2019 Major League Baseball Home Run Derby
Home run hitting contest / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The 2019 Major League Baseball Home Run Derby was a home run hitting contest between eight batters from Major League Baseball (MLB). The derby was held on July 8, 2019, at Progressive Field in Cleveland, OH, the site of the 2019 MLB All-Star Game. In an effort to lure more big name players to the Derby compared to previous seasons, MLB increased the winner's prize to $1 million with the total pool money being increased to $2.5 million, up from $525,000 in 2018.[1]
Date | July 8, 2019 | |||
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Venue | Progressive Field | |||
City | Cleveland, Ohio | |||
Winner | Pete Alonso | |||
Score | 23ā22 | |||
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The longest home run, amongst the total 312 hit by the 8 players involved, covered a distance of 488 ft (148.74 m), and was hit by the runner-up of the contest, Vladimir Guerrero Jr.
This was the first derby since the format change in 2015 to feature tie-breaking rounds, as Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Joc Pederson went to a record three swing-offs in the second round. Additionally, Guerrero Jr. surpassed the previous first and second round records for home runs hit by Josh Hamilton in 2008 and Kyle Schwarber in 2018 respectively. Winner Pete Alonso of the New York Mets hit 23 home runs in the final round, also breaking the final round total set by Giancarlo Stanton in 2016. The total tally of 312 home runs is the most in the history of the event.