CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - JULY 5: Jordan Walker #18 of the St Louis Cardinals bats in a game against the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field on July 5, 2026 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Matt Dirksen/Chicago Cubs/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The MLB Home Run Derby lineup is set and the St. Louis Cardinals finally have a representative again. Jordan Walker will be competing with 7 others in the competition that will be streaming live on Netflix starting at 6pm central time. Here’s the lineup:
Congratulations to the two-time West Coast Conference Player of the Year, redshirt senior third baseman Mikey Bell, who was picked by the San Francisco Giants with the No. 568 pick in the 19th round of the 2026 MLB Draft.
The former Gonzaga Bulldog previously announced that he’s transferring to the Georgia Bulldogs in the SEC. As long as he doesn’t sign the contract with San Francisco, Bell can play his final season of college eligibility.
Bell to the Bay Area! 🛎️
Congrats to Mikey Bell for getting picked by the Giants in today’s draft! The Zags have now had a player selected in every full MLB draft since 1999 #GDTBAZpic.twitter.com/RX4JmTUCWK
The 6-2, 200-pound slugger hit .369 with 24 doubles, 20 home runs, 92 runs batted in, and 51 walks during his time in Spokane, Washington. Bell finished with a .448 on-base percentage, .610 slugging percentage, and 1.057 on-base plus slugging percentage across 107 games.
The Fresno, California, native started his college career on the junior college level at Cuesta College in San Luis Obispo, California. The Slipper Still Fits spoke with the 22-year-old before the start of the 2026 season, and what a treat it was.
Arden Cravalho is a Gonzaga University graduate from the Bay Area… Follow him on X @a_cravalho
As is an All-Star break tradition, here's a look at where I think things currently stand for next season. I planned on a top 400, but I still wound up with too many names I wanted to squeeze in, so 450 is what you're getting. This is supposed to be a fun exercise, so please don't be too upset if you think I have No. 259 ranked 100 spots too high or too low.
Rankings are for 5x5 leagues and are for 2027 only. Also listed is each player's ranking in the 2026 preseason top 300 and the most recent top 300 update from July 6. I've tried to update positions with my best guess at 2027 eligibility, so there's no more Ben Rice at catcher or Luis García Jr. at second base. Players listed without teams will be free agents at season's end, and players whose teams have asterisks are on options that may or may not be exercised. I don't bother with the asterisks for players whose options are obviously getting picked up, like Ronald Acuña Jr. and Andrés Muñoz.
⚾️ Baseball is back on NBC: MLB returns to NBC and Peacock in 2026! In addition to becoming the exclusive home of Sunday Night Baseball, NBC Sports will broadcast MLB Sunday Leadoff, “Opening Day” and Labor Day primetime games, the first round of the MLB Draft, the entire Wild Card round of the postseason and much more.
2027 Fantasy Baseball Top 450 overall ranks
2027
Top 450
Team
Pos
Pos Rk
2026
July 6
1
Bobby Witt Jr.
Royals
SS
1
3
2
2
Aaron Judge
Yankees
OF
1
1
102
3
Shohei Ohtani
Dodgers
DH
1
2
3
4
James Wood
Nationals
OF
2
30
13
5
Junior Caminero
Rays
3B
1
21
8
6
Nick Kurtz
Athletics
1B
1
16
6
7
Yordan Alvarez
Astros
OF
3
25
1
8
Juan Soto
Mets
OF
4
5
4
9
Ronald Acuna Jr.
Braves
OF
5
4
19
10
Elly De La Cruz
Reds
SS
2
13
5
11
Julio Rodriguez
Mariners
OF
6
8
14
12
Tarik Skubal
SP
1
7
7
13
Vladimir Guerrero Jr.
Blue Jays
1B
2
9
21
14
Jacob Misiorowski
Brewers
SP
2
79
23
15
Jackson Chourio
Brewers
OF
7
35
15
16
Fernando Tatis Jr.
Padres
2B
1
15
17
17
Cristopher Sanchez
Phillies
SP
3
26
10
18
Gunnar Henderson
Orioles
SS
3
12
27
19
Jose Ramirez
Guardians
3B
2
6
51
20
Corbin Carroll
Diamondbacks
OF
8
14
11
21
Kyle Tucker
Dodgers
OF
9
10
16
22
Pete Alonso
Orioles
1B
3
17
12
23
Kyle Schwarber
Phillies
DH
2
20
9
24
Pete Crow-Armstrong
Cubs
OF
10
32
24
25
CJ Abrams
Nationals
SS
4
37
25
26
Cam Schlittler
Yankees
SP
4
182
46
27
Zach Neto
Angels
SS
5
18
22
28
Yoshinobu Yamamoto
Dodgers
SP
5
28
20
29
Paul Skenes
Pirates
SP
6
11
37
30
Sal Stewart
Reds
3B
3
48
30
31
Bryce Harper
Phillies
1B
4
38
18
32
Brice Turang
Brewers
2B
2
56
29
33
Logan Gilbert
Mariners
SP
7
22
26
34
Michael Harris II
Braves
OF
11
31
33
35
Ketel Marte
Diamondbacks
2B
3
27
31
36
Oneil Cruz
Pirates
OF
12
51
74
37
Francisco Lindor
Mets
SS
6
24
36
38
Garrett Crochet
Red Sox
SP
8
19
189
39
Mason Miller
Padres
RP
1
41
28
40
Matt Olson
Braves
1B
5
75
32
41
Trea Turner
Phillies
SS
7
23
35
42
Jordan Walker
Cardinals
OF
13
NR
44
43
Bryan Woo
Mariners
SP
9
34
40
44
Zack Wheeler
Phillies
SP
10
81
41
45
Freddie Freeman
Dodgers
1B
6
36
34
46
Chase Burns
Reds
SP
11
154
98
47
Shohei Ohtani
Dodgers
SP
12
60
49
48
JJ Wetherholt
Cardinals
2B
4
173
110
49
Jhoan Duran
Phillies
RP
2
66
43
50
Dylan Cease
Blue Jays
SP
13
69
52
51
Roman Anthony
Red Sox
OF
14
49
172
52
Chris Sale
Braves
SP
14
58
38
53
Cody Bellinger
Yankees
OF
15
53
39
54
Gerrit Cole
Yankees
SP
15
118
54
55
Riley Greene
Tigers
OF
16
91
55
56
Cade Smith
Guardians
RP
3
57
56
57
Joe Ryan
Twins
SP
16
67
45
58
Ben Rice
Yankees
1B
7
83
50
59
Josh Hader
Astros
RP
4
97
48
60
Hunter Greene
Reds
SP
17
215
80
61
Jeremy Pena
Astros
SS
8
73
59
62
Jazz Chisholm Jr.
2B
5
40
42
63
Max Fried
Yankees
SP
18
42
100
64
Kevin McGonigle
Tigers
SS
9
224
94
65
Ivan Herrera
Cardinals
C
1
107
60
66
Jacob deGrom
Rangers
SP
19
55
47
67
Drake Baldwin
Braves
C
2
130
90
68
Tyler Soderstrom
Athletics
OF
17
74
91
69
Logan Webb
Giants
SP
20
68
65
70
Aroldis Chapman
Red Sox*
RP
5
61
53
71
Andy Pages
Dodgers
OF
18
139
76
72
Nolan McLean
Mets
SP
21
105
78
73
Wyatt Langford
Rangers
OF
19
47
123
74
Hunter Brown
Astros
SP
22
65
69
75
Jarren Duran
Red Sox
OF
20
39
75
76
Dylan Crews
Nationals
OF
21
198
117
77
Shea Langeliers
Athletics
C
3
111
63
78
Drew Rasmussen
Rays
SP
23
93
73
79
Andres Munoz
Mariners
RP
6
77
64
80
Alec Burleson
Cardinals
1B
8
112
70
81
Bo Bichette
Mets*
SS
10
64
58
82
Mike Trout
Angels
OF
22
99
68
83
Seiya Suzuki
OF
23
88
71
84
Xavier Edwards
Marlins
2B
6
96
61
85
Austin Riley
Braves
3B
4
29
77
86
Brent Rooker
Athletics
DH
3
43
NR
87
Konnor Griffin
Pirates
SS
12
181
114
88
Jesus Luzardo
Phillies
SP
24
102
79
89
Manny Machado
Padres
3B
5
45
66
90
Sonny Gray
Red Sox*
SP
25
85
86
91
George Kirby
Mariners
SP
26
46
62
92
Byron Buxton
Twins
OF
24
89
72
93
Eury Perez
Marlins
SP
27
98
122
94
Miguel Vargas
White Sox
3B
6
214
83
95
Corey Seager
Rangers
SS
11
76
145
96
Mookie Betts
Dodgers
SS
13
80
85
97
Louis Varland
Blue Jays
RP
7
NR
87
98
Jackson Merrill
Padres
OF
25
52
99
99
Rafael Devers
Giants
1B
9
87
97
100
Munetaka Murakami
White Sox
1B
10
177
129
101
Blake Snell
Dodgers
SP
28
121
108
102
Bryan Reynolds
Pirates
OF
26
108
67
103
Kyle Stowers
Marlins
OF
27
109
89
104
Josh Naylor
Mariners
1B
11
78
92
105
Cal Raleigh
Mariners
C
4
33
88
106
Devin Williams
Mets
RP
8
70
84
107
Yandy Diaz
Rays
1B
12
141
82
108
Willson Contreras
Red Sox
1B
13
114
111
109
David Bednar
RP
9
84
81
110
Framber Valdez
Tigers
SP
29
63
93
111
Kyle Bradish
Orioles
SP
30
90
119
112
Maikel Garcia
Royals
3B
7
44
159
113
Kyle Harrison
Brewers
SP
31
NR
103
114
Edwin Diaz
Dodgers
RP
10
50
208
115
Daylen Lile
Nationals
OF
28
116
109
116
Braxton Ashcraft
Pirates
SP
32
276
162
117
William Contreras
Brewers
C
5
123
101
118
Parker Messick
Guardians
SP
33
259
107
119
Luke Keaschall
Twins
2B
7
82
154
120
Luis Robert Jr.
Mets*
OF
29
71
156
121
Trey Yesavage
Blue Jays
SP
34
237
130
122
Nico Hoerner
Cubs
2B
8
122
105
123
Bryce Miller
Mariners
SP
35
187
57
124
Hunter Goodman
Rockies
C
6
145
104
125
Brandon Nimmo
Rangers
OF
30
106
106
126
Travis Bazzana
Guardians
2B
9
NR
157
127
Gavin Williams
Guardians
SP
36
229
124
128
Payton Tolle
Red Sox
SP
37
NR
167
129
Samuel Basallo
Orioles
C
7
NR
259
130
Felix Bautista
Orioles
RP
11
NR
NR
131
Geraldo Perdomo
Diamondbacks
SS
14
59
118
132
Kade Anderson
Mariners
SP
38
NR
NR
133
Raisel Iglesias
RP
12
124
112
134
Carson Benge
Mets
OF
31
290
180
135
Jo Adell
Angels
OF
32
104
115
136
Max Meyer
Marlins
SP
39
289
138
137
Jac Caglianone
Royals
OF
33
299
236
138
Michael Busch
Cubs
1B
14
125
128
139
Kevin Gausman
SP
40
142
96
140
Randy Arozarena
OF
34
178
143
141
Tommy Edman
Dodgers
2B
10
176
147
142
Ranger Suarez
Red Sox
SP
41
131
135
143
Justin Steele
Cubs
SP
42
250
NR
144
Jackson Holliday
Orioles
2B
11
158
193
145
MacKenzie Gore
Rangers
SP
43
134
133
146
Vinnie Pasquantino
Royals
1B
15
62
273
147
Charlie Condon
Rockies
OF
35
NR
NR
148
Cam Smith
Astros
OF
36
NR
174
149
Jonathan Aranda
Rays
1B
16
218
144
150
River Ryan
Dodgers
SP
44
NR
NR
151
Wilyer Abreu
Red Sox
OF
37
169
141
152
Otto Lopez
Marlins
SS
15
191
113
153
Brandon Marsh
Phillies
OF
38
264
139
154
Christian Yelich
Brewers
DH
4
95
116
155
Sandy Alcantara
Marlins*
SP
45
192
148
156
George Springer
DH
5
54
95
157
Jose Altuve
Astros
2B
12
86
134
158
Tyler Glasnow
Dodgers
SP
46
144
203
159
Shane McClanahan
Rays
SP
47
160
120
160
Trevor Megill
Brewers
RP
13
127
146
161
Sam Antonacci
White Sox
2B
13
NR
163
162
Alex Bregman
Cubs
3B
8
137
125
163
Nathan Eovaldi
Rangers
SP
48
151
132
164
Corbin Burnes
Diamondbacks*
SP
49
NR
NR
165
Isaac Paredes
Astros
3B
9
172
149
166
Spencer Schwellenbach
Braves
SP
50
220
NR
167
Jordan Westburg
Orioles
3B
10
248
NR
168
Ian Happ
OF
39
152
140
169
Ceddanne Rafaela
Red Sox
OF
40
120
131
170
Daniel Palencia
Cubs
RP
14
92
179
171
Colson Montgomery
White Sox
SS
16
174
170
172
Jared Jones
Pirates
SP
51
NR
207
173
Alec Bohm
3B
11
117
137
174
Shota Imanaga
SP
52
149
136
175
Kazuma Okamoto
Blue Jays
3B
12
212
152
176
Christian Scott
Mets
SP
53
NR
181
177
Luis Arraez
2B
14
217
155
178
Bryce Eldridge
Giants
1B
17
NR
210
179
Ryan Sloan
Mariners
SP
54
NR
NR
180
Reid Detmers
Angels
SP
55
256
186
181
Teoscar Hernandez
Dodgers
OF
41
113
121
182
Logan Henderson
Brewers
SP
56
277
165
183
Tanner Bibee
Guardians
SP
57
126
150
184
Luis Garcia Jr.
