The St. Louis Cardinals haven’t had a competitor in the MLB Home Run Derby since Albert Pujols put on a show during his final season in 2022. Jordan Walker’s breakout year has given him the opportunity to represent St. Louis this year, but he was up against formidable competition, but he rose to the occasion in an incredible way. Here’s how that went.
Each player had 20 swings in the first round with the top 4 moving on to the semi-finals. Here’s how each player did to kick off the competition.
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Run Derby First Round – 20 swings
Former St. Louis Cardinal and current Boston Red Sox Willson Contreras was the first up in the Home Run Derby. He had an impressive first round hammering 13 home runs with the longest being a monstrous 490 feet.
Jordan Walker of the St. Louis Cardinals was next up and he homered on his first swing and went on to crush 12 more out of his next 20 swings to tie Willson Contreras with 13 first-round home runs. His average exit velocity was a vicious 107 mph and his longest bomb traveled 470 feet.
Jac Caglianone was next up representing the cross-state Kansas City Royals who we’ve completely forgiven for the 1985 I-70 series. Well, we’ve forgiven most of it. He launched some rockets into the upper deck in right field, but ended the first round with 8 home runs.
Munetaka Murakami of the surprising Chicago White Sox was the 4th competitor to step into the box. He jumped out to a fast start, but seemed to tire and ended up with a respectable total of 9 home runs.
Ben Rice from the New York Yankees was Home Run Derby combatant #5 and he got off to a slow start not hitting a homer until his 5th swing. He got into a nice rhythm during the middle of his round, but ended his effort with 7 home runs leaving him with the first guaranteed elimination in round 1.
Junior Caminero of the Tampa Bay Rays entered the Home Run Derby arena and crushed 12 home runs with his final swing barely on the wrong side of the foul pole (for him).
The Philadelphia Phillies portion of the Home Run Derby began with Kyle Schwarber entering the batter’s box. He ended up with an underwhelming (by his high standards) 10 home runs in the first round which put him on the bubble for making the semi-finals or not depending on teammate Bryce Harper’s performance.
What did Bryce Harper of the Philadelphia Phillies do with his Home Run Derby first round in front of the home crowd? Incredibly, he did not rise to the occasion and only hit 8 home runs which meant Bryce was eliminated and Schwarber moved on to the semis.
Home Run Derby Semi-Finals – 15 swings
Junior Caminero vs Jordan Walker
Caminero got off to a slow start hitting just 2 home runs in his first 7 swings, but picked up the pace near the end finishing his semi-final effort with 5 home runs.
What did the St. Louis Cardinals Jordan Walker do with a shot at the finals? He EASILY smacked 6 home runs with 8 swings left to move onto the Home Run Derby finals.
Kyle Schwarber vs Willson Contreras
Kyle Schwarber was the first up in his semi-final round. He didn’t homer until his 4th swing, but got on a roll after that putting 9 home runs on the board for Contreras to shoot for by the time he was done.
Would it be a former St. Louis Cardinal vs a current St. Louis Cardinal in the finals? That was the opportunity given to Willson Contreras as he stepped in for his semi-final turn. With the Philadelphia crowd cheering every miss, Willson fell just one home run short with 8 dingers before he fouled off his final pitch.
Home Run Derby Finals – 15 swings
Jordan Walker vs Kyle Schwarber
To say that probably no one outside of Cardinals nation had Jordan picked as a Home Run Derby finalist is an understatement. Could he overcome the hometown crowd backing Kyle Schwarber who’s an experienced Home Run Derby competitor who was the runner-up to Bryce Harper back in 2018?
Kyle Schwarber was first up which meant that Jordan would have a number to shoot for. Schwarber got onto one of his infamous homer streaks putting up a staggering 11 home run total on the board including 1 on his final swing. Could Walker somehow overcome a double-digit final round total?
Jordan Walker had such a cool laid back disposition during the entire competition and that didn’t change in the MLB Home Run Derby finals. He seemed unaffected by the national spotlight and earned the chance to try and take down hometown favorite Schwarber for the trophy. He put up an incredible performance hitting multiple home runs on his final swings upsetting Schwarber with an incredible 12 home runs in the finals.
