minute elapses.
Five is a laser, getting out quickly, but six hits the rooftop in left field!
Trumbo needs 11 to tie, has his 30 second bonus wrapped up with 2:05 remaining. Time out Trumbo!
No5 Giancarlo Stanton v No1 Mark Trumbo
He’s 0-5 in bonus time, which is as something of a shock considering what he has already done. They say he’s swinging easily, but he looks slightly beat. Stanton has 17, and here comes the Trumbonator, ranked no1 for a reason this season.
No5 Giancarlo Stanton v No1 Mark Trumbo
Rumour has it Stanton is using Bonds’ maple bat, which is fine if he stops there.
Stanton has two deep deep jacks after the break, and hits a ninth after 1:34
The 11th almost hit the video board, as does the 12th. The 14th is to deep CF, and, well, the guy is kind of locked in right now. No15 narrowly misses the video board, again. No17 beats the buzzer heading into his bonus time.
Stanton caught fire after the timeout - he has 17. Now he takes a towel and wipes his brow before the extra session here.
No5 Giancarlo Stanton v No1 Mark Trumbo
Stanton, no hat on head, just hurt the building in left: He’s got the bonus and five inside a minute. He seems angry.
But there’s a slowdown, and he calls a TO with 2:21 remaining after a mini-slump that leads him with six.
Winner of Trumbo/Stanton loses in the Finals because the HR Derby is stupid and its winner is never the guy who should win @LengelDavid
— Hunter Felt (@HunterFelt) July 12, 2016
It may be stupid, but it’s much less stupid then it used to be.
There can only be one...
...but right now there are four.
It’s Frazier v Duvall and Stanton v Trumbo for a spot in the final. Stanton is the show right now, but the Trumbonator, who had 10 over 440 feet in round one, will surely give him all he can handle based on the first round and his first-half of the 2016 regular season for the Orioles.
Updated
No2 Todd Frazier through to the semis, 13-12
Wow: Frazier 0-5 out of the break before connecting, once, twice, and...pop out.
Now his 10th comes with 1:17 and he has the bonus length. He doesn’t need it. He pops it to left to tie it, then finishes with yet another blast to left field!
It wasn’t easy for Frazier, but now he’s all warmed up, and has an easier draw in the semis with Duvall.
No2 Todd Frazier v No7 Carlos Gonzalez
No hat for Frazier who is all business stepping into the box. It takes three swings before his first homer. His brother feeds the beast, who takes 38 seconds to get his second. Then there’s a back-to-back set, a line out and another homer.
Frazier doesn’t seem to have the rhythm going just yet.
Frazier calls for time with seven in the bag and 2:13 remaining. I like the TO before the half way mark here. Frazier really should take this without a problem.
A season ago...
No2 Todd Frazier v No7 Carlos Gonzalez
His longest is 450 feet, and Cargo can’t approach that kind of distance in the bonus time. Gonzalez finishes with 12, and you have to think that the ToddFather should handle this easily.
No2 Todd Frazier v No7 Carlos Gonzalez
With the champ coming up Cargo needs to get it going, and the post-time out swing yields two quick homers, followed by a series of line outs.
Under a minute remaining, Cargo puts together back-to-back-to-back jacks. And there’s more! He earns a 30 second bonus while posting 12 total homers. Here’s another needed break for Cargo as he makes his final push.
No2 Todd Frazier v No7 Carlos Gonzalez
So Stanton will face Trumbo in the semis, while the winner of Cargo and Frazier faces Duvall on the other end of the bracket. So at least one serious bopper in the final for sure.
What of Cargo, swinging in the salty air San Diego, thicker than the thin stuff in Denver. Hat back and swinging for the fences, Gonzalez has five homers through two minutes.
Cargo calls for time looking winded - he’s not used to oxygen, obviously.
Giancarlo Stanton hit this homer off the scoreboard! 💪💪💪 https://t.co/wGoizYnw2B
— MLB Memes (@MLBMeme) July 12, 2016
Yup, he did that. Should we just call it a day right now?
No3 Adam Duvall through to semis, 11-10!
Adam Duvall hits 30.4% of his hits into the stands, which reminds me of another Reds slugger: Adam Dunn.
Fast start: three in 30 seconds, and the kid in his first full season seems comfortable.
He’s got five home runs in his first minute, easily on pace to knock out Myers.
Now Duvall goes upper deck to left...and again! He’s got nine half way through his 4:00.
Then he ties it with a moonbeam to left. Nothing compares to Stanton, but this is solid. Duvall’s 11th blast ends this round, and the night for Myers with 1:24 to go. That’s a rout.