1B
18
170
160
185
Bryson Stott
Phillies
2B
15
150
142
186
Carlos Rodon
Yankees
SP
58
204
286
187
Christian Walker
Astros
1B
19
265
126
188
Dansby Swanson
Cubs
SS
17
164
158
189
Trevor Story
Red Sox
SS
18
133
247
190
Jacob Wilson
Athletics
SS
19
128
242
191
Robert Suarez
Braves
RP
15
281
NR
192
Nick Pivetta
Padres*
SP
59
129
NR
193
Esmerlyn Valdez
Pirates
OF
42
NR
NR
194
Cole Carrigg
Rockies
OF
43
NR
228
195
Brandon Lowe
2B
16
210
197
196
Chase DeLauter
Guardians
OF
44
NR
227
197
Garrett Mitchell
Brewers
OF
45
NR
175
198
Ben Brown
Cubs
SP
60
NR
NR
199
Heliot Ramos
Giants
OF
46
209
204
200
Jung Hoo Lee
Giants
OF
47
157
169
201
Ryan Helsley
Orioles*
RP
16
115
278
202
Joshua Baez
Cardinals
OF
48
NR
NR
203
Caleb Durbin
Red Sox
3B
13
159
176
204
Jasson Dominguez
Yankees
OF
49
NR
234
205
Gabriel Moreno
Diamondbacks
C
8
231
185
206
Grant Taylor
White Sox
RP
17
NR
214
207
Josue De Paula
Dodgers
OF
50
NR
NR
208
Bubba Chandler
Pirates
SP
61
207
226
209
Freddy Peralta
SP
62
138
127
210
Andrew Vaughn
Brewers
1B
20
155
245
211
Jacob Latz
Rangers
RP
18
NR
164
212
Dillon Dingler
Tigers
C
9
NR
173
213
Gage Jump
Athletics
SP
63
NR
254
214
Daulton Varsho
OF
51
119
153
215
Kyle Karros
Rockies
3B
14
NR
NR
216
A.J. Ewing
Mets
OF
52
NR
211
217
Brendan Donovan
Mariners
3B
15
183
217
218
Josh Jung
Rangers
3B
16
245
190
219
Taylor Ward
OF
53
189
191
220
Ryan Waldschmidt
Diamondbacks
OF
54
NR
NR
221
Max Muncy
Dodgers
3B
17
206
151
222
Cade Cavalli
Nationals
SP
64
NR
NR
223
Willy Adames
Giants
SS
20
163
178
224
Gleyber Torres
2B
17
180
243
225
Jake Bauers
1B
21
NR
166
226
Casey Schmitt
Giants
2B
18
NR
202
227
Taj Bradley
Twins
SP
65
NR
266
228
Michael King
Padres*
SP
66
179
177
229
Ozzie Albies
Braves
2B
19
262
161
230
Noelvi Marte
Reds
OF
55
94
184
231
Didier Fuentes
Braves
SP
67
NR
NR
232
Henry Bolte
Athletics
OF
56
NR
206
233
Xander Bogaerts
Padres
SS
21
194
194
234
Bryan Baker
Rays
RP
19
NR
168
235
Chandler Simpson
Rays
OF
57
213
183
236
JJ Bleday
Reds
OF
58
NR
213
237
Jose Soriano
Angels
SP
68
NR
222
238
Matthew Boyd
Cubs*
SP
69
166
187
239
Jordan Lawlar
Diamondbacks
OF
59
203
NR
240
Kaelen Culpepper
Twins
SS
22
NR
NR
241
Pablo Lopez
Twins
SP
70
NR
NR
242
Matt McLain
Reds
SS
23
103
205
243
Trent Grisham
OF
60
200
192
244
Ryan O’Hearn
Pirates
1B
22
NR
219
245
Troy Melton
Tigers
SP
71
NR
225
246
Joshua Kuroda-Grauer
Athletics
3B
18
NR
NR
247
Abner Uribe
Brewers
RP
20
197
284
248
Justin Wrobleski
Dodgers
SP
72
NR
201
249
Spencer Steer
Reds
1B
23
NR
215
250
Addison Barger
Blue Jays
OF
61
186
NR
251
Josh Bell
Twins*
1B
24
230
212
252
Riley O’Brien
Cardinals
RP
21
243
200
253
Ryan Weathers
Yankees
SP
73
286
220
254
Ernie Clement
Blue Jays
SS
24
251
209
255
Masyn Winn
Cardinals
SS
25
223
235
256
Ezequiel Tovar
Rockies
SS
26
148
256
257
Spencer Strider
Braves
SP
74
263
NR
258
Spencer Torkelson
Tigers
1B
25
216
240
259
Casey Mize
SP
75
NR
238
260
Leo De Vries
Athletics
SS
27
NR
NR
261
Joey Cantillo
Guardians
SP
76
NR
246
262
Lawrence Butler
Athletics
OF
62
242
239
263
Jackson Jobe
Tigers
SP
77
NR
NR
264
Jesus Sanchez
Blue Jays
OF
63
292
NR
265
Royce Lewis
Twins
3B
19
238
233
266
Jakob Marsee
Marlins
OF
64
140
198
267
Hector Rodriguez
Reds
OF
65
NR
NR
268
Nick Martinez
Rays*
SP
78
246
237
269
Nolan Schanuel
Angels
1B
26
221
223
270
Colt Keith
Tigers
3B
20
227
282
271
Lars Nootbaar
Cardinals
OF
66
NR
196
272
Brandon Woodruff
SP
79
161
289
273
Steven Kwan
Guardians
OF
67
162
216
274
Matt Chapman
Giants
3B
21
196
229
275
Nick Lodolo
Reds
SP
80
184
248
276
Jorge Polanco
Mets
DH
6
135
296
277
Emerson Hancock
Mariners
SP
81
NR
241
278
Adley Rutschman
Orioles
C
10
261
232
279
Walker Jenkins
Twins
OF
68
NR
NR
280
TJ Rumfield
Rockies
1B
27
NR
231
281
Anthony Volpe
Yankees
SS
28
235
NR
282
Shane Baz
Orioles
SP
82
257
263
283
Emilio Pagan
Reds*
RP
22
143
195
284
Kerry Carpenter
Tigers
OF
69
167
218
285
Brenton Doyle
Rockies
OF
70
132
NR
286
Jacob Melton
Rays
OF
71
NR
NR
287
Nathaniel Lowe
1B
28
NR
276
288
Ralphy Velazquez
Guardians
1B
29
NR
NR
289
Will Warren
Yankees
SP
83
NR
253
290
Matt Shaw
Cubs
OF
72
NR
NR
291
Max Clark
Tigers
OF
73
NR
NR
292
Brett Baty
Mets
2B
20
205
NR
293
Randy Rodriguez
Giants
RP
23
NR
NR
294
Clay Holmes
Mets*
SP
84
268
NR
295
Dominic Canzone
Mariners
OF
74
297
280
296
Braden Montgomery
White Sox
OF
75
NR
262
297
Sean Burke
White Sox
SP
85
NR
261
298
Roki Sasaki
Dodgers
SP
86
NR
293
299
Jesus Made
Brewers
SS
29
NR
NR
300
Walbert Urena
Angels
SP
87
NR
NR
301
Joe Musgrove
Padres
SP
88
190
NR
302
Justin Crawford
Phillies
OF
76
287
NR
303
Owen Caissie
Marlins
OF
77
NR
NR
304
Ryan Pepiot
Rays
SP
89
232
NR
305
Triston Casas
Red Sox
1B
30
NR
NR
306
Trevor Rogers
SP
90
NR
287
307
Agustin Ramirez
Marlins
C
11
147
NR
308
Cooper Pratt
Brewers
SS
30
NR
NR
309
Curtis Mead
Nationals
3B
22
NR
283
310
Eugenio Suarez
Reds*
3B
23
136
188
311
Andres Gimenez
Blue Jays
SS
31
239
249
312
Kodai Senga
Mets
SP
91
202
NR
313
Trevor Larnach
Twins
OF
78
NR
267
314
Clarke Schmidt
Yankees
SP
92
NR
NR
315
Pedro Ramirez
Cubs
2B
21
NR
NR
316
Dustin May
Cardinals*
SP
93
NR
265
317
Paul Sewald
RP
24
291
199
318
Jake Burger
Rangers
1B
31
254
221
319
Giancarlo Stanton
Yankees
DH
7
266
NR
320
Adrian Morejon
RP
25
NR
NR
321
Edward Cabrera
Cubs
SP
94
175
NR
322
Tatsuya Imai
Astros*
SP
95
NR
NR
323
Cole Young
Mariners
2B
22
NR
NR
324
Adolis Garcia
OF
79
171
NR
325
Cody Ponce
Blue Jays
SP
96
240
NR
326
Justin Martinez
Diamondbacks
RP
26
NR
NR
327
Sean Keys
Blue Jays
1B
32
NR
298
328
Kevin Alcantara
Cubs
OF
80
NR
NR
329
Evan Carter
Rangers
OF
81
255
269
330
Carter Jensen
Royals
C
12
NR
288
331
Kris Bubic
SP
97
234
NR
332
Sal Frelick
Brewers
OF
82
258
272
333
Cooper Ingle
Guardians
OF
83
NR
NR
334
Michael Conforto
OF
84
NR
NR
335
Jack Leiter
Rangers
SP
98
NR
NR
336
Kody Clemens
Twins
2B
23
NR
251
337
Brandon Sproat
Brewers
SP
99
NR
277
338
Brayan Rocchio
Guardians
SS
32
NR
290
339
Mickey Moniak
Rockies
OF
85
236
224
340
Edwin Arroyo
Reds
2B
24
NR
NR
341
Shane Bieber
SP
100
247
250
342
Will Smith
Dodgers
C
13
201
255
343
Colt Emerson
Mariners
SS
33
NR
NR
344
Pete Fairbanks
RP
27
153
182
345
Robbie Ray
SP
101
NR
294
346
George Lombard Jr.
