Final, Todd Frazier wins Home Run Derby: Well done, Cincinnati. And well done, Major League Baseball.
The 2015 Home Run Derby — and its new format — was a huge success. Todd Frazier sent the Cincinnati crowd into a frenzy all night, so it was only fitting that the hometown slugger went on an epic run in the final round to defeat Joc Pederson in bonus time and win this year’s Home Run Derby crown.
Frazier, of course, advanced to the finals last year before losing to Yoenis Cespedes. This year, Frazier defeated Prince Fielder, Josh Donaldson and Pederson in a bracket-style competition. He totaled 39 home runs over the three rounds while facing his brother on the mound.
There was some talk throughout the day that the weather in Cincinnati might put a damper on this year’s event. But Mother Nature cooperated, the new format proved successful and baseball fans were treated to a very entertaining Home Run Derby.
Final Round — Todd Frazier (15) def. Joc Pederson (14): Wow.
Frazier, who had a flair for the dramatic all evening, hit 14 home runs in the allotted four minutes before launching a Home Run Derby-winning 15th homer in bonus time.
Frazier took down Pederson in one of the best Home Run Derby events in a long, long time.
Final Round — Joc Pederson (14): Pederson set the bar extremely high in the final round.
Pederson got off to a slow start, as he failed to hit a single home run in the first minute. He then launched six consecutive homers in under 40 seconds, though. He finished with 14 total.
Round 2 — Joc Pederson (12) def. Albert Pujols (11): There’s been no shortage of drama.
Pujols made a late run at Pederson’s Round 2 total of 12 homers. He trailed 12-10 entering bonus time, cranked one homer and fell a big swing shy.
Pujols hit a couple of sky-high fly balls that didn’t leave the yard in extra time. He was about to receive one more pitch when the buzzer sounded and the umpire waved it off.
This truly has been a unique Home Run Derby.
It’ll be Pederson versus Frazier in the finals. Take a guess at who the Cincinnati crowd is pulling for.
Round 2 — Todd Frazier (10) def. Josh Donaldson (9): Mr. Frazier has a flair for the dramatic.
Frazier crushed his ninth and 10th homers on back-to-back swings as time expired. His game-winner, which was smoked, came with triple zeros on the clock. The Great American Ball Park crowd, as you’d imagine, erupted in support of the hometown hero.
Say what you want about this new format, but it makes things interesting, especially when you have the crowd behind a local player. This probably is the best Home Run Derby atmosphere since Josh Hamilton’s unbelievable display at Yankee Stadium in 2008.
Frazier will face the winner of the Pujols-Pederson matchup in the finals.
Round 1 — Albert Pujols (10): Pujols sent Bryant to the showers on his last swing.
Pujols trailed 9-8 with less than 30 seconds remaining — he still had bonus time to work with, too — and the veteran slugger confidently took a pitch. He then ripped the next one into the seats for homer No. 8.
The matchup-deciding blast came a split second after the buzzer sounded. Pujols yanked it into the first row of the upper deck.
Pujols will face Joc Pederson in Round 2.
Round 1 — Kris Bryant (9): Bryant hits the ball too high.
Just 87 days after making his major league debut, Bryant hit nine home runs in the first round of the Home Run Derby. Hitting the ball too high cost him some time, though. The ball simply took forever to land in several instances, even when it didn’t clear the fence.
Nevertheless, Bryant did decent while facing his father.
Fun fact, per ESPN’s broadcast: Bryant’s dad took a selfie with Clayton Kershaw earlier. Who could blame him?
Round 1 — Joc Pederson (13): Impressive showing by Joc Pederson.
Pederson barely broke a sweat while blasting 13 homers to defeat Machado. He hit his 13th homer with over a minute left, so who knows what additional damage he could have done?
Since Pederson didn’t need to hit any more home runs to advance, the Dodgers outfielder calmly called it quits after homer No. 13. He’ll face the winner of the Kris Bryant-Albert Pujols matchup in Round 2.
Round 1 — Manny Machado (12): “Easy power.” That was the phrase used on the broadcast to describe Machado’s pop. And it’s entirely accurate.
Machado’s smooth swing produced 11 homers over four minutes. He really heated up toward the end. Machado added to his total with one homer in bonus time.
Your move, Joc Pederson.
Round 1 — Todd Frazier (14): OK, that was pretty cool.
I’ve been critical of the new format, but Todd Frazier’s beat-the-clock Round 1 performance was awesome. The atmosphere at Great American Ball Park was electric for the hometown guy. And the Cincinnati Reds third baseman tied Fielder’s mark of 13 homers with seconds left.
Frazier, who earned bonus time for launching two homers of at least 425 feet, defeated Fielder by launching his 14th homer in the extra seconds.
[tweet https://twitter.com/MLB/status/620756641571598336 align=’center’%5D
Round 1 — Prince Fielder (13): Fielder moves pretty well for a big dude. And he showed some athleticism in Round 1 by launching 13 homers, the longest of which was 474 feet.
