Major League Baseball has set the eight-person roster for Monday’s Home Run Derby. The complete list of participants:
- Mets 1BÂ Pete Alonso
- Phillies 3BÂ Alec Bohm
- Rangers OFÂ Adolis GarcÃa
- Orioles SSÂ Gunnar Henderson
- Dodgers OF Teoscar Hernández
- Braves DHÂ Marcell Ozuna
- Guardians 3B José RamÃrez
- Royals SSÂ Bobby Witt Jr.
Alonso and GarcÃa have returned from last year’s event. The New York first baseman is participating in the event for the fifth time in a row. Alonso won the Derby twice in a row from 2019-21 due to the pandemic, but was defeated by Julio RodrÃguez in the past two events.
GarcÃa was dropped by Randy Arozarena at the first round last year. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. won the tournament but did not attempt to defend his title.
This year’s activities will take place at Arlington’s Globe Life Field. Under the collective labor agreement, the Derby winner will receive $1 million. The runner-up earns $500K, while everyone else receives $150K. The player who hits the longest home run earns $100,000.
As Buster Olney of ESPN recently reported, this year’s event will include a few regulation tweaks. The first round no longer includes head-to-head matches. The top four home run hitters will advance to the second round, with the longest homer used as a tiebreaker.
MLB is also limiting hitters to 40 swings per round and replacing the bonus round clock with a three-out limit.