Yankees
SS
34
NR
NR
347
Emmet Sheehan
Dodgers
SP
102
211
244
348
Thomas White
Marlins
SP
103
NR
NR
349
Jose Caballero
Yankees
SS
35
294
264
350
J.P. Crawford
SS
36
NR
NR
351
Carmen Mlodzinski
Pirates
SP
104
NR
NR
352
Caleb Bonemer
White Sox
3B
24
NR
NR
353
Franklin Arias
Red Sox
SS
37
NR
NR
354
Angel Martinez
Guardians
OF
86
NR
NR
355
Luis Lara
Brewers
OF
87
NR
NR
356
Connor Prielipp
Twins
SP
105
NR
NR
357
Sean Manaea
Mets
SP
106
NR
252
358
Sterlin Thompson
Rockies
OF
88
NR
NR
359
Kenley Jansen
Tigers*
RP
28
146
171
360
Matt Wallner
Twins
OF
89
222
NR
361
Lazaro Montes
Mariners
OF
90
NR
NR
362
Anthony Santander
Blue Jays
OF
91
NR
NR
363
Ryan Mountcastle
Orioles*
1B
33
NR
NR
364
Ian Seymour
Rays
SP
107
NR
271
365
Connelly Early
Red Sox
SP
108
NR
NR
366
Foster Griffin
SP
109
NR
300
367
Endy Rodriguez
Pirates
C
14
NR
NR
368
Landen Roupp
Giants
SP
110
NR
NR
369
CJ Kayfus
Guardians
OF
92
NR
NR
370
Liam Hicks
Marlins
C
15
NR
NR
371
Tyler O’Neill
Orioles
OF
93
241
NR
372
Jake McCarthy
Rockies
OF
94
267
260
373
Heriberto Hernandez
Marlins
OF
95
NR
NR
374
Kyle Teel
White Sox
C
16
NR
NR
375
Brooks Lee
Twins
SS
38
NR
NR
376
Jonah Tong
Mets
SP
111
NR
NR
377
Marcus Semien
Mets
2B
25
260
NR
378
Dylan Beavers
Orioles
OF
96
NR
NR
379
Chase Meidroth
White Sox
2B
26
NR
NR
380
Ramon Laureano
OF
97
228
NR
381
Spencer Miles
Blue Jays
SP
112
NR
NR
382
Mike Sirota
Dodgers
OF
98
NR
NR
383
Salvador Perez
Royals
C
17
101
270
384
Luke Raley
Mariners
OF
99
NR
NR
385
Ronny Mauricio
Mets
SS
39
NR
NR
386
Michael Wacha
Royals
SP
113
NR
291
387
Mick Abel
Twins
SP
114
NR
NR
388
Jake Bennett
Red Sox
SP
115
NR
NR
389
Jacob Gonzalez
Pirates
SS
40
NR
NR
390
Griffin Jax
Rays
SP
116
110
NR
391
Francisco Alvarez
Mets
C
18
NR
NR
392
Davis Martin
White Sox
SP
117
NR
292
393
Evan Phillips
RP
29
NR
NR
394
Spencer Horwitz
Pirates
1B
34
NR
NR
395
Aidan Miller
Phillies
SS
41
NR
NR
396
Spencer Jones
Yankees
OF
100
NR
NR
397
Christian Moore
Angels
2B
27
NR
NR
398
Michael Soroka
Diamondbacks*
SP
118
NR
NR
399
Jeff McNeil
Athletics*
2B
28
274
279
400
Jett Williams
Brewers
3B
25
NR
NR
401
Blaze Alexander
Orioles
2B
29
NR
NR
402
Kyle Manzardo
Guardians
1B
35
288
295
403
Tristan Peters
White Sox
OF
101
NR
NR
404
Ryan Jeffers
C
19
NR
NR
405
Noah Cameron
Royals
SP
119
296
NR
406
Jorge Soler
OF
102
244
258
407
James Tibbs III
Dodgers
1B
36
NR
NR
408
Zac Veen
Rockies
OF
103
NR
NR
409
Yainer Diaz
Astros
C
20
233
NR
410
Anthony Eyanson
Red Sox
SP
120
NR
NR
411
Zack Gelof
Athletics
2B
30
NR
268
412
Dalton Rushing
Dodgers
C
21
NR
NR
413
Marcelo Mayer
Red Sox
SS
42
NR
NR
414
Jameson Taillon
SP
121
225
NR
415
Colton Cowser
Orioles
OF
104
280
NR
416
Romy Gonzalez
Red Sox
2B
31
NR
285
417
Luis Severino
Athletics*
SP
122
NR
NR
418
Jason Adam
RP
30
NR
NR
419
Josh Lowe
Angels
OF
105
185
NR
420
Angel Genao
Guardians
SS
43
NR
NR
421
Alan Roden
Twins
OF
106
NR
NR
422
Moises Ballesteros
Cubs
DH
8
NR
NR
423
Jonathan India
2B
32
269
NR
424
Clayton Beeter
Nationals
RP
31
300
299
425
Carlos Correa
Astros
SS
44
275
NR
426
Kumar Rocker
Rangers
SP
123
NR
NR
427
Ryan McMahon
Yankees
3B
26
NR
NR
428
Ben Joyce
Angels
RP
32
NR
NR
429
Aaron Ashby
Brewers
RP
33
NR
NR
430
Andrew Fischer
Brewers
3B
27
NR
NR
431
Ronny Henriquez
Marlins
RP
34
NR
NR
432
Nolan Arenado
Diamondbacks
3B
28
295
NR
433
Cole Ragans
Royals
SP
124
72
NR
434
Cam Cauley
Rangers
OF
107
NR
NR
435
Bryan Abreu
RP
35
188
NR
436
Gage Wood
Phillies
SP
125
NR
NR
437
Lourdes Gurriel Jr.
Diamondbacks*
OF
108
NR
NR
438
Andrew Painter
Phillies
SP
126
NR
NR
439
Yoendrys Gomez
Twins
RP
36
NR
NR
440
Shane Drohan
Brewers
SP
127
NR
NR
441
Brady House
Nationals
3B
29
NR
NR
442
Emmanuel Rodriguez
Twins
OF
109
NR
NR
443
Luis Castillo
Mariners
SP
128
272
NR
444
Edgardo Henriquez
Dodgers
RP
37
NR
NR
445
Braylon Doughty
Guardians
SP
129
NR
NR
446
JR Ritchie
Braves
SP
130
NR
NR
447
Enrique Bradfield Jr.
Orioles
OF
110
NR
NR
448
Jeff Hoffman
Blue Jays
RP
38
100
NR
449
Jack Flaherty
SP
131
NR
NR
450
Blaze Jordan
Cardinals
3B
30
NR
275
For notes here, I'm just going to go position by position, listing the top players at each spot.
- Basallo is the big mover here, joining the second tier of catchers after hitting 16 homers in the first half of the season. I imagine most would argue that Goodman belongs in the first tier at this point, but his strikeout rate is all of the way up to 32 percent this year, and I'm still a little skeptical of him going forward.
- Ramírez is obviously a big wild card. He's not exactly tearing it up in hitting .250/.328/.436 in Triple-A, and he has no future behind the plate in Miami with Joe Mack establishing himself and Liam Hicks sure to stick around. Still, he's the one guy here with 20/20 ability, and he'll most likely have catcher eligibility next year.
- Will Smith was next on the list after Jensen, but with Dalton Rushing nipping at his heels and no DH time available in Los Angeles, I'm somewhat concerned about what's in store for him.
First base
6 - Nick Kurtz - Athletics 13 - Vladimir Guerrero Jr. - Blue Jays 22 - Pete Alonso - Orioles 31 - Bryce Harper - Phillies 40 - Matt Olson - Braves 45 - Freddie Freeman - Dodgers 58 - Ben Rice - Yankees 80 - Alec Burleson - Cardinals 99 - Rafael Devers - Giants 100 - Munetaka Murakami - White Sox 104 - Josh Naylor - Mariners 107 - Yandy Diaz - Rays 108 - Willson Contreras - Red Sox
- Probably no big surprises here. Rice belongs higher based on this year's results, but I don't like how his bat speed has decreased and his strikeout rate has increased this season. I'm still not sure exactly how to value Murakami. He obviously has 40-homer power, but even his current .232 average might be difficult for him to maintain, and his lack of singles and doubles will take a toll on his RBI totals.
- Cleveland's Ralphy Velasquez, who at age 21 has hit .293/.386/.490 between Double- and Triple-A this year, is the high first base prospect at No. 288. He lacks big-time power, and Progressive Field won't help there, but it shouldn't be long before he overtakes Kyle Manzardo and CJ Kayfus in Cleveland's plans and it's not like the team figures to invest at first base/DH in free agency.
Second base
16 - Fernando Tatis Jr. - Padres 32 - Brice Turang - Brewers 35 - Ketel Marte - Diamondbacks 48 - JJ Wetherholt - Cardinals 62 - Jazz Chisholm Jr. - FA 84 - Xavier Edwards - Marlins 119 - Luke Keaschall - Twins 122 - Nico Hoerner - Cubs 126 - Travis Bazzana - Guardians 141 - Tommy Edman - Dodgers 144 - Jackson Holliday - Orioles 157 - Jose Altuve - Astros 161 - Sam Antonacci - White Sox
- Chisholm's free agency is going to be pretty fascinating. The Cubs and Hoerner set the market with a surprisingly lucrative six-year, $141 million extension in March that'll cover his age 30-35 seasons. Chisholm will enter free agency at 29. If he matched his 2025 production this season, he might have beaten Hoerner's deal. As is, he's hitting just .223/.303/.395 to date, and Statcast thinks he's actually been a little lucky, giving him a .207 xBA and a .361 xSLG. At this point, it doesn't seem very likely that he'll be back with the Yankees. However, if he does land with a worst offensive team, at least he'll most likely hit higher than fifth and sixth, which is what he's been doing in New York.
- Pedro Ramírez comes in at No. 315, but he'd be considerably higher on a team with a clear opening for him. That's not currently the Cubs, but maybe he'll wind up in the outfield with Seiya Suzuki and Ian Happ entering free agency. I suspect his bat will play better than Matt Shaw's will, even if Shaw is clearly ahead of him in line right now.
Third base
5 - Junior Caminero - Rays 19 - Jose Ramirez - Guardians 30 - Sal Stewart - Reds 85 - Austin Riley - Braves 89 - Manny Machado - Padres 94 - Miguel Vargas - White Sox 112 - Maikel Garcia - Royals 162 - Alex Bregman - Cubs 165 - Isaac Paredes - Astros 167 - Jordan Westburg - Orioles 173 - Alec Bohm - FA 175 - Kazuma Okamoto - Blue Jays
- It's difficult to get excited about anyone beyond the top three here. Vargas's breakout seems pretty legitimate, though because he's still having his usual BABIP issues (.243 this season, .236 career), it's led to just a .245 average. Okamoto has easily been a top-10 third baseman this year, but he's already struck out 118 times. He's batting .239 at the moment, and Statcast gives him a .219 xBA.
- Kyle Karros has been a fast riser in recent weeks, and he's 14th at the position at No. 215 and climbing. There should be more help on the way, too. The Athletics' Joshua Kuroda-Grauer might be the player that Jacob Wilson resembled in the first half of last year. The White Sox are going to have a Caleb Bonemer problem early next year, and it's going to be fascinating to see how the Brewers incorporate Jesús Made, Jett Williams and Andrew Fischer into their lineup after already making a big bet on Cooper Pratt at shortstop.
Shortstop
1 - Bobby Witt Jr. - Royals 10 - Elly De La Cruz - Reds 18 - Gunnar Henderson - Orioles 25 - CJ Abrams - Nationals 27 - Zach Neto - Angels 37 - Francisco Lindor - Mets 41 - Trea Turner - Phillies 61 - Jeremy Peña - Astros 64 - Kevin McGonigle - Tigers 81 - Bo Bichette - Mets* 87 - Konnor Griffin - Pirates 95 - Corey Seager - Rangers 96 - Mookie Betts - Dodgers 131 - Geraldo Perdomo - Diamondbacks
- Witt seems like the safest pick as the No. 1 overall player for next year. That the Royals pulled in the fences at Kauffman Stadium to create more homers has yet to work to his advantage, but it still should in the long run; Statcast gives Kaufmann a 111 home run park factor for right-handed hitters this year, compared to 91 for 2023-25. Witt has 35 barrels this season and the best hard-hit rate of his career. The offense around him can't possibly be this bad again next year.
- Griffin should win out in 2028 and beyond, but for 2027, McGonigle is probably the better bet at shortstop. His 56/60 K/BB at age 21 is incredibly impressive, and while his bat speed is below average right now, he's probably going to add to it in the next couple of years. He might never hit 30 homers or steal 30 bases, but he'll help everywhere.
- Minnesota's Kaelen Culpepper is the high prospect here at No. 240, in large part because he's the best bet of the prospects to start on Opening Day. Following him are the Athletics' Leo De Vries at No. 260, Made at No. 299, George Lombard Jr. at No. 346 and Franklin Arias at No. 353. De Vries probably has the most upside for 2027; he's stolen 31 bases in 36 tries in Double-A this year, and the A's play in a fantastic park for hitters.
Outfield
2 - Aaron Judge - Yankees 4 - James Wood - Nationals 7 - Yordan Alvarez - Astros 8 - Juan Soto - Mets 9 - Ronald Acuña Jr. - Braves 11 - Julio Rodríguez - Mariners 15 - Jackson Chourio - Brewers 20 - Corbin Carroll - Diamondbacks 21 - Kyle Tucker - Dodgers 24 - Pete Crow-Armstrong - Cubs 34 - Michael Harris II - Braves 36 - Oneil Cruz - Pirates 42 - Jordan Walker - Cardinals 51 - Roman Anthony - Red Sox 53 - Cody Bellinger - Yankees 55 - Riley Greene - Tigers 68 - Tyler Soderstrom - Athletics 71 - Andy Pages - Dodgers 73 - Wyatt Langford - Rangers 75 - Jarren Duran - Red Sox 76 - Dylan Crews - Nationals 82 - Mike Trout - Angels 83 - Seiya Suzuki - FA 92 - Byron Buxton - Twins 98 - Jackson Merrill - Padres 102 - Bryan Reynolds - Pirates 103 - Kyle Stowers - Marlins 115 - Daylen Lile - Nationals 120 - Luis Robert Jr. - Mets* 125 - Brandon Nimmo - Rangers 134 - Carson Benge - Mets 135 - Jo Adell - Angels 137 - Jac Caglianone - Royals 140 - Randy Arozarena - FA 147 - Charlie Condon - Rockies 148 - Cam Smith - Astros
- I initially had Anthony a fair amount lower after two seasons interrupted by injuries sustained while swinging the bat... that definitely has me a little nervous. But he's just so incredibly talented, and I just don't care much about his performance in the 30 games before he was hurt this season. For what it's worth, Statcast gave him a .262 xBA and a .410 xSLG that are much better than his actual marks of .229 and .321.
