Kuzul

David Ortiz became the first Boston Red Sox slugger to win the home run derby on Monday night, powering his way past Hanley Ramirez at Angel Stadium.

Ortiz put on a show for the fans from start to finish, and he outlasted his younger competition on his way to the silverware.

Read below to get a blow-by-blow account of the evening’s home run derby showdown.

10:45 p.m. Ortiz says the win means a lot to him to be able to put on a show for the fans. In a very classy touch, Big Papi dedicates his victory to Jose Lima who passed away last month. He lifts the grand silver trophy above his ahead and celebrates a very deserving victory.

10:40 p.m. David Ortiz is the champion here in Anaheim. He hit 32 home runs, including 11 in the final, and he seemed to pace himself perfectly throughout. He is the ninth Red Sox player to compete in the derby, and at his fourth time of asking, Big Papi has finally given Boston a Home Run Derby winner.

State Farm has donated $573,000 to the Boys and Girls Club of America.

10:38 p.m. With six outs and seven home runs needed to tie, Hanley gets a drink from his sons. Big Papi rushes over with a towel, dries the sweat off his head, and hugs his rival. It’s a great sight.

Eight outs, and it’s looking bleak for Hanley. He has to get hot real quick. He goes yard to centerfield for his fifth onto the green tarp to the side of the fans, but now he has one out left.

His final out is a groundout to left field, as Hanley’s charge falls short. Ortiz wins the showdown 11-5.

10:34 p.m. That’s four outs and one home run for Hanley. Big Papi is relaxing on the sideline as the Marlins slugger takes a timeout.

He’s back to the rocks with a 435-foot line drive bomb into the water feature, and he goes back-to-back with a shot to the left of the pile.

He hits his fourth just over, 410 feet, and he is warming up now.

10:31 p.m. Hanley’s off to a close start as he hits an out off the wall. He went the other way, but it’s still an out. His second out isn’t as deep, but he gets on the board with a bomb off the bullpen roof.

10:25 p.m. Ortiz is finally ahead of a pitch as he yanks it foul, but he stays back on the next one and makes a long out to centerfield.

Papi rests on his back foot as his fifth out comes halfway up the wall. A stat on ESPN says that the combined 87 home runs so far tonight have combined for 7.1 miles.

Papi sneaks one in behind the foul pole in right for his ninth dinger, but now there are seven outs. He hits No. 10 to right-center, but is inches away from his 11th as it narrowly misses the reach of fans once again.

The last time someone hit double-digit home runs was Bobby Abreu in 2005 (11).

Big Papi finishes with 11. That is the score to beat.

10:17 p.m. Ortiz will bat first here in the final. His first swing produces a home run over the tall part of the fence, but his second is a no doubter. His third is at the rail in the front row, too, but they all count.

“Wow,” is all Berman can say as the fourth goes halfway up the crowd in right, and after his first out he hits two more shots. It’s Papi Showtime as his seventh and eighth clear the fences, but he now has two outs and will towel off.

10:15 p.m. Here we are, down to the final two. Both men are tied on 21 home runs, so it is academic that the scores don’t carry forward. Whoever hits the most home runs in their next go will be the 2010 home run derby champion.

10:12 p.m. It’s unbelievable, yet somewhat predictable. Hart has nine straight outs without a single home run. He led the first round with 13, but nine swings later he is still on 13. That’s disappointing, and his 10th out is a fly ball that doesn’t even make the track.

He was awesome in the first round, but the bearded slugger falls flat after his break. Ortiz and Ramirez will battle it out for the crown.

10:09 p.m. Corey Hart rolls over his first two pitches, but he has been sat down for more than 90 minutes. That is his third out, and he isn’t close to going yard.

Make that four outs, as another ball trickles foul down the left field line. He finally gets under one, but he flies out to centerfield. Still no home runs. He needs eight, remember.