The highlight came during Fielder’s timeout — taken with about one minute left. He snagged a bit of his son’s cotton candy. It was blue. The best kind.
Good luck, Todd Frazier. Looks like my winner might be ousted rather quickly.
8:37 p.m.: So, Donaldson, who defeated Rizzo, will face the winner of the matchup between Prince Fielder and Todd Frazier.
Round 1 — Josh Donaldson (9): Donaldson had no problem mopping the floor with Rizzo in Round 1.
Donaldson launched nine homers with time to spare. The highlight came when Sean Casey — former major leaguer and current MLB Network analyst — caught one of the home runs.
[tweet https://twitter.com/ChrisRose/status/620751343104475136 align=’center’%5D
Round 1 — Anthony Rizzo (8): Rizzo hit nine homers to kick off the competition.
He took his 45-second timeout about one minute in, as he really struggled to find a good pace. Once Rizzo found a good pace, however, he started yanking balls out of the yard.
Rizzo hit seven homers and earned bonus time by virtue of hitting two homers longer than 425 feet. He hit one homer in bonus time to give him eight total.
8:10 p.m.: Ken Griffey Jr. threw out the ceremonial first pitch. It stayed in the yard.
Anthony Rizzo of the Chicago Cubs will bat first. He’s going up against Josh Donaldson of the Toronto Blue Jays.
8:04 p.m.: Want a prediction? Of course you do.
I’ll even do you one better. Here’s how I see the entire thing shaking out in the new bracket format.
-Bryant over Pujols
-Pederson over Machado
-Donaldson over Rizzo
-Frazier over Fielder
-Pederson over Bryant (NL Rookie of the Year battle?)
-Frazier over Donaldson
-Frazier over Pederson
7:53 p.m.: There could be plenty of home runs at this year’s event, as there have been more home runs hit at Great American Ball Park than any other park since it opened in 2003.
That said, only five home runs of at least 425 feet have been hit at Great American Ball Park this season, meaning it could be challenging for the participants to earn bonus time.
If there’s anyone who holds a slight edge in the bonus time department, however, it could be Joc Pederson, who leads Major League Baseball with 12 homers of at least 425 feet this season.
7:40 p.m.: I linked out to the new Home Run Derby format earlier in this post. But just so everyone’s on the same page, let’s go over the new format, because it’s very different this year.
The following tweet offers a detailed description:
[tweet https://twitter.com/MLB_PR/status/615245144833544192 align=’center’%5D
As mentioned, there have been some changes. They are as follows:
— The five-minute limit per round has been shortened to four minutes.
— The previously announced 60-second time extension for home runs exceeding 475 feet was changed, with players now receiving a 30-second bonus if they hit two homers of at least 425 feet.
7:30 p.m.: The weather looks pretty good in Cincinnati right now. Hopefully I’m not jinxing things by saying that, but it definitely gives hope that they’ll get going on time.
6:15 p.m. ET: Let’s call it “cloudy with a chance of long balls.”
The forecast for Monday in Cincinnati doesn’t look great, as rain is threatening to put a damper on the 2015 Major League Baseball Home Run Derby at Great American Ball Park. But if the competition takes place — something the league is doing “everything possible” to ensure — it should be interesting.
First, let’s run down the participants and their odds to win, according to OddsShark.com.
Prince Fielder, Texas Rangers (14 home runs): 15-4 odds
Kris Bryant, Chicago Cubs (12): 9-2
Todd Frazier, Cincinnati Reds (25): 9-2
Albert Pujols, Los Angeles Angels (26): 6-1
Joc Pederson, Los Angeles Dodgers (20): 6-1
Anthony Rizzo, Chicago Cubs (16): 7-1
Josh Donaldson, Toronto Blue Jays (21): 7-1
Manny Machado, Baltimore Orioles (19): 9-1
Heavy rain fell in Cincinnati early Monday afternoon. The forecast calls for showers and thunderstorms until midnight, so there’s no guarantee the competition will take place at 8 p.m. ET, as scheduled.
That said, baseball officials have discussed numerous contingency plans, according to ESPN.com’s Jayson Stark, who speculates the league could shorten the Derby or hold it Tuesday afternoon before the All-Star Game if absolutely necessary.
Some changes already have been made to the new format, in fact. Instead of a five-minute running clock, contestants will have four minutes to hit as many home runs as possible. The thresholds necessary for batters to gain extra time also have been increased, and the clock no longer will stop on a homer in the final minute.
Click for a rundown of the new format >>
The Home Run Derby has been rained out only once since the first event in 1985. It was far less popular back then in 1988, though, so you can bet MLB will get creative before pulling the plug completely.
Stay tuned.
Thumbnail photo via David Kohl/USA TODAY Sports Images