- It hasn't shown up in the numbers, but Crews has lowered his strikeout rate and improved his exit velocity numbers a bit since returning from exile. He's another guy that Statcast believes deserves much better; he has a .343 slugging but a .433 xSLG. He's not showing superstar potential, but he can be a top-20 fantasy outfielder without playing like an All-Star.
- With Coors Field factoring in, Condon is the high prospect among outfielders and position players overall. Next up on the outfield list are the Cardinals' Joshua Báez at No. 202, the Dodgers' Josue De Paula at No. 207 and the Reds' Héctor Rodriguez at No. 267. Rodriguez isn't as strong of a prospect as some other guys, including Walker Jenkins and Max Clark below him, but he has 23 homers in Triple-A this year and the Reds seem poised to have outfield openings.
- The Rockies have seven outfielders list here. I'm assuming they'll trade at least one of Mickey Moniak and Jake McCarthy before the deadline, which is why they're lower than they'd otherwise be. I think they really ought to trade both to make room for Condon and free up an opportunity for Sterlin Thompson or Zac Veen. Thompson has never posted great EV numbers, but he has excellent bat speed and an impressive 38/42 K/BB in 234 plate appearances in Triple-A. Veen has always been far more interesting as a fantasy prospect than as an actual one, but he's been decent in Triple-A with a 40 percent hard-hit rate that's helped lead to a .311/.385/.578 line in a hitter friendly environment. It's also too soon to write off Jordan Beck, and 2024 second-rounder Jared Thomas could be a factor before the end of next year.
- I don't think there's anything too controversial at the top here. Misiorowski might get the top spot next spring if he avoids injury in the second half, but Skubal still seems like the safer choice right now.
- Kade Anderson is the high prospect, with future Mariners teammate Ryan Sloan second on the list at No. 179. Both would be higher if the other didn't exist, since the Mariners probably won't have room for more than one at the start of next year. Even opening just one spot in Seattle's rotation means two from the current group would have to vanish. Luis Castillo is the obvious first option to go, but it wouldn't be surprising to see the Mariners trade Kirby or Miller. That's part of why those two are lower in the rankings than I would typically have them.
- Like the Mariners, the Dodgers have eight starting pitchers listed here. That makes me wonder if I'm being too aggressive in putting River Ryan at No. 150, but I truly love his potential if he can stay healthy. I'm not very optimistic about either Roki Sasaki (No. 298) or Emmet Sheehan (No. 347) at this point, but in such a great situation for pitchers, I couldn't entirely ignore either. Sheehan, in particular, probably belongs in the bullpen because of his inability to maintain his velocity into the middle innings of games.
- Atlanta's situation is going to be interesting if everyone shows up healthy next spring. Sale, Schwellenbach and Spencer Strider would seemingly be guaranteed spots. Veterans Reynaldo López, Bryce Elder and Grant Holmes will all be due back, with youngsters JR Ritchie, AJ Smith-Shawver, Owen Murphy and Hurston Waldrep fighting them for spots. Realistically, though, they'd probably want to add a legitimate No. 2 or 3 to that mix. I did include Ritchie at the bottom of the list, but Smith-Shawver and Murphy were left off because it's such a big crowd.
Relief pitching
39 - Mason Miller - Padres 49 - Jhoan Duran - Phillies 56 - Cade Smith - Guardians 59 - Josh Hader - Astros 70 - Aroldis Chapman - Red Sox* 79 - Andrés Muñoz - Mariners 97 - Louis Varland - Blue Jays 106 - Devin Williams - Mets 109 - David Bednar - FA 114 - Edwin Díaz - Dodgers 130 - Félix Bautista - Orioles 133 - Raisel Iglesias - FA 160 - Trevor Megill - Brewers 170 - Daniel Palencia - Cubs 191 - Robert Suarez - Braves 201 - Ryan Helsley - Orioles* 206 - Grant Taylor - White Sox 211 - Jacob Latz - Rangers
- There still aren't a ton of sure things here, and one imagines there will be a whole lot of movement this winter. Jason Adam, Adrian Morejon, Bryan Abreu, Evan Phillips, Alex Vesia and A.J. Puk are among the free agent setup men who could get signed to close. The Brewers might choose to part with either Megill or Abner Uribe in trade. The Giants' Randy Rodríguez, the D-backs' Justin Martínez and the Marlins' Ronny Henriquez could all return from arm surgeries to reemerge as closer candidates. Just a lot of fun possibilities.
- It'd also be a mistake to rule out the Guardians trading Smith in the offseason, though it's probably more likely to happen at next year's deadline or after 2027. He'll only be eligible for arbitration for the first time, so he won't be terribly expensive yet. Still, he'd net quite a haul, and the Guardians might figure they could do without him. With that in mind, I almost included Daniel Espino on the list. It's still very difficult to expect him to stay healthy, but he's touching 100 mph, and since he'll be out of options, he'll have to stick in the Cleveland pen next year.
- Taylor might be a top-100 guy on draft day if he finishes out this year as the White Sox's closer. I'd rather see him get another look as a starter, though. He'd probably rank around No. 250 if that happens.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts attends a news conference ahead of the MLB All-Star Game in Philadelphia on Monday. (Matt Slocum / Associated Press)
If the Dodgers picked up Tarik Skubal, would that be overkill?
Logan Webb, the longtime ace of the San Francisco Giants, laughed.
“I don’t think they need him,” Webb said, “but you never count those guys out on getting anybody in the league.”
The Dodgers could make a mockery of the National League West by trading for Skubal, who won the last two American League Cy Young awards for the Detroit Tigers.
Then again, you could argue the Dodgers already are making a mockery of the NL West. They lead the division by 11½ games, more than double the lead in any other division.
So, on the day before the All-Star Game, I posed the overkill question to stars from the other teams in the NL West.
“Would I consider it overkill? It’s a crazy game,” said outfielder Corbin Carroll of the Arizona Diamondbacks, the team that swept the Dodgers over the weekend at Dodger Stadium.
“I don’t think, going into the weekend, that too many people would have expected that. The nature of this game is about you can never be good enough, and you always have to look to keep improving. I think I would just view it in that same light.”
The Dodgers are not about winning the NL West this season. From owner Mark Walter to president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman, from manager Dave Roberts to franchise icon Shohei Ohtani, the Dodgers last fall loudly and proudly declared their intent to three-peat and become the first NL team ever to win three consecutive World Series championships.
Their postseason rotation could be so overloaded that All-Star Justin Wrobleski, whose 2.69 ERA compares favorably to NL All-Star starter Cristopher Sanchez (2.62), could find himself in the bullpen behind starters Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Ohtani, Blake Snell and Tyler Glasnow.
On the other hand, Ohtani missed his last start for treatment of a troublesome left knee, and neither Snell nor Glasnow has pitched since May. The Dodgers might not be entirely sure of projecting their October health and effectiveness by the Aug. 3 trade deadline, and the chance to three-peat might never come again.
The Dodgers have the prospects and the money to acquire Skubal, should the Tigers trade him. The Dodgers may or may not have the need, but they surely have the motivation.
“I wouldn’t blame them,” Colorado Rockies catcher Hunter Goodman said. “They’re trying to win another World Series.”
Said San Diego Padres closer Mason Miller: “He’d help any team he went to. They’ve got a strong rotation, a lot of guys that are going to get healthy and help them out, but I don’t necessarily consider it overkill. Anybody, on any given night.”
If the Dodgers acquired Skubal, the fans of those rival NL West teams would explode in frustration, perhaps even in rage, at the back-to-back champions. Ohtani for $700 million, Kyle Tucker for $60 million per year, and now the rich kids would get Skubal, too?
The owners are trying to channel that level of fan frustration and anger in their push for a salary cap. They say they’re trying to help teams like, say, the Rockies and Pittsburgh Pirates compete more effectively against the Dodgers.
The Pirates have not posted a winning record in eight years and have not appeared in the playoffs for 11 years. Surely a salary cap would help them, right?
“I don’t think there’s any need for a salary cap,” Pirates ace Paul Skenes said. “I don’t know if there’s a perfect answer, but I do know the salary cap would not be a fix-all for parity.”
Parity is in the eye of the beholder, or more accurately in the definition of the beholder. The owners like to note that no small-market team has won the World Series since the Kansas City Royals in 2015.
However, in a league that owners insist demands immediate reform, 23 of the 30 teams are within four games of a playoff spot.
As one of eight players on the executive committee of the players’ union, Skenes is involved in the current collective bargaining negotiations. Salary cap or not, would it be overkill if the Dodgers picked up Skubal?
“They’re trying to win, aren’t they?” Skenes said. “You can’t ever blame a team for going out and doing everything possible to win.”
PHILADELPHIA - Luis Arraez is fully prepared to get dealt by the time the Aug. 3 trade deadline comes around. But he'd also like potential suitors to know any deal involving him comes with an expectation: He's now a second baseman, and doesn't expect that to change after joining a new team.
Arraez, the three-time batting champion who's been the lone bright spot on a 41-55 San Francisco Giants team, has remade himself into a Gold Glove-caliber second baseman under the tutelage of infield guru Ron Washington, enhancing his value significantly as he once again tests the free agent market this winter.
He's once again elite with the bat, hitting .330, but now he's no longer dinged for being a first baseman or designated hitter with little power. And Arraez would prefer to maintain his rediscovered identity at second.
"It's going to be second base," Arraez said when asked about potential destinations and scenarios. "I don’t like to go back to first base. I prepared my mind, I prepared my body only to play second base."
It's easy to see why, and perhaps acquiring teams will understand it as well. Arraez has already accrued 3.0 WAR in this slightly more than half season, more than his prevous two seasons, when he banged out 381 hits for Miami and San Diego yet amassed just 2.6 WAR.
Why? Most of that damage came as he played himself off second and was relegated to first or DH. He was traded from Miami to San Diego in 2024, and the Padres reached the playoffs both seasons.
He and the Giants had high hopes for a similar outcome in 2025, but the first year under manager Tony Vitello has gone awry in several fashions. The Giants finished the symbolic first half winning three of four against Colorado, but it would take a July miracle for them to avoid being sellers come trade deadline time.
"This past week, we’ve played good baseball as an organization. But I just need to stay focused and I don’t want to think about a trade," says Arraez. "It’s tough, especially mentally. When you feel like a family and you’ve got Willy (Adames), Raffy (Devers), Heliot (Ramos), Logan (Webb) – those guys seem like family. They open the door for me.
"It’s hard to leave, you know? But it’s a business."
As he and his new team may soon find out next month.
Jul 14, 2025; Atlanta, GA, USA; Seattle Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh (29) holds the trophy after winning the 2025 Home Run Derby at Truist Park. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-Imagn Images | Brett Davis-Imagn Images
The 2026 MLB Home Run Derby will take place on Monday night, with eight players set to compete for the title. There will be a new champion this year, as Seattle catcher Cal Raleigh, who has had a disappointing, injury-riddled season, will not defend his title. Among this year’s participants, the only former winner is the Phillies’ Bryce Harper, who won while with the Nationals at his home park in 2018.
The derby takes place at 7 p.m. CT on Netflix, with the order of players and format listed below.
Batting Order
Willson Contreras, Red Sox (20 HRs) — Pitched to by Red Sox interim bench coach José David Flores
Jordan Walker, Cardinals (22 HRs) — Pitched to by Cardinals bullpen catcher Kleininger Teran
Jac Caglianone, Royals (15 HRs) — Pitched to by dad, Jeff Caglianone
Munetaka Murakami, White Sox (20 HRs) — Pitched to by White Sox coach Luis Sierra
Ben Rice, Yankees (29 HRs) — Pitched to by dad, Dan Rice
Junior Caminero, Rays (28 HRs) — Pitched to by Rays major league field coordinator Tomas Francisco
Kyle Schwarber, Phillies (32 HRs) — Pitched to by Phillies assistant hitting coach Rafael Pena
Bryce Harper, Phillies (20 HRs) — Pitched to by Dodgers third base coach Dino Ebel
Since 2015, the Derby has been constrained by a timed clock. That has been eliminated in 2026.
Instead of trying to hit as many homers as possible during timed rounds, each of the eight Derby participants will start each round with a finite number of swings: 20 in Round 1, 15 in Round 2, and 15 again in the final round.
All swings count against a player’s swing allotment, whether it results in a homer or not. However, a player who homers on his final swing of a round can keep swinging until he doesn’t hit one out.
The players with the top four home run totals from the first round will advance to the semifinals, where they’ll be seeded based on their first-round homer totals. They will face off head-to-head (No. 1 vs. No. 4 and No. 2 vs. No. 3) to determine the two finalists.