10:06 p.m. That’s seven outs for Hanley and he is still on 12. Will Hart even need to bat again

There goes his 13th, so that will make Hart pick up his lumber once more. Hanley goes 459 feet over the greenery to dead centerfield and the next one lands 476 feet away deeeeep into left field. At 465 feet, his 16th is almost as long.

His 17th goes 373 and barely crawls over the low wall down the left field line, but he has revitalized himself. Five straight home runs before that last out.

Here comes the gold ball, as Corey Hart waits on deck. His next home run is another over 450 feet, so now he has nine in each round. Make that 10. I wasn’t sure it was staying fair but it hooked round. 454 feet is the distance on his 20th, and Ramirez is hitting some long, clutch, blasts. 

He raises his arms as he ties Big Papi on 21, and he needs one more to book his place in the final. But he grounds out down the third base line. If Hart does not his eight home runs, both will advance. If Hart hits nine, then Ortiz and Ramirez will have a bat-off.

9:59 p.m. Ramirez makes a pair of early outs and he is still on nine home runs from his first round. That sweet stroke into the left field bullpen gives him double digits, and his next swing finds the rock pile 440 feet from home plate.

Chris Berman says the next ball is “pulverized”. At 468 feet, I am not going to argue. What a shot! Hanley has 12 in total with five out.

9:57 p.m. Hanley Ramirez is up now and he needs five to make Corey Hart bat again here in the second round.

9:53 p.m. Cabrera flies out to left field and that is it for the Tigers’ slugger. His two-round total of 12 falls one short of Corey Hart’s first-round total, so Miggy is done. But he certainly entertained the fans here tonight.

9:51 p.m. Cabrera watches as his third homer of the round clears the wall in right-centerfield. He goes the other way again for a foul ball home run—the first of the night, amazingly—and he fouls one into the stands in right for his third out.

This one is onto the rocks 429 feet to give him 11 in total, and he goes to the opposite field again, only to see it go foul. That is five outs now on Miggy.

Cabrera grooves a pitch into the rocks half way up the rock pile display, but he needs at least two more to give him a chance.

9:46 p.m. Cabrera is up next, needing at least seven to have a chance. He hits the first one out to move up to eight for the day.

9:45 p.m. I can’t count how many rows back his 18th is, but his 19th and 20th go between the stands in right field into the gap under the State Farm sign. It is so impressive from the big guy.

He hits one off the wall in right for his seventh out, and his eighth out follows as he gets on top of a picth a hits a line drive. His uppercut swing produces No. 21, and he hits one off the foot of the wall for his ninth out. His final out doesn’t make its way out of the infield, but 13 home runs in round two give him 21 in total, putting him in the lead.

That was some performance.

9:40 p.m. After a short break, we’re back live. Ortiz will bat first in the second round, starting with eight homers.

His first swing is a deep fly out to the wall, but his second goes eight rows deep, 433 feet. He goes to right-center-field for his 10th of the day, second of the round, but he goes straight to center for his 11th.

His 12th is off the State Farm farm down the line, and he gets his hands inside a ball to drive it 413 feet for his 13th. It just looked like a protective swing. The next one almost goes into the second tier 413 feet as he leans back, and he hits a rainbow to right field for 15. He still only has two outs.

Take a breath, because this is another blast, and he finally makes his third out as his back foot almost comes off the ground. He goes over 450 feet again as he sends one towards the scoreboard, and he is getting tired. Time for a drink.

9:32 p.m. Corey Hart had more home runs than all four of the eliminated sluggers combined. The home run totals carry over into the second round, so he’s in a great place to get into the final.

9:31 p.m. Cabrera now has eight outs, but that one goes 467 feet and Boomer says it almost hits a helicopter. It was an absolute shot to left, although his next swing goes for a long, loud out to the foot of the wall.

Cabrera gets under this one for the final out, but his seven home runs are enough to book his place.

9:27 p.m. Swisher is now out and either Holliday or Cabrera will join the trio of Hart, Ortiz, and Ramirez.

