Home Run Derby winners by year: Complete list of MLB players to win baseball's slugfest since 1985

Table of Content

• Home Run Derby 2013: Yoenis Cespedes wins it all
• Home Run Derby winners by year: Complete list of MLB players to win baseball's slugfest since 1985
• Home Run Derby 2013: Yoenis Cespedes wins it all
• Home Run Derby Winner: Will Contest Hamper Swing of Yoenis Cespedes?
• CS Lewis biopic 'The Most Reluctant Convert' hits PureFlix in time for Christmas

Since 1991, eight to ten players, were chosen to participate in a three round contest to determine the Home Run Derby Champion. Each player received ten outs per round as they attempted to hit as many home runs as they could. Entering the 2022 event, Pete Alonso was already in a small circle of players with multiple Home Run Derby wins.

The colossal distance he got on the majority of them was outstanding. Was the last NL player to win the Derby as a member of the Milwaukee Brewers in 2009. Will be Washington Nationals outfielder Bryce Harper and Colorado Rockies outfielders Carlos Gonzalez and Michael Cuddyer. Competitors who will join Cano include Baltimore Orioles first baseman Chris Davis and Detroit Tigers first baseman Prince Fielder. Robinson Cano rounded out the AL squad by adding A's outfielder Yoenis Cespedes.

Home Run Derby 2013: Yoenis Cespedes wins it all

Dawson went deep four times, accounting for half the home runs hit by the field of four. Griffey became the first player to hit the B&O Warehouse across Eutaw Street from Camden Yards, but Gonzalez won the Derby, defeating Griffey in a sudden-death swing-off. Martinez surprised by outlasting decorated sluggers such as Frank Thomas, McGwire, Griffey and Walker to become the first Yankees player to win the Derby.

During the breaks in the action, Clovis High School shortstop Jacob Gatewood, a potential top pick in the 2014 draft, outslugged another potential 2014 draftee, Palmetto, GA outfielder/firstbaseman Kel Johnson in a parallel derby. Gatewood hit nine home runs in three minutes in that derby's first round, blasting rockets to right field. An eye-opening performance from a hitter I did not expect to see tonight. This year's Home Run Derby will feature eight players, six of whom have hit double-digit homers in the first half. The others are Ronald Acuña Jr. and the legendary Albert Pujols, who will be competing in the derby for the fifth time. From Mark McGwire to Barry Bonds to Sammy Sosa, winning the contest means entering rarified air.

Home Run Derby winners by year: Complete list of MLB players to win baseball's slugfest since 1985

The real highlight of the first round was Yoenis Cespedes though. As ESPN Stats & Info pointed out, he entered the derby with the longest average distance per home run this season. Harper was consistent throughout the night hitting eight home runs in each round. However, it wasn't enough to keep the hard-hitting Cespedes from claiming the title.

Alonso has already done that, but the rest of this year's field is filled with players looking to win for the first time. Cespedes' 17 first round home runs were enough to advance him to the second round, but he decided to go to the plate anyway, needing just five home runs to give the American League the team victory. He accomplished that by hitting six and setting up the final duel with Harper.

Home Run Derby 2013: Yoenis Cespedes wins it all

Stanton peppered Petco Park with baseballs en route to a Derby-record 61 homers. He logged the 10 longest home runs of the night, as well as the 20 hardest-hit blasts, topping out at 120.4 mph, per Statcast™. Harper, who hit 16 homers in the first two rounds, led off the final round.

As usual, the display of power from baseball's top sluggers didn't fail to generate some impressive statistics. Here were the most crazy nuggets and results from a memorable event.

By the end, it was all about the two young superstars in Soto and Rodríguez. The two put on a show all night, but Soto walked it off in the final round with 19 home runs. He became the second-youngest winner in Derby history at 23 years, 266 days old -- just one day older than Juan González was when he won it in 1993.

The Oakland Athletics slugger got off to a dominant start to roll into the finals against the Washington Nationals' Bryce Harper, where he outslugged Harper in the championship round, 9-8. Cuddyer ripped eight more while Davis only hit four more, with both ultimately falling short. Harper, however, would power his way through with eight, almost catching the Oakland outfielder. Pittsburgh Pirates third basemen and National league leader in home runs, Pedro Alvarez hit six home runs and failed to advance.

Yoenis Cespedes: HR Derby winner and WWE champ

The National League split its players between two experienced veterans and two players who have not been in the league very long. Prior to the 1985 All-Star Game being played, a new tradition was born when Major League Baseball adopted an official format for a Home Run Derby. Though these types of contests had taken place before, this was the first time it was going to be acknowledged by the League. Soto eliminated Josè Ramirez from the Guardians and the Cardinals' Albert Pujols before meeting Rodriguez in the finals.

A player may also have a history of being a better first-half hitter than a second-half hitter. As Bleacher Report MLB lead writer Jason Catania noted on Monday, a wealth of players have experienced drop-offs after participating in the derby the past five years. Whether participating in the Home Run Derby affects a player's swing has long been debated. David Wright would complete the disappointing night for New Yorkers as he hit just five home runs to join Fielder, Cano and Alvarez as the bottom four to be eliminated. He went upper deck on his second home run and consistently set the ball in flight. According to ESPN Stats & Info, it was the third most home runs ever hit in the first round.

Participants for the 2013 Chevrolet Home Run Derby were announced earlier this evening on ESPN's "SportsCenter" by Derby captains David Wright of the National League and Robinson Cano of the American League. Although Orb never won another race, several members of the Derby field went on to subsequent Grade I victories. Baseball Almanac is pleased to present a complete breakdown of every Home Run Derby played between 2010 and 2013. Though the criteria, rules, and results have changed the event is still a fan favorite and we hope this page is informative. There have been 38 editions of the Home Run Derby, and there have been 33 different winners.

Céspedes was the first winner of the event who had not been selected to that year's All-Star Game. Sosa out-hit the field with 12 homers in Round 1, but he ran out of gas in the finals, losing 7-1 to Giambi in Milwaukee. Pujols and the Yankees' Jason Giambi each lit up the scoreboard in the first two rounds, but Pujols was bested by Anderson, 9-8, in a dramatic final round in Chicago's South Side.

There would be no three-peat for Pete Alonso, who was taken out in the semifinals by Rodriguez, who was red hot until the final round. Juan Soto made MLB history Monday night, eliminating distractions, as well as an electric Julio Rodriguez to capture the 2022 Home Run Derby trophy . Secondly, he was a monster in the second half of the 2012 campaign, hitting .311 with 14 bombs and 46 RBI after the All-Star break. For one, he's hit a home run every 20.5 at-bats this season after smashing one every 21.2 at-bats last year, so he's not over-performing at a colossal degree. And while teams change at the trade deadline, a player may face more imposing pitchers in the second half or face pitchers who historically have his number. A player may be way over his head in the first half of the season, only to predictably slow down in the second half (i.e. the law of averages).

The second tie breaker, if necessary, is distance of longest home run in Round One. So, based on recent history, the derby winners are less likely to experience regression than the losers. The second round saw two members from each side where the most cumulative home runs for the two rounds would decide the final contestants. Cespedes' only motivation was to hit six more to give the AL a win over the NL as far as who hit more out, otherwise he did not even have to hit. Chris Davis, Baltimore Orioles first basemen and the MLB home run leader hit eight in the first round, while Oakland Athletics outfielder and non-All-star, Yoenis Cespedes cranked 17 in an unbelievable show of power. The NL team had a pretty good showing with fan favorite Bryce Harper, outfielder for the Washington Nationals launching eight while Colorado dark horse pick, Michael Cuddyer, outfielder, launched seven.