Meanwhile ESPN’s special guest David Ortiz does a “back back back” for Chris Berman before leaving the US broadcast. That should not be allowed.
Updated
No3 Adam Duvall v No6 Wil Myers
Here comes Myers after his break. A blast to left, but then a series of duds. It’s not happening for Myers at the moment. At least the Dodger rep is out.
He finishes with double digits: 10. Now another kid gets set to step in with Duvall getting set.
No3 Adam Duvall v No6 Wil Myers
So here comes the home town hero, Wil Myers of the Padres, who has 19 homers this season. His brother is pitching to him, and so far so deep - two in the first 20 seconds leave the building.
Now his brother hits him, just like Cano’s dad did: what’s up with that?
It Takes Two blares by Robe Base blares over the PA system as the San Diego kid has his fifth home run, to straight away center, with 2:30 to go.
Myers, who had so much hype as a KC prospect is having a great season thus far. He calls time with 1:14 to go and seven homers under his belt.
No5 Giancarlo Stanton through to the semis, 24-7!
More of the same from Cano, who is making me look bad as my pick. He hits one to right before his dad almost hits him in the foot!
Oh the shame.
Cano finishes with seven, a real disappointment for the ex-Yankee. He joins Seager on the bench as Stanton skates to the next round.
Updated
No4 Robinson Cano v No5 Giancarlo Stanton
So here’s the vet, the ex-champ, now 33 years of age, trying to keep up with the Giancarlo’s. It’s a tough act to follow for sure, Cano looks rusty, even taking a pitch, which is a bad idea in this format. His dad has only fed three homers half way through the round.
When will he call time? He needs a break, and a miracle.
Finally, he takes pause, with 1:54 remaining and an uphill climb for Cano.
No4 Robinson Cano v No5 Giancarlo Stanton
With another breather, Stanton re-ups his ups, cracking three homers in :30, and the Miami slugger finishes with 25, which is ridiculous. One of them went 497 feet. Cano has a lot of work to do.
Updated
No4 Robinson Cano v No5 Giancarlo Stanton
Now a pair of line drive laser beams, followed by a moon shot to left center field. He is unstoppable - six homers in the first minute after the time out.
Six straight before a pop up, and Giancarlo is slowing down a touch. He’s at 21 before a lengthy stall (but he hit the score board so who cares). Then he finishes with a buzzer beater heading into his bonus time.
Updated
No4 Robinson Cano v No5 Giancarlo Stanton
OK, this thing moves fast. So does Giancarlo, who is hitting pop ups early, and four have landed in the nether regions of Petco Park: six in his first minute! He has earned his :30 bonus, hitting 440 feet twice. Now Stanton hits the T-Mobile sign to the delight of sponsors.
Bigfoot has a dozen just under two minutes through his round and calls a time out to regroup, not that he needs it. His longest is 457 feet thus far.
Updated
All those kids standing in the outfield and Mark Trumbo sails it over their heads. He doesn't care about the children.
— Kenny Ducey (@KennyDucey) July 12, 2016
No1 seeded Mark Trumbo to the semis, 16-15!
Bashing right out of his break, he hits the roof of the building in left!! Now he’s on a roll! Another, and another, and rinse, and repeat! Out of the TO mashes Trumbo, hitting eight home runs in 1:15 to sweep away Seger in dramatic fashion!
Wow, he looked dead in the water and finishes with eight on the trot for 16 total homers and most of those baseballs included meal service and a flight plan. Rainbows.
Trumbo through to round two!
Updated
No1 Mark Trumbo v No8 Corey Seager
Trumbombs are flying all over: he has eight heading into his last 1:15. He’s is in a bit of trouble though and calls time to gather himself for the late push. Will the top seed go out early?
No1 Mark Trumbo v No8 Corey Seager
So Seager recovered from a 3-15 start, what can the Orioles slugger do? His second swing is way way out to left, his third over the wall in CF.
“Let’s get ready to Trumbo says Berman”, upsetting all who hear it. He’s been working on that all week, surely.
Meanwhile, Trumbo hit a very high part of the Western Supply Building that houses suites in left field, and he finishes with five in his first two minutes.
No1 Mark Trumbo v No8 Corey Seager
Seager is first - the rookie steps in, with his dad pitching and the crowd booing the LA lackey. The kid is struggling, much to the delight of San Diegans: just two homers in the first minute with a host of dying quails.
Seager has another two blasts in his second minute, but is warming up, finishing with a flurry, getting Chris Berman excited! His 10th blast barely makes it over the wall - but why isn’t he calling a time out? That’s bad strategy by the rookie - we’ll chalk it up to youth and immaturity.