Any ties in the first round will be broken by home run distance, with the player who hit the longest homer among the tied participants advancing. In the semifinals and finals, ties will be broken by three-swing swing-offs until a winner is determined.
As the lone player representing the Mets at the All-Star break this year, Juan Soto had no competition when it came to media availability and answered a myriad of questions ranging from who he’s most looking forward to seeing over the course of the event to why New York struggled so mightily during the first half of the season despite such high expectations.
To be clear, the Mets’ tumultuous season to date has nothing to do with Soto’s production as he has been the team’s MVP and was deservedly named an All-Star for the first time as a Met despite missing time early in the season with a calf injury.
An All-Star once again after missing out last season, Soto is excited to be back alongside the game’s best and to see players and even old teammates that he can talk to simply as friends as well as to pick their brains to get better himself.
“It feels great to be a part of another All-Star [team],” he said. “It’s always great to see so many good players, so many guys that have been putting in the work to be who they are right now. It’s really cool to see.”
With the spectacle taking place in Philadelphia at Citizens Bank Park, Soto is getting a chance to rekindle his relationship with former teammates with the Washington Nationals in Bryce Harper and Kyle Schwarber, now current Phillies.
The outfielder had nothing but good things to say about each of them, even if they are rivals of the Mets.
“I haven’t shared a locker room with [Harper] in a long time and Schwarber, all those guys,” Soto said. “I feel like we have such a great talent in that clubhouse, like you would love to be around them. I’m gonna try to pick their minds and see where they’re at.”
With Harper and Schwarber both participating in Monday’s Home Run Derby as the hometown heroes, Soto stopped short of picking either of them to win it and instead went with last year’s runner-up and fellow Dominican Junior Caminero.
As for who Soto is most looking forward to speaking with over the next couple of days, that’s Yordan Alvarez who is representing the Houston Astros in the opponent’s dugout.
“I will find him,” Soto said.
Despite the levity and distraction of the event this week, the issue of the Mets’ disappointing first half came up and Soto discussed what’s gone wrong in New York this summer while also defending his teammates regardless of the team’s record and the standings.
May 21, 2026; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; New York Mets left fielder Juan Soto (22) and center fielder A.J. Ewing (9) and right fielder Carson Benge (3) celebrate after defeating the Washington Nationals at Nationals Park. / Brad Mills - Imagn Images
“I’ve been trying my best to win games, to help my team,” he said. “It’s definitely not easy, I know how hard my team is working and I appreciate that they come in day in and day out. They never stop, they keep grinding, they try to find a way every day so nothing else I can ask for.
“I’ve been doing my best and we haven’t gotten to the spot that we want to be so it feels like a little bit of failure so I gotta keep going, I gotta keep getting better and I gotta try harder.”
After limping into the All-Star break following getting swept by the Boston Red Sox at Citi Field, the Mets at least will have some time to clear their heads before getting back on the field in the second half in an attempt to finish strong.
Soto thinks the time off will do everybody some good.
“I feel like everybody needs a couple days off after a tough stretch,” he said. “To get the days off and kinda like start over I think is gonna be good for the guys.”
The biggest bright spots for New York has been the breakout of rookies Carson Benge and A.J. Ewing who have played alongside Soto in the outfield for the majority of the season. Benge, of course, broke camp with the team as the starting right fielder while Ewing was called up in early May to inject some energy into the team and they both have played extremely well.
Not only is their development a reason for the fans to keep watching, it’s been fun for Soto, still only 27 years old, to play with them and watch them continue to get better. And even though Soto has years of experience, he still is and feels young at heart.
“For me I’ve just been having fun,” Soto said. “I always call myself the forever rookie. I always try to handle myself the right way, but definitely enjoy the moment, don’t try to be hard on anybody.
“That’s one of the things that I take every time, the transition, guys looking over and looking for advice or anything. I’m always gonna be there for them, but at the end of the day I always feel like one of them, I always try to have fun.”
With the emergence of the two rookie outfielders giving the Mets an outfield that appears to be one they can trust for the long term, as well as a staff filled with rookie starting pitchers that have shown elite stuff, there’s reason to believe the team can quickly turn things around, if not this season than seasons to come.
In fact, Soto had a message to the fans who have endured a lot during this disappointing season.
“Keep believing. We’re gonna turn things around,” he said. “We have a lot of talent, we have a lot of players that can be elite so don’t give up on them, we’re gonna turn this back [around].”
Unsurprisingly, that list includes some of baseball’s best home run hitters this season. Schwarber leads MLB with 32 homers, while Rice is third with 29 and Caminero is tied for fourth with 28. Four of the remaining five have gone long at least 20 times.
Track all the regular-season home runs belted so far in 2026 by the eight players below. This graphic has their homers laid over Citizens Bank Park, providing a glimpse of how they might fare in the Derby itself:
Citizens Bank Park has seen 121 home runs across 46 Phillies home games in 2026. Statcast rates the park as the fifth friendliest for home runs in MLB by its home run park factor calculation.
Among this year’s participants, Harper won the Home Run Derby in 2018 as a member of the Washington Nationals. Caminero finished runner-up last year to Cal Raleigh of the Seattle Mariners, while Schwarber participated in the 2022 Derby, but lost to Albert Pujols in the first round.
This year’s Home Run Derby will consist of a three-round format. In the first round, players will have 20 swings to hit as many home runs as they can. The top four will advance to a head-to-head second round, and the two winners from that round will face off in the final. The semifinals and finals will have 15 swings, and players who homer on their final swing can continue until they don’t hit a homer.
Methodology note: Home run data from Baseball Savant. Home run locations are plotted over Citizens Bank Park using available Statcast hit-location data; homers without hit-location data are approximated using available distance data.
PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA - JULY 12: Dakota Jordan #23 of the San Francisco Giants on the National League Team runs during the 2026 MLB Futures Game at Citizens Bank Park on July 12, 2026 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images) | Getty Images
It’s the All-Star break for Minor League Baseball too, but not before a hectic and happening weekend for the San Francisco Giants affiliates. Here’s everything you need to know about the action on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.
All listed positions in the roundup are the position played in that particular game.
News
The biggest news over the weekend was, of course, the 2026 MLB Draft, which saw the Giants add 21 prospects (though they have some serious work to do to sign all 21). You can see all 21 selections here.
But there was more big news, as a trio of top prospects were promoted: center fielder Dakota Jordan (No. 5 CPL) and middle infielder Gavin Kilen (No. 7 CPL) were promoted from High-A Eugene to AA Richmond, while center fielder Bo Davidson (No. 4 CPL) was promoted from Richmond to AAA Sacramento. Huge and tremendously exciting news! Jordan and Kilen celebrated the news by playing in the Futures Game on Saturday, where they each got 1 at-bat. Jordan doubled in his, while Kilen went 0-1.
In other exciting news, Low-A San Jose shortstop Lorenzo Meola (No. 23 CPL) won Player of the Week honors in the California League. But in less happy news, the Giants released AAA Sacramento LHP Juan Sánchez (No. 41 CPL).
AAA Sacramento (49-41)
Friday: Sacramento River Cats lost to the Salt Lake bees 12-5 [box score] Saturday: Sacramento River Cats beat the Salt Lake Bees 9-2 [box score] Sunday: Sacramento River Cats lost to the Salt Lake Bees 11-8 [box score]
Well, the River Cats limped into the All-Star break … they did so with a winning record, but they’re not playing their best baseball at the moment. The highlight over the weekend came from a pair of rehab appearances from catcher Daniel Susac, who hit 4-8 with a 3-run home run, a double, a walk, and a stolen base. Quite a performance!
Contrary to popular belief, Susac didn’t actually hit very well in AAA with the A’s last year, as he finished with a 94 wRC+ and a 26.8% strikeout rate. But in 8 rehab games with the River Cats, spanning 2 injuries, he’s rocking a 247 wRC+ and just a 6.1% strikeout rate. Tony Vitello revealed on Sunday that Susac is expected to rejoin the Giants when they return from the break on Friday, and hopefully he can carry his AAA momentum into the Majors, as he was really slumping at the time of his injury.
The other standout offensive weekend belonged to center fielder/right fielder Turner Hill, who hit 7-14 with 2 doubles, 2 stolen bases, and 0 strikeouts. I thought there was a chance the Giants would promote Hill when Victor Bericoto (No. 35 CPL) injured his oblique, but they opted to call up Grant McCray straight from his rehab instead. That’s probably sensible given the proximity to the All-Star break and a desire to not clog up another 40-man spot, but still … hopefully Hill gets his chance in the Jared Oliva/Jonah Cox role some day. The undrafted free agent will never be a blue chip prospect, and he is 27 already, but he also has an .886 OPS and a 135 wRC+ in 67 AAA games this year, with a minuscule 8.2% strikeout rate and 18 stolen bases in 20 attempts. He doesn’t hit the ball hard, but his contact skills are phenomenal: he’s 96th percentile in in-zone contact rate and 97th percentile in whiff rate.
HILL STAYS HOT 🔥
Turner kicks today's game off with an RBI double to get the Cats on the board pic.twitter.com/xXP2WVjABo
Solid weekends for second baseman Nate Furman (No. 39 CPL) and first baseman Jake Holton. Furman went 4-14 with a double, a walk, 2 stolen bases, and a strikeout, while Holton hit 4-11 with a 2-run home run, a double, a walk, and a sacrifice fly. Furman has a .765 OPS and a 106 wRC+, while Holton now has a .708 OPS and a 95 wRC+. They are both in their AAA debut seasons.
HOLTON HOME RUN ‼️
Jake Holton homers in the 6th to cut our deficit by 2 runs
It wasn’t a good weekend on the mound. The only good start came on Saturday, when LHP Matt Wilkinson pitched 4 solid frames, allowing just 1 hit (a single), 2 walks, and 1 unearned run, while striking out 4. It was Tugboat’s 5th start since getting promoted, and there’s been a lot of good (3.93 ERA, 10.3 strikeouts per 9) and some bad (4.88 FIP, 4.2 walks per 9). Personally, I’d like to see him ride out the year in AAA to get as much development as possible, but given that the Giants are likely to trade a handful of pitchers at the deadline — and seeing as how Wilkinson will be Rule 5 eligible this winter — I think we’ll probably see him in the Majors in the second half of the season.
Following Tugboat was LHP Joe Whitman (No. 26 CPL) who made his 3rd appearance since moving to Sacramento’s bullpen, and gave up 1 hit and 1 run in 1.2 innings, with 1 strikeout. It’s still not entirely clear why the Giants moved Whitman to the bullpen, but it certainly can’t be that they gave up on him as a starter (he’s a significantly better option than some of Sacramento’s rotation pieces right now, and was having a quality season). It could be that they’re gearing him up for an MLB debut (like Wilkinson, he’ll be Rule 5 eligible), but my guess is they’re just giving him a little mid-season break so he doesn’t get worn out, as he’s been quite a workhorse this year. Hopefully he’s back in the rotation soon.
The other starters were bad. On Friday, LHP Seth Lonsway allowed 8 baserunners (including 3 home runs) and 8 runs in 2.2 innings, raising his ERA to 6.75 and his FIP to 6.37. On Sunday they went for an opener, using recently-claimed RHP Eric Cerantola, who made his 2nd appearance with the organization. Cerantola faced 6 batters and walked 5 of them so … yeah.
RHP Ryan Walker also made his Sacramento return after getting optioned and it didn’t go well, as he gave up a home run, 3 walks, and 2 runs in an inning of work. Gotta think his spot on the 40-man roster is getting a little bit toasty.
Nice performances for RHP Marques Johnson and LHP Juan Sánchez (No. 41 CPL), though. Johnson pitched twice and struck out 5 batters in 2.2 shutout innings, with 2 hits and 1 walk, while Sánchez threw 2 scoreless frames with 2 hits and 3 strikeouts … and then was promptly released.
AA Richmond (53-32)
Friday: Richmond Flying Squirrels lost to the Altoona Curve 5-4 [box score] Saturday: Richmond Flying Squirrels lost to the Altoona Curve 5-1 [box score] Sunday: Richmond Flying Squirrels beat the Altoona Curve 5-3 [box score]
Center fielder Bo Davidson (No. 4 CPL) is leaving Richmond, and he’s doing so with a bang. The lefty’s final weekend as a Squirrel was yet another dynamic one, as he hit 6-15 with a solo home run, 3 doubles, and 3 strikeouts. It has been one dynamic game after another for Davidson ever since the calendar flipped to June … since the start of that month, he’s hit a staggering 43-138 with 13 home runs, 6 doubles, 16 walks, and 38 strikeouts.
