The 2026 Home Runs Derby was in Philadelphia on Monday and it did not disappoint.
Boston Red Sox slugger Willson Contreras got things started with a bang in the first round, hitting 13 homers in 20 swings with a long of 490 feet. His power was on full display as he recorded three straight homers of 470 feet or more.
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Up next to the plate was St. Louis Cardinals right fielder Jordan Walker, who had a similar performance. He rattled off 13 homers of his own, but couldn’t match Contreras’ 490-foot homer.
Third was Kansas City Royals right fielder Jac Caglianone, who managed to put up eight home runs, although a few of them reached the upper deck of the stands and beyond.
To round out the first four, Chicago White Sox rookie Munetaka Murakami put himself in third with nine dingers.
New York Yankees first baseman Ben Rice struggled to find enough distance during his outing, recording seven home runs before Tampa Bay Rays third baseman Junior Caminero stepped up to the plate.
He put on his own show of power with 12 homers and nearly half a dozen over 470 feet.
The crowd at Citizens Bank Park rose to their feet as Philadelphia Phillies slugger Kyle Schwarber stepped to the plate, but it took six swings to get on the board.
The nerves seemed to shake off quickly as he rattled off four in a row before a foul. A late-round surge pushed him to third place with 10 dingers.
To finish the first round, his Phillies teammate Bryce Harper stepped up. He had his own late-round recovery, but it only got him up to eight.
The second round consisted of an impressive top four of Contreras, Walker, Caminero and Schwarber.
Now with 15 swings to work with, Caminero opened up the second round looking a little fatigued and rattled off five more homers.
Walker had a strong start followed by a quiet finish in the semifinal round, narrowly overtaking Caminero with a score of six. Moments later, Schwarber got hot and sent away nine homers in 15 swings to advance to the final round.
Phillies fans let Contreras hear it at the plate with near-constant boos, broken up by cheers when he would miss or foul on a swing.
It came down to the last swing, but he finished with eight homers and couldn’t push Schwarber out of the final.
The final round was a thrilling matchup between Schwarber and Walker, with Schwarber taking the plate first.
He continued to swing for the fences in the final round, sending away an impressive 11 homers in 15 swings.
Walker received a less-than-warm Philly welcome as he took the plate.
Amid a sea of boos, put together a respectable round to tie Schwarber’s 11 with one swing to spare. On the final pitch, he sent it up to the second deck to take the lead and walk off with the Home Run Derby victory.
James Parker is a sports writer for Ball Exclusives, follow him on X @TheJames_Parker