Seager finishes his regulation with 12 homers, surprising considering his start. He’s exhausted heading into his 30 seconds of bonus time earned by eclipsing the 440 foot mark twice. Seager finishes with 15 after beating the buzzer on his final stroke.
That puts the pressure on the Trumbonator.
Updated
And I quote...
Try not to hit those high pop-ups
-Giancarlo Stanton, talking to ESPN TV here in the USA.
That’s good advice, I’d take it.
Updated
Starting lineups
Chris Berman is announcing the players, who head to a platform over the pitcher’s mound wearing uniforms that Steve Garvey once described as looking like a taco. That’s a reasonable description of the brown, yellow, orange and white jersey’s lighting up an already bright Petco Park.
Mike Dalagar of the US Coast Guard is singing the national anthem, so it’s not true that Fall Out Boy have replaced the the Star-Spangled Banner after all.
Exit Velocity
It’s the new black: the speed of which a ball leaves the bat. Cargo is topps so far this season, will we top that 117.4mph in San Diego?
Top exit velocity numbers of 2016 from mlb.com
- 117.4mph – Carlos Gonzalez, COL (4/4 – Watch)
- 116.8mph – Giancarlo Stanton, MIA (4/30 – Watch)
- 115.5mph – Giancarlo Stanton, MIA (6/28 – Watch)
- 115.3mph – Giancarlo Stanton, MIA (7/5 – Watch)
- 114.8mph – Mark Trumbo, BAL (6/2 – Watch)
- 113.8mph – Mark Trumbo, BAL (7/8 – Watch)
- 113.4mph – Mark Trumbo, BAL (6/4 – Watch)
- 113.2mph – Wil Myers, SD (6/16 – Watch)
- 113.1mph – Giancarlo Stanton, MIA (7/6 – Watch)
- 112.9mph – Giancarlo Stanton, MIA (7/6 – Watch)
Wanna bet?
Betting site Bovada, which sounds a lot more like a drug for erectile dysfunction (“take twice-a-day Bovada...”), lists these odds :
- Stanton: +350
- Trumbo: +375
- Myers: +550
- Frazier: +600
- Duvall: +600
- Cano: +800
- Gonzalez: +800
- Seager: +900
So, if you put down 100 turnips on ToddFather to repeat, and he does, you get 600 turnips in return. Got it?
I’m putting all my turnips on Robbie Cano, don’t cha know?
Why?
Because he’s a southpaw who has done it before, and these days, Petco Park is friends to lefties after a series of changes to the park dimensions over time. Who do you like tonight?
Updated
Drinking game
I would not suggest taking a drink every time you hear “back back back back” from Chris Berman on ESPN here in the US. You might not make it five minutes.
I do suggest having a look at this spray chart, which shows where our sluggers like to hit.
Here's a breakdown of the HR derby contestants home runs this year... pic.twitter.com/YnclfGotgO
— Daren Willman (@darenw) July 9, 2016
Meanwhile, Fall Out Boy are struggling through a live performance of “Centuries”, which I guess has replaced the national anthem to create a personalized experience for millennials.
Who is participating?
So, who is in this thing anyway? Here’s the skinny:
First seed: Mark Trumbo:
Made up nickname: the Trumbonator
Team: Baltimore Orioles
Bats: right
Home run total: (league leading) 28
Longest: 458 feet
Age: 30
What you don’t really need to know: he listens to Pearl Jam (still)
Second seed: Todd Frazier, the defending champ:
Unfortunate nickname: ToddFather
Team: Chicago White Sox
Bats: right
Home run total: 25
Longest: 427 feet
Age: 30
What you don’t really need to know: Frazier sings Frank Sinatra on request
Third seed: Adam Duvall
Copyright infringing nickname: The Louisville Slugger©
Team: Cincinnati Reds
Bats: right
Home run total: 23
Longest: 457 feet
Age: 27
What you don’t really need to know: his favorite candy bar is Payday, which is sensible.
Fourth seed: Robinson Cano, 2011 champ
Former John Sterling radio homer call: Robbie Cano, don’cha know?
Team: Seattle Mariners
Bats: left
Home run total: 21
Longest: 427 feet
Age: 33
What you don’t really need to know: someone actually wrote a book about this
Fifth Seed: Giancarlo Stanton
Lessor-known nickname: Bigfoot
Team: Miami Marlins
Bats: right
Home run total: 26
Longest: 475 feet, that’s the longest in the field
Age: 26
What you don’t really need to know: Stanton is strong like Chewbacca
Sixth Seed: Wil Myers
Made up nickname: The San Diego Kid (not this one)
Team: San Diego Padres
Bats: right
Home run total: 19
Longest: 453 feet
Age: 25
What you don’t really need to know: Myers is renting out a room during the ASG.