Davidson, who turned 24 last week, departs AA with an .861 OPS, a 122 wRC+, and 14 stolen bases in 16 attempts. Given San Francisco’s outfield issues this year, and considering his upcoming Rule 5 eligibility (where he’ll be a slam dunk protection barring falling on his face in AAA), there’s certainly a path for the undrafted free agent to make an MLB debut this year. The sky is the limit for Davidson, who still has some swing-and-miss and pitch recognition issues to work out, but who really has every tool in the box. Can’t wait to watch him in AAA!
Richmond’s other star hitter is not joining Davidson in AAA — yet — but probably isn’t too far behind, and he had a decent weekend as well. That would, of course, be third baseman Parks Harber (No. 17 CPL), who hit 4-14 with a double, a walk, a stolen base, and 2 strikeouts. After a June swoon, Harber has rebounded brilliantly: in his last 14 games, the 24-year old slugger is 19-57 with 4 home runs, 5 doubles, 4 walks, and 11 strikeouts, bringing him up to an .879 OPS and a 131 wRC+.
— Richmond Flying Squirrels (@GoSquirrels) July 12, 2026
Nice weekends for right fielder/center fielder Jean Carlos Sio (No. 44 CPL), shortstop Maui Ahuna (No. 33 CPL), and second baseman/left fielder Diego Velasquez (No. 31 CPL). Sio hit 3-12 with a home run, a double, and 2 strikeouts, giving the lefty a .775 OPS and a 97 wRC+ since getting promoted; Ahuna went 4-9 with a double, 2 walks, a hit by pitch, a strikeout, and a caught stealing, boosting the lefty’s OPS to .661 and his wRC+ to 71; and Velasquez hit 6-11 with a double, a walk, a stolen base, and 3 strikeouts, raising the switch-hitter’s OPS to .795 and his wRC+ to 117. Velasquez, who also has 18 stolen bases, played in the outfield for the first time in his career on Sunday. He’s been on absolute fire lately, hitting 17-37 with 4 extra-base hits, 6 walks, and just 5 strikeouts over his last 12 games.
— Richmond Flying Squirrels (@GoSquirrels) July 12, 2026
LHPs Charlie McDaniel and Tyler Switalksi, who are quite new to AA and in an adjustment period, struggled in their respective starts on Friday and Saturday, but RHP Trystan Vrieling had another strong outing on Sunday, pitching 6 quality innings with just 1 hit allowed (a single), 2 walks, and 1 run. Vrieling, who struck out 4, struggled a bit to find the strike zone, as just 49 of his 85 pitches were strikes. But being hard to hit is an important skill, and one Vrieling has excelled at lately: in his last 3 starts, the 2022 3rd-rounder has given up just 9 hits (and 3 runs) in 17 innings.
Strikeouts and walks remain a bit of an issue for the 25-year old, who has a 4.04 ERA and a 5.43 FIP … he has just 8.1 strikeouts per 9 innings and 6.1 walks. But great to see him starting to put some of the pieces of the puzzle together.
Yet another dominant relief outing from RHP Christian Alvarado, who struck out a pair of batters in a perfect inning to end the first half of the season for Richmond. Alvarado’s numbers are almost unfathomably good since the Giants signed him to play affiliated ball for the first time in 7 years: in 6 appearances and 6 innings, he’s given up just 2 hits, 1 walk, and 0 runs, while striking out 13. The only question is how long the Giants will want to see him do this before testing him in AAA.
RHP Will Bednar (No. 24 CPL) has had a disappointing season, but Friday was a good game, as he threw 2 no-hit, no-run innings with 1 walk and 1 hit batter, while striking out 3. The former 1st-rounder’s strikeouts are down quite a bit this year as he repeats AA, from 14.9 to 11.7 per 9 innings, while his walks (6.4 per 9) remain an issue. He has a 4.24 ERA and a 4.53 FIP and, more critically, his fastball velocity isn’t what it was a year ago.
Also a great relief outing from RHP Ryan Vanderhei, who struck out 4 batters in 2 shutout innings, with a walk and a hit allowed. The 2023 10th-round pick has a 4.38 ERA and a 4.64 FIP in 10 relief appearances since getting promoted.
If you think that Davidson had a nice going away party with Richmond, just wait until you see what center fielder Dakota Jordan (No. 5 CPL) did with Eugene! Jordan played his final High-A game on Friday, before departing for the Futures Game on Saturday, and then heading to Richmond after the break.
And how did he do in that final game? Thanks for asking! Just a casual 4-5 with 3 home runs and a double. If that’s not a “get me out of here I’m too good for this level” performance than I truly don’t know what is!
Dakota Jordan homered THREE times tonight for the Eugene Emeralds 👀
While questions about his swing-and-miss issue remain — he has a 27.6% strikeout rate and a 16.1% swinging strike rate on the year — it does seem time for Jordan to square off against better competition, as he had an .879 OPS and a 129 wRC+, while leading the Northwest League with 18 home runs. Jordan departs the Pacific Northwest on a serious heater: in his final 14 games with the Emeralds, he hit a jaw-dropping 23-55 with 9 home runs, 6 doubles, 2 walks, and, critically, just 7 strikeouts. His power has been at a whole new level lately, and it’s going to be so much fun watching him in the Eastern League.
A pair of Jordan’s teammates also had multiple home runs: right fielder Lisbel Diaz (No. 32 CPL) and first baseman Jakob Christian (No. 40 CPL). Diaz hit 3-12 with 2 home runs, 1 double, and 4 strikeouts, while Christian went 4-8 with a pair of dingers and a quartet of punchouts.
You’re not seeing double, Lisbel Diaz did it again!
Diaz has been on a heater lately, with 8 home runs in his last 13 games (3 of them came while moonlighting in San Jose when he couldn’t travel with Eugene to Canada). Still, as I’ve written about a few times, Diaz’s season has been funny … despite his 17 home runs trailing only Davidson and Jordan in the farm system, the right-handed Cuban — who turns 21 in a few days — has just a .788 OPS and a 101 wRC+ with Eugene, which is partially the result of having a lowly 3.6% walk rate. Still and all, if you’re a young prospect who is going to hit at a league average clip, I’d much rather it be due to home runs than due to walks, especially since Diaz has just a 17.0% strikeout rate.
Speaking of strikeouts, Christian’s season remains a funny one, as he really only seems to do 3 things: strike out, draw walks, and get extra-base knocks. The 23-year old lefty, taken in the 5th round in 2023, has 199 plate appearances this year, and has struck out 68 times (34.2% rate), walked 23 times (11.6% rate), and registered 21 extra-base hits (.220 isolated slugging). The result is an .827 OPS and a 121 wRC+, but needless to say, the strikeouts need to come down for him to have any chance of success against better pitchers.
And finally, good weekends for the middle infielders, as shortstop Jhonny Level (No. 3 CPL) hit 5-12 with 2 doubles, 2 walks, a stolen base, and a strikeout, pushing his High-A OPS to .798 and his wRC+ to 113, while second baseman Zander Darby went 3-11 with a home run, a double, 2 walks, and 6 strikeouts, moving his OPS to .744 and his wRC+ to exactly 100. Another infielder joined the home run party, as third baseman Walker Martin smashed a 3-run shot, but also hit just 2-12 with 7 strikeouts and his 20th error of the season.
Friday featured a great pitching performance, as RHP Niko Mazza showed out in his final start of the half, tossing 7 innings while allowing just 2 hits (including 1 home run), 1 walk, and 1 run, and striking out 6. What a showing!
Mazza, taken in the 8th round in 2024, has developed a hilarious reputation for ERA/FIP splits. In his debut last year, in Low-A, he sported a glorious 2.22 ERA with a 4.36 FIP. He’s back at it this year, as this start lowered his ERA to 2.50 … but with a 4.12 FIP. That FIP is high primarily because of his 5.1 walks per 9 innings, so very nice to see him issue just one free pass in 7 frames, while throwing 55 of 82 pitches for strikes. Just excellence all around. Mazza is also up to 10.6 strikeouts per 9 innings, after sitting at just 8.7 a year ago. Perhaps most impressive, however, is that he’s allowed only 44 hits in 72 innings.
As is probably evident from those stats, Mazza has some pretty exciting stuff, he just hasn’t fully harnessed it. He ended the half in style though: over his final 6 starts of the first half, the 24-year old pitched 32.1 innings and allowed just 19 hits, 10 walks, and 6 earned runs, with 35 strikeouts. Excited to see what he does in the second half.
LHP Luis De La Torre (No. 14 CPL) started on Sunday and had a game emblematic of his season: he struck out a whopping 9 batters in 5.1 innings while only allowing 3 hits, but also walked 4 and gave up 2 home runs and 4 total runs. That’s been the season for him: he’s only allowed 48 hits in 69.2 innings, and has struck out 93 … but 8 of those 48 hits have been home runs, and he’s issued a stunning 55 walks, leading to a 5.17 ERA and a 5.07 FIP. The magic is there … it just needs to be harnessed.
Not a very memorable weekend for the relievers, though RHP Cole Hillier struck out 3 in 1.1 scoreless frames, while giving up just 1 hit. A good bounceback performance after getting rocked in his previous outing.
Low-A San Jose (53-34)
Friday: San Jose Giants lost to the Visalia Rawhide 12-5 [box score] Saturday: San Jose Giants lost to the Visalia Rawhide 2-1 [box score] Sunday: San Jose Giants beat the Visalia Rawhide 12-5 [box score]
The Baby Giants saw their 10-game winning streak come to an end with a pair of losses, but bounced back to enter the break with a win. As has been the case for much of the year, San Jose showcased the long ball, with 4 different players leaving the yard. We’ll talk about that quartet, and then move to the pitchers.
Shortstop Lorenzo Meola (No. 23 CPL) hit 4-10 with a home run, a double, 4 walks, a hit by pitch, and 2 stolen bases, with 2 strikeouts. Last year’s 4th-round pick is up to a .787 OPS and a 96 wRC+, and seems to be relishing being the everyday shortstop with Level promoted (though we’ll see how long that lasts, given who is coming up behind him). He’s still striking out too much, but he’s showing good power, drawing a lot of walks, playing great defense, and has 11 stolen bases on the year.
First baseman Jerimiah Jenkins continued his power year, hitting just 3-13, but bopping both a home run and a double with a walk, albeit with 5 strikeouts. The 2024 14th-round pick has a .912 OPS, a 122 wRC+, and a .270 isolated slugging, a mark that ranks 4th out of the 90 Cal League hitters with at least 150 plate appearances this year. That’s pretty damn impressive, though the 30.8% strikeout rate remains quite concerning.
Corner outfielder Oliver Tejada, who was only recently promoted to A-ball, hit 6-12 with a 3-run home run, a double, a walk, a stolen base, and 5 strikeouts. The 19-year old has a .793 OPS and a 91 wRC+ through 10 games at the level, though he also has a 36.4% strikeout rate.
And finally, catcher Daniel Rogers went 3-9 with a home run, a double, a strikeout, and a caught stealing. After a fairly brutal 11-game stretch with High-A Eugene, Rogers has posted a .857 OPS and a 132 wRC+ in 13 games with San Jose.
Not a very exciting weekend on the mound. The best outing belonged to Saturday’s starter, LHP Ricardo Estrada, who pitched 6 strong innings while allowing just 2 hits, 1 walk, 1 hit batter, 2 runs, and 1 earned run, with 3 strikeouts. Estrada, a 24-year old, has a 3.92 ERA and a 5.64 FIP on the season, with fairly uninspiring strikeout and walk numbers. He’s been so much better since moving to the rotation, though, and in his last 7 games has pitched 37.1 innings and allowed just 23 hits, 12 walks, and 8 earned runs, with 32 strikeouts.
RHP Samir Chires, a 22-year old, made his 2nd appearance since getting promoted, and allowed just a hit in 2.2 shutout innings, though he didn’t strike anyone out. The Venezuelan has been excellent in a tiny sample since his promotion. Sadly the same can’t be said for RHP Johan Rodriguez, who made his Low-A debut on Sunday and faced 5 batters … and walked 4 of them (though he struck out the 5th).
Arizona Complex League (29-21)
Friday: ACL Giants lost to the ACL Angels 4-2 [box score] Saturday: ACL Giants beat the ACL Rockies 13-9 [box score]
The big news in the ACL was that Low-A RHP Argenis Cayama (No. 13 CPL) made a rehab appearance. Cayama, who suffered a non-arm injury in late May, kicked off his rehab assignment on Friday with 1 inning of work, giving up 2 hits, a hit bitter, and a run, while striking out 2. Hopefully he’s back in San Jose’s rotation shortly after the All-Star break.
A pair of pitchers continued their rehab on Saturday, with High-A LHP Hayden Wynja allowing 2 hits and a walk in 1.2 scoreless innings, with 2 strikeouts, while AA RHP Logan Martin pitched 1.1 innings and allowed 2 hits and 1 run, with 3 strikeouts.
