MLB Home Run Derby: Analysis, Favorite Seattle Moments
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is your 2023 MLB All-Star Home Run Derby champion!
After a four-year absence from the event, a win takes him to his first derby title Randy Arozarena in the final. Guerrero Jr. and his Hall of Famer father Vladimir Guerrero Sr., who won it 16 years ago, are the first father-son duo to become Home Run Derby champions.
A potential triple winner was also eliminated Pete Alonso booted in the first round after that Julio Rodriguez hit a whopping 41 home runs, the most in a single derby round ever. However, J-Rod failed to secure his hometown crowning in the Emerald City, losing to Guerrero in the second round.
We’ve got your one-stop shop for everything derby-related, from round results to our favorite moments from one of the most anticipated events of the summer.
round 1
#5 Randy Arozarena (24 home runs) defeated No. 4 Adolis Garcia (17 homers)
number 1 Luis Robert Jr. (28 home runs) defeated No. 8 Adley Rutschman (27 homers)
#3 Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (26 home runs) defeated No. 6 Mookie Betts (11 homers)
No. 2 Julio Rodriguez (41 home runs) defeated No. 7 Pete Alonso (21 homers)
round 2
Arozarena (35 homers) def. Robert (22 homers)
Guerrero (21 homers) def. Rodriguez (20 homers)
final
Guerrero (25 homers) def. Arozarena (23 homers)
Our favorite moments from Home Run Derby 2023
Jeff Passan: The crescendo slowly built up. Seattle’s favorite son Rodriguez, the boy who led the Seattle Mariners to the playoffs for the first time in 20 years, started his first-round matchup against two-time champion Pete Alonso with 14 home runs before his timeout. Then he stomped on, and the crowd grew louder and louder, blooming in full appreciation of what they were seeing. In the end, when Rodriguez hit 41 homers, the standing ovation was deafening. History was made and even if Rodriguez’s night ended in the next round, nobody cared. The J-Rod Show had delivered its best episode yet.
Jesse Rogers: J-Rod’s 41 homers in the first round were great, but to haverutschman pounding bombs from both sides of the plate is an all-time great moment. After smashing 21 from the left flank, he went right and shot six more over the fences. Switch-hitters are inherently cool, so to me, the switch-hitters on the record topped the evening.
Alden Gonzalez: This derby delivered from start to finish so I’ll stick with the end – 30 seconds to go, five homers to go, Arozarena, who loves the bright lights more than anyone else, lashes out with his lucky cowboy boots behind. The tension in the T-Mobile Park was palpable at this point. And to see how it ended and Guerrero did what his father did just 16 years ago was pretty sweet.