I'm excited to welcome @noahsyndergaard to sunny SD as my @Airbnb guest!
— Wil Myers (@wilmyers) July 8, 2016
Seventh Seed: Carlos Gonzalez
Nickname: Cargo
Team: Colorado Rockies
Bats: left
Home run total: 19
Longest: 462 feet
Age: 30
What you don’t really need to know: Caro should most definitely stick to baseball
Eighth Seed: Corey Seager
Ambitious nickname: “ROY”, as in Rookie of the Year
Team: Los Angeles Dodgers
Bats: left
Home run total: 17
Longest: 440 feet
Age: 22
What you don’t really need to know: Rules of Engagement is his favorite TV show..of all time.
Updated
1992
The smell from a grill could spark up nostalgia, and so can the crack of the bat. Let us take you all the way back to 1992, the last time this competition was held in San Diego. It was inside the Chargers current digs, Jack Murphy Stadium, and wasn’t even televised live if you can believe that. A young and innocent Mark McGwire took the top prize before fading from the spotlight without much fanfare at all. Don’t believe me? See for yourself.
The Bracket
I mean, who doesn’t love a bracket, because, it’s not just for March, right? Well, not any more at least. This format is on fire: that’s why the 2015 Home Run Derby got the highest cable audience of the season, and that includes the All-Star Game and the playoffs! Wow!
OK, enough of the small talk, how about that bracket:
Here are the participants and bracket for Monday's T-Mobile Home Run Derby. pic.twitter.com/N3TWIKUy4M
— MLB Communications (@MLB_PR) July 7, 2016
On the odd chance that magenta tweet isn’t working for you, here are the match-ups:
No1 Mark Trumbo v No8 Corey Seager
No2 Todd Frazier v No7 Carlos Gonzalez
No3 Adam Duvall v No6 Wil Myers
No4 Robinson Cano v No5 Giancarlo Stanton
Got a prediction? Be heard, send it over, pronto to david.lengel@theguardian.com or tweet @LengelDavid
Stand by, I’ll have more on the participants in a tick.
Updated
Who’s not here
Not to be negative, because there’s some great hitting talent on display tonight in San Diego, but I think it’s a bit disappointing that Madison Bumgarner isn’t slugging...or Noah Syndergaard, or Bartolo Colon (never mind David Ortiz, Mike Trout, Yoenis Cespedes, Bryce Harper and many others).
A little while back I proposed a pitcher bracket in the first round so that at least one hurler would hit in the second round, manufacturing a real of risk of a pitcher upsetting a legitimate bopper. Now that’s drama, no? So, why no Madison Bumgarner in the Home Run Derby?
@LengelDavid @NatCoombs Is it right that the players union put paid to Bumgarner participating?
— Jez Wyke (@jrwyke) July 11, 2016
I have heard that rumor, but can’t say if it’s true or not. All I can say is keep the pressure on, and maybe next year we can take this thing to another level.
Updated
Rules
Why thank you - it’s great to be here!
Welcome to our coverage of the 2016 Home Run Derby, which, for a second consecutive season, boasts a fully-functional format that isn’t stretched hours and hours and hours.
As a result the Home Run Derby is now more than capable of stealing the show from the 87th All-Star Game being played on Tuesday, which is rather incredible considering just how lame it had become before the format change.
Before we meet the players, let’s start out with some basic rules of the game.
The Home Run Derby is a win-and-move-on bracket style competition with three timed rounds.
- each round is four minutes from first pitch
- two home runs over 440 feet add 30 seconds to the hitters clock (limit, one per round)
- batter has one 30 second time out per round. Finalists get two time outs
- rounds end immediately if the second batter surpasses the total of the first batter
- sixty second swing-offs break ties: no time outs or bonus seconds awarded
- additional ties are broken with three swing swing-offs (say that three times in a row) until there is a winner.
Last year it only took home runs of 425 to get the bonus 30 seconds, but they made it a bit harder - incredibly, that’s the only difference to the rules from last year.
Updated
David will be here shortly, in the meantime here’s a quick summary of what is to come tonight:
Todd Frazier will try to defend his title in the All-Star Home Run Derby at Petco Park. Frazier won last year’s derby in Cincinnati while he was with the Reds, becoming the second player to win the long-ball competition in his homepark. He edged Dodgers rookie Joc Pederson 15-14 with a late surge in the final round, and he’ll have to hold off another LA rookie in Corey Seager to win this year. The field also includes Mark Trumbo, Carlos Gonzalez, Adam Duvall, Robinson Cano, Giancarlo Stanton and San Diego’s Wil Myers.