The best pitching performance belonged to RHP Melvin Pineda, who struck out all 3 batters he faced, while throwing 10 of 14 pitches for strikes. Pineda has some of the most extreme strikeout numbers (complimentary) and walk numbers (derogatory) that you’ll ever see. Across the ACL and Low-A, he’s faced 156 batters and only 59 of them have put the ball in play, as he’s issued a terrifying 28 walks and hit 7 batters, but struck out a staggering 62 … exactly 2 per inning. That number is even higher in the ACL, where the 22-year old has 18.9 strikeouts per 9 innings, albeit with 7.3 walks. If he can just stay in the strike zone…
RHP Kendry Castro, a 19-year old from the DR, made his stateside debut following the very rare international in-season promotion. It was a mixed-bag game, as he struck out 3 batters in 2 scoreless innings, with just 1 hit allowed, but he did walk 3 batters. Welcome to the states, Kendry!
Happy to report a nice weekend for designated hitter Rayner Arias (No. 38 CPL), who hit 2-7 with a 3-run home run, 2 hit by pitches, and 2 strikeouts. It’s been another very brutal season for the former top-10 prospect, who has just a .611 OPS and a 59 wRC+, with a lowly .176 batting average and a 31.7% strikeout rate. He still has so much talent, though, so hopefully he can put it all together.
First baseman Carlos Concepcion and catcher Santiago Camacho had fantastic Saturdays. Concepcion, a 20-year old from the DR, hit 3-4 with a home run and a walk, though he went 0-4 with a strikeout and an error on Friday. Camacho, a 19-year old from Venezuela, only played Saturday, and went 3-5 with a 2-run homer. Both players are hitting well below league average (.652 OPS, 57 wRC+ for Concepcion; .771 OPS, 86 wRC+ for Camacho), though the latter is showing some interesting flashes.
Dominican Summer League Black (15-14)
Friday: DSL Giants Black lost to the DSL Blue Jays Red 6-5 [box score] Saturday: DSL Giants Black lost to the DSL Mets Orange 10-6 [box score]
A pair of hitters and a pair of pitchers to highlight. In the batter’s box, it was shortstop Keiberg Camacaro who had the best weekend, hitting 2-6 with a double, a walk, 2 hit by pitches, 2 stolen bases, and 2 strikeouts. The 19-year old right-handed hitter, who has had an inconsistent career, is having far and away his best season in his 4th pass through the DSL, posting a .990 OPS and a 144 wRC+, while lowering his strikeout rate to 14.4% (that’s more than 10 percentage points better than last year, and less than half of what it was his debut season). After stealing 22 bases in 112 games in his 1st 3 years, Camacaro already has swiped 15 bags this year, in just 17 attempts. The other nice day belonged to first baseman/catcher Alessandro Duran, who hit 2-3 with a double and a walk on Friday, though he didn’t play Saturday. It’s been a tough 4th season for the 21-year old, so nice to see him play well.
The pitching stars were RHPs Rainiel Duran and Brayan Cabello, a pair of 22-year olds. Duran struck out 3 batters in 2 shutout innings with a hit allowed, lowering his ERA to 6.08 and his FIP to 6.32 in his 2nd season. Cabello allowed a hit in 1.2 scoreless frames, with 3 strikeouts, dipping his ERA to 1.64 and his FIP to 4.25 in his 5th DSL campaign.
Dominican Summer League Orange (19-11)
Friday: DSL Giants Orange beat the DSL Red Sox Red 6-5 (7 innings) [box score] Saturday: DSL Giants Orange beat the DSL Pirates Black 7-1 (7 innings) [box score]
The star in the batter’s box was first baseman Albert Jimenez, who hit 2-5 with a 3-run home run, 3 walks, and a strikeout. A right-handed hitter from the Dominican Republic, Jimenez has made huge strides this year, jumping to a 1.091 OPS and a 151 wRC+ in his 3rd DSL season, while striking out just 13.6% of the time. His 8 home runs this year are 1 off the lead in the DSL, a league that has seen nearly 900 players take at-bats. That’s impressive!
RHP Jhon Leon, a 22-year old, gave up a hit, a walk, and an unearned run in 1.2 innings, while recording all 5 outs by way of strikes. He has 21 strikeouts in 14.2 innings in his 3rd DSL season, but a lot of hits and walks have given him a 6.75 ERA and a 4.11 FIP. RHP Alexis Gallego, arguably the team’s top signing this year after Luis Hernández (No. 6 CPL) made his professional debut on Saturday, and the 17-year old from Mexico struck out 4 batters in 2 innings, while allowing 1 hit, 1 walk, 1 hit batter, and 1 unearned run. Welcome to the pros, Alexis!
Home run tracker
19 — Bo Davidson — [AA] 18 — Dakota Jordan x3 — [High-A] 17 — Lisbel Diaz x2 — [14 in High-A; 3 in Low-A] 13 — Jean Carlos Sio — [8 in AA; 4 in High-A; 1 in ACL] 13 — Jeremiah Jenkins — [Low-A] 11 — Walker Martin — [High-A] 9 — Lorenzo Meola — [Low-A] 8 — Jakob Christian x2 — [High-A] 8 — Albert Jimenez — [DSL] 7 — Zander Darby — [High-A] 6 — Jake Holton — [AAA] 4 — Daniel Rogers — [Low-A] 4 — Carlos Concepcion — [ACL] 3 — Daniel Susac — [AAA] 3 — Oliver Tejada — [2 in Low-A; 1 in ACL] 2 — Rayner Arias — [ACL] 2 — Santiago Camacho — [ACL]
Nate Isler was born in Charlottesville, Virginia but the family settled down in Milton, Georgia and the right-hander grew up there. He attended Cambridge High School and playing against fellow 2026 Mets draftee and fellow right-handed pitcher Luke McNeillie during Milton High School versus Cambridge High School rivalry games. A three-year letterwinner, he one-upped McNeillie, winning Region Pitcher of the Year in their shared senior year. There was very little buzz about his draft status over the course of his high school career, as his stuff generally was mediocre, but even if there had been, Isler may not have gone pro out of high school. The son of a Dartmouth alumnus, and an alumnus who played for the school’s baseball team, Isler was given a scholarship to play ball at the elite New Hampshire institution, where he would be coached by Bob Whalen, the long-time team head coach who coached his father back in the mid-90s.
Isler’s freshman year was nothing to write home about. Appearing in 12 games, making 5 starts, he posted a 13.50 ERA in 20.2 innings, allowing 51 hits, walking 8, and striking out 24. Following the conclusion of the season, he supplemented his pitching load by playing with the Vermont Mountaineers of the New England Collegiate Baseball League, posting similar results in roughly the same amount of innings. His sophomore year was more of the same, though coach Whalen inserted Isler into the pitching rotation as the team’s Sunday starter. Starting 10 games, the right-hander posted a 6.67 ERA in 55.1 innings, allowing 70 hits, walking 20, and striking out 36. Once again, following the end of the Dartmouth baseball season, Isler supplemented his innings by playing in the New England Collegiate Baseball League, this time with the Upper Valley Nighthawks.
In 2026, interim head coach Blake McFadden continued using Isler as a starting pitcher, shifting him to Saturdays. The “ace” of the staff, the right-hander posted a 4.98 ERA in 65.0 innings over 11 starts, allowing 68 hits, walking 25, and striking out 80. After the season ended, Isler participated in the precious Cape Cod Baseball League, playing for the Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox.
Isler came to the Dartmouth campus a tall, lanky 6’5”, 215-pound teenager with broad shoulders and long limbs and he filled in, growing into a 6’6”, 235-pound hurler. His fastball improved from a high-80s offering that topped out at 91 MPH to a low-90s offering that reportedly topped out at 96 MPH. More than velocity, Isler had success with the pitch thanks to a high spin rate that gives the ball some run and above-average induced vertical break. His above-average extension helps the ball bore in on hitters virtually even more, and his high release point makes the ball more difficult for batters to pick up on.
He complements his fastball with a low-to-mid-80s slider and a changeup. The slider is the better of the two, his changeup still a lot of work to go; the slider has tight, two-plane gyroscopic break with minimal horizontal break and a great deal of vertical break, magnified by his high release point. His changeup, on the other hand, has more horizontal fade than it does drop, and giving the pitch more vertical tumble will be key to its progression as a pitch, and perhaps Isler’s progression as a pitcher.
The right-hander pounds the zone and lives in the strike zone, for good or for bad. He keeps walks to a minimum, but batters in the Ivy League had no waiting on fat pitches to hit, batting .321/.384/.482 against him over the course of his three-year career there and .265/.340/.358 in 2026. The downward trajectory that all of his pitches possess has helped him run a 40.5% groundball rate for his career and a 45% rate in 2026 and limit home runs, but Isler will need to refine and improve his pitches and potentially add to his pitch mix to have success against professionals.
Zack Konstantinovsky of the Rutgers Scarlet Knights delivers a pitch during an NCAA baseball game at Bainton Field in Piscataway, United States, on March 27, 2026. (Photo by Dan Squicciarini/NurPhoto via Getty Images) | NurPhoto via Getty Images
A second player has been selected to the MLB in the 2026 draft class, as the Washington Nationals have selected Rutgers RHP Zack Konstantinovsky in the 14th round of the MLB draft. He joins Peyton Bonds, who was drafted in the third round by the Giants, as the two Rutgers players selected in the MLB draft. He was drafted with the 406th overall pick.
Konstantinovsky spent the last three seasons on the Scarlet Knights’ roster, playing sparingly in 2024 as a true freshman before missing all of 2025 with an injury. He saw much more playing time in 2026, surrendering 80 hits in 70.2 innings pitched with 83 strikeouts and 21 walks. Over those innings, he had an runs against averaged of 5.48.
His 83 strikeouts are the 6th most in a season in program history.
Konstantinovsky’s best game last season came against Western Carolina, where he recorded seven scoreless innings pitched, giving up just one hit and recording 6 strikeouts.
While no Rutgers players have ever been drafted by the Nationals before Konstantinovsky, five Knights were drafted by the organization when they were still the Montreal Expos. These five include RHP Jason Bergmann, shortstop Tim Sweeney, LHP Darrin Winston, infielder Ted Ciesla and outfielder Darrin Kotch.
This is the fifth straight year that Rutgers baseball has had at least two players drafted in the MLB draft. Konstantinovsky is the 13th player to be drafted to the MLB during head coach Steve Owen’s tenure, being the sixth former Rutgers pitcher to have their name called over that time.
The Rangers and Braden Schneider avoided arbitration by agreeing to a one-year, $5.5 million contract.
Braden Schneider and the Rangers avoided arbitration Monday, with the sides agreeing to one-year deal worth $5.5 million, according to The Post’s Mollie Walker.
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Schneider, who was the Blueshirts’ first-round pick in 2020 and who has been involved in trade rumors dating to last season, became a restricted free agent — after receiving the qualifying offer — when his two-year, $4.4 million deal expired and was set for an arbitration hearing July 29, according to multiple reports.
He’ll be a restricted free agent next summer, too.
This whole process didn’t lead to any long-term clarity between Schneider, who collected two goals and 18 points while skating in all 82 games last year, and the Blueshirts.
The rumors won’t fade, especially if he’s on the roster at the start of the season and the Rangers struggle again ahead of the trade deadline.
The Rangers and Braden Schneider avoided arbitration by agreeing to a one-year, $5.5 million contract. Getty Images
But, to this point, it also hasn’t led to a new team, either — and the defenseman, who has skated in at least 80 games since the 2022-23 season while encountering growing pains and struggles along the way, said at the end of last season that he’d love to remain with the Rangers.
“We think Braden is a really good young talented defenseman,” president and general manager Chris Drury told reporters July 2. “We drafted him, developed him, we like the skill set and what he does for us. I know he, along with us, are just trying to do everything we can to be better and help him be better, but he’s an exciting player and a terrific all-around, high-character person in our organization.”
They also overhauled their blue line once July 1 arrived, with right-handed defenseman Sean Durzi part of the return package in the Vincent Trocheck-Mammoth trade and Marcus Pettersson — able to fill the second pairing on the left side behind Vladislav Gavrikov — joining the Blueshirts’ top four after getting acquired from Vancouver in exchange for a top 10 protected first-round pick in 2030.
Will Borgen was also traded to the Bruins in exchange for a pair of draft picks.
Eight of the game’s top sluggers will swing for the fences on Monday night, all hoping to be crowned the 2026 champion.
The Phillies’ Kyle Schwarber and Bryce Harper are the headliners in this year’s derby at their home ballpark. Schwarber has never won the derby but Harper did back in 2018, his last year in Washington, at Nationals Park. This is the two-time MVP’s first appearance since.
The other hitters in the field are Ben Rice (Yankees), Junior Caminero (Rays), Jordan Walker (Cardinals), Wilson Contreras (Red Sox), Munetaka Murakami (White Sox) and Jac Caglianone (Royals).
Hometown hero Kyle Schwarber leads MLB in home runs at the All-Star break, but failed to homer on his first five swings. He found a groove and ended up with 10, hitting some absolute bombs at the ballpark he calls home.
Last year's runner-up, the 23-year-old Caminero lost out to Cal Raleigh in Atlanta in 2025. He hit 12 in his first round tonight, one short of the leaders but has likely booked himself a spot in the next round.
Ben Rice was the fifth batter up in the Home Run Derby and posted the lowest total of anybody so far, finishing his round with seven homers and a longest of 443 feet.
The Yankees slugger enters the All-Star Break with 29 home runs, third in MLB behind Kyle Schwarber and Yordan Alvarez.
Royals slugger Jac Caglianone follows Walker and Contreras, swinging for the short porch in right field at Citizens Bank Park. He ended his round with eight home runs and a longest of 477.
Boston's Willson Contreras was the first hitter of the night, crushing seven homers on his first 10 swings.
Contreras ended his round with 13 home runs on his allotted 20 swings, setting the bar high incredibly high for the rest of the field. His longest home run of the round was 490 feet.
This year's Home Run Derby will feature several format changes, most notably the removal of the timer. Instead, each of the eight participants will be allotted a set number of swings, with every swing counting. Hitters will get 20 swings in the first round and 15 swings in both the semifinals and finals. If a player homers on the final swing of any round, they can continue hitting until a swing does not result in a home run. — John Leuzzi
The Seattle Mariners slugger who hit 38 home runs before the All-Star break – the second-most in MLB history – dispatched the Tampa Bay Rays’ 22-year-old Junior Caminero in the final, and is the first catcher to win the Home Run Derby.
With his dad pitching and younger brother catching, Raleigh became the second Mariner to be crowned Derby champion, joining Hall of Famer Ken Griffey Jr., who won it three times. — Jesse Yomtov
Judging by most statistics, Yankees right-hander Cam Schlittler has been the best pitcher in the American League this season. The 25-year-old leads the league in ERA (2.05), pitching WAR (4.1) and WHIP (0.944), and he’s second in innings pitched with 118.2.
And while Schlittler is in Philadelphia for this week’s All-Star Game festivities, he will not pitch during the game, a decision he came to recently to focus on the second half of the season.
Toronto right-hander Dylan Cease will start for the American League instead, with that announcement coming prior to Schlittler making his own decision.
“I think the plan from a month ago or so was to throw, especially if I was able to start,” Schlittler said during his media availability on Monday. “I felt confident with how I felt in Tampa after my start, felt confident in my recovery coming into Washington.
“I threw and I kind of sat there like it’s a long season, I’ve thrown a lot of innings so far, we’ve had a few injuries (to the rotation) already, and just didn’t want to risk the chance of feeling a little bit dragged after if I were to go out there on two days rest and try to throw 100 miles per hour.
“So, again just trying to put myself and the team first. We’ve got bigger aspirations for the season.”
The Yankees are currently 3.0 games back of the Tampa Bay Rays in the AL East, but they own the first Wild Card spot and appear to be in a pretty comfortable position to make the postseason, especially given how the American League has struggled overall (The 48-49 Seattle Mariners currently hold the third and final playoff spot).
So Schlittler will take in all the All-Star Game festivities from the sidelines, but the moment is certainly not lost on him.
“I think it will probably sink in tomorrow during the game, or maybe just after, just realizing how fortunate I am to be in this position,” he said.
“I think the biggest thing is just meeting all of the guys,” he later added. “I’ve only been up here for a year now and the best players in the league are here, so it will be really good to talk to them, pick their brains and see what I can learn and just enjoy it and watch the fun happen.”
Schlittler’s rise to the top of the American League has been meteoric. He started last season in Double-A and pitched just five games at the Triple-A level before getting the call to the majors.
Now he’s among the best in the game, and he’s not looking back.
“[The Yankees] gave me an opportunity,” Schlittler said, “and I just kind of ran with it.”
At its core, the Home Run Derby is a vibes event. Eight large men try to hit a baseball extremely far, we “ooooh and ahhhh” at the majestic dingers. You do not need Statcast to enjoy it. That said, the past few years there has been an alternative Statcast broadcast to focus on bat speed, launch angle, barrel rates and so much more. So, I decided to fill the void and create a Statcast preview of tonight’s long ball festivities in Philadelphia.
Cubs fans in particular have some old friends to cheer for tonight. Kyle Schwarber will look to avenge his 2018 Home Run Derby appearance when Bryce Harper (also in tonight’s field) just edged him out on some, shall we say questionable batting practice pitches given the timing rules. Schwarber already has an MLB leading 32 home runs on the 2026 campaign and this will be his third Home Run Derby appearance. He’ll be up against another 2016 Cubs hero, Willson Contreras. Contreras is having one of the best offensive seasons of his career in Boston slashing .285/.379/.542 with 20 home runs so far in the 2026 campaign.
But today I want to dig a little deeper than hometown legends and slash lines to see who has the edge in a stacked Derby field that will see Schwarber and Contreras joined by the Rays Junior Caminero (second appearance), Harper (third appearance), the Cardinals Jordan Walker (first appearance), the White Sox’ Munetaka Murakami (first appearance), the Royals Jac Caglianone (first appearance) and the Yankees Ben Rice (first appearance). It does seem worth caveating that Murakami stands out among the first-timers with 246 career home runs in NPB before joining the White Sox this season. But that’s besides the point, there will be bombs in Philadelphia tonight and Statcast can tell us a bit about who has the edge in different categories.
The bat-speed monsters
Junior Caminero owns the field’s top average bat speed, with Jordan Walker sitting right behind him. You can see how the field stacks up in terms of average bat speed below:
Player
Competitve Swings
% Competitive Swings
Raw Contact #
Avg Bat Speed
MLB Bat Speed Rank
% Fast Swing
% Squared Up Contact
% Squared Up Swing
% Blast Contact
% Blast Swing
Caminero, Junior
594
91.10%
468
79.9
1
88.22%
30.98%
24.41%
25.64%
20.20%
Walker, Jordan
652
90.30%
470
79.2
2
86.04%
30.21%
21.78%
23.19%
16.72%
Caglianone, Jac
607
90.33%
433
77.3
7
75.12%
30.02%
21.42%
23.33%
16.64%
Schwarber, Kyle
697
90.17%
483
77.1
9
75.61%
24.22%
16.79%
17.18%
11.91%
Contreras, Willson
615
90.31%
446
77.0
10
70.89%
26.23%
19.02%
17.26%
12.52%
Murakami, Munetaka
421
90.15%
247
75.2
26
55.34%
33.60%
19.71%
23.48%
13.78%
Harper, Bryce
725
90.29%
512
74.3
54
47.86%
30.27%
21.38%
17.19%
12.14%
Rice, Ben
595
90.56%
470
72.6
91
24.03%
36.60%
28.91%
19.15%
15.13%
Select bat speed and contact stats
Walker and Caminero are both in the 100th-percentile bat-speed leaguewide. Caglianone is right behind them at the 97th percentile with Schwarber and Contreras both in the 96th percentile. Bat speed isn’t everything, but in a competition aimed at hitting home runs, having a quick swing can certainly be a difference maker. It also probably helps on the endurance side of the derby to have experience swinging hard most of the time, which Caminero, Walker, Caglianone, Schwarber, Contreras and Murakami all do (although there is a big difference between taking a maximum swing 55.34% of the time vs. 88.22% of the time).
PLAKATA!
Then there is the question of how frequently these players hit a blast, or as Marquee Sports Network’s Carlos Peña might say, “PLAKATA!” Blast is Statcast’s metric for a ball where there was a fast swing and squared up contact:
During the 2024 season, 10% of competitive swings and 27% of batted balls across the Major Leagues qualified as blasts.
The value for hitters on blasts vs. non-blasts was about as large as you can get.
Blasts (i.e., squared-up contact with a high swing speed)
Obviously the Home Run Derby is batting practice, so there’s less pressure to hit, say, a Hunter Greene 100 MPH fastball as a blast. However, it does seem intuitive that having a higher blast rate in a game situation would likely translate to a better ability to hit blasts in a practice situation. I resorted the above table by % Blast by Swing and Caminero is still number one in MLB, followed by Walker at nine, Caglianone at 10, Rice at 25, Murakami at 39, Contreras at 57, Harper at 65 and Schwarber at 73.
A Barrel of Dingers
Blasts aren’t the only way to measure elite contact, though. Part of the Home Run Derby game is elevating the ball and squaring up contact. The way to measure that is Statcast’s barrel rate. As a reminder, barrels are defined by MLB as:
The Barrel classification is assigned to batted-ball events whose comparable hit types (in terms of exit velocity and launch angle) have led to a minimum .500 batting average and 1.500 slugging percentage since Statcast was implemented Major League wide in 2015.
But similar to how Quality Starts have generally yielded a mean ERA much lower than the baseline of 4.50, the average Barrel has produced a batting mark and a slugging percentage significantly higher than .500 and 1.500, respectively. During the 2016 regular season, balls assigned the Barreled classification had a batting average of .822 and a 2.386 slugging percentage.
To be Barreled, a batted ball requires an exit velocity of at least 98 mph. At that speed, balls struck with a launch angle between 26-30 degrees always garner Barreled classification. For every mph over 98, the range of launch angles expands.
Below you can see the Home Run Derby contestants sorted by barrel rate, including their MLB rank by barrel rate in the final column:
Player name
Attempts
Launch Angle
Max EV
Avg EV
Max Distance
Avg Distance
Avg HR Distance
Barrels
Barrel Rate
Barrel/PA
MLB Rank
Murakami, Munetaka
125
14
114.1
94.1
451
189
409
25
20.0
9.7
3
Schwarber, Kyle
207
21.8
113.2
93.4
460
210
404
40
19.3
9.7
5
Rice, Ben
248
14.2
110.9
92.1
433
184
389
38
15.3
9.7
21
Caglianone, Jac
218
7.3
116.1
93
444
164
414
32
14.7
9.2
26
Contreras, Willson
225
17.4
114.4
90.6
449
176
407
32
14.2
8.8
31
Walker, Jordan
262
11.5
116.6
94.2
459
173
406
37
14.1
9.4
32
Caminero, Junior
279
8.7
116.9
93.2
463
147
408
38
13.6
9.2
36
Harper, Bryce
266
11.6
113.5
90.1
457
171
400
30
11.3
7.4
66
Select Stats
By this metric, Murakami and Schwarber rise to the top of the field, with Rice, Caglianone, Contreras, Walker and Caminero all squarely in the 85th percentile and above in all of baseball. If the name of the game is hitting the ball hard, in the air, it would seem that Murakami and Schwarber may be the favorites to come out on top of a stacked field.
Wild Cards
That said, baseball is always going to baseball so I’m sure some elements of our expectations will be tested. The two biggest wild cards in this year’s Home Run Derby are the changes to the format and the pitchers throwing batting practice.
The format this year will not have a timer and players will get a finite number of swings, per MLB:
Eight players will still make up the field, same as in years past. But instead of trying to hit as many homers as they can during timed rounds, participants will start each round with a finite number of swings: 20 in Round 1, 15 in Round 2 and 15 again in the final round.
All swings will count against a player’s swing allotment, whether it results in a homer or not. However, a player who homers on his final swing of a round can keep swinging until he doesn’t hit one out.
The lack of a timer could alleviate some of the endurance issues that have haunted players who hit a large number of home runs early, or found themselves in a tie in the early rounds, only to fade later. It also means you have to be prepared to rake, right away.
Finally, one of the biggest variables in the Derby has always been having a pitcher who can throw you balls in your personal sweet spot over and over again. One of the reasons Pete Alonso was so excellent in his Home Run Derby appearances (aside from being built for the event and prodigious power) was Dave Jauss doing an excellent job throwing to him. You can hear Jauss talk about that below:
As Jay Jaffe at FanGraphs noted, having Jauss throw batting practice to the perfect human specimen for Derby multiple times was probably at least part of the reason for Alonso’s success in the Derby:
As I noted last year, the 6-foot-3, 245-pound Alonso seems built for this competition, stepping into the box looking loose and operating at maximum efficiency in an event where efficiency is underappreciated. Some credit for that is almost certainly owed to Mets bench coach Dave Jauss, his pitcher, who consistently puts the ball in his wheelhouse. Alonso always appears to understand exactly what he needs to do to win, whereas others step into the box thinking, “I’ll try Plan A, and if that doesn’t work, I’ll try Plan B…” by which point it’s too late, at least in this unforgiving draw. In both the semifinals and finals last year, Alonso needed far less than the allotted time to win.
Whatever transpires in Philadelphia tonight, I expect there will be a lot of joy and spectacle. Whether your turn of phrase as the ball sails over the fence is BOOMSTICK!, PLAKATA!, BOMBSKI!, or some other moniker, it should be an awesome show to remember tonight at Citizens Bank Park.
There will be a “game thread” here for the Home Run Derby. It will post at 6 p.m. CT and the event begins at 7 p.m. CT.