He makes two quick outs but gets on the board with a 404-foot homer to left-centre. No. 2 is over the bullpen in left a grand 464 feet, and he mashes one a mile over the shrubs in centre. They say 446 feet, but it looked much longer—it really was a bomb.

His fourth is 469 feet off his shoe laces that has Chris Berman in awe, and it looks like his BP pitcher is pitching around him now. He ties Holliday with his fifth blast and books his place in the semi final with a 476-foot shot into the water.

We have our final field set now, so it’s goodbye to Swisher, Wells, Young, and Holliday.

9:21 p.m. Miguel Cabrera is the last guy to go in the first round. Hart, Ortiz, and Ramirez are all through, and Cabrera will join them with six home runs.

Miggy fell three hom runs short of making the final round of the HRD in his only other previous attempt in 2006, so he will be looking to go one better four years later.

Cabrera has been raking in 2010 for the Tigers and he is currently on pace to shatter his previous career high of 37 home runs, set in 2008 in his first year in the American League.

He has cooled down somewhat since hitting eight home runs in the space of 10 games at the end of May and first week of June, but underestimate him at your peril. If form is anything to go by, Cabrera is the hot bat, and he has hit more home runs in Angel Stadium per games played there than all but two other ballparks in the Majors (Jacobs Field and Dodger Stadium).

9:17 p.m. Hanley gets under two balls, but his seventh is a moon shot over the ‘pen in left. Down to his final out, he cracks another one onto the greenery and a ninth 426 feet down the third base line. He finishes with a ground ball for an out, but his nine hoem runs puts him in second. He absolutely crushed the ball and deserves his spot in the next round.

9:14 p.m. Ramirez sends one out with his first swing, but three quick outs to left and left-center  slow him down. He hits his second 417 feet into the rock pile in left-centerfield, and his fourth lands 422 feet over the conifers and onto the tarp.

He hits a line drive blast 474 feet and then a fifth to left over the bullpen. That secures his place in the second round. His sixth is just over the wall to the left of the rocks, and he was inches away from a seventh that one hops the wall.

Six home runs and six outs for Hanley, who takes a drink.

9:10 p.m. Hanley Ramirez will be up next. He is the penultimate guy to bat in the first round and he is a fairly recent addition to the Home Run Derby list. His 13 homers  in 2010 are the fewest of any of today’s field of eight.

He has only ever hit 30 bombs in a season once in his first four full years in the Majors, although he obviously has some pop in his bat, even if he can be a little lazy dogging it after booted balls.

Hanley is clearly a stud, but just one extra-base hit in his last 11 games is ugly. I’m not saying he’s a singles hitter, but it is also telling that he is batting over .300 for the year but only has a .381 OBP clip.

There’s a reason not many people are picking him tonight. Follow their lead, because he’s not winning anything.

9:06 p.m. Ortiz launches one inside the pole 390 feet to right field, but he is off balance as he gets under one that lands just before the warning track. He hits his sixth bomb down the line and takes another break to adjust his gloves as Tony Pena catches a breath.

The next one is a loud moon shot 383 feet which I wasn’t sure would get out and it gives him seven homers and seven outs. He clears the State Farm sign in right for his eighth bomb and then calls for refreshments from the sidelines. He’s at eight and eight right now.

He grounds out down the first base line for his ninth out and it looks as if he’kll finish second so far. That is in fact it, and he will be moving on into round two.

9:03 p.m. Ortiz just gets enough of a ball to centerfield for his first home run, and he tuns on a ball to launch one 440 feet down the line in right. Pulling the ball as a left-hander is key. He hits his third 376 feet to right (which wouldn’t go to left-center), but he pops out to shallow right field for his second out.

He says goodbye for his fourth shot on a 378-feet blast, but he still needs two more to guarantee his place in the last four. Vernon Wells is already out and now joins Chris Young.

Papi is patient, but that is out No. 5.

8:58 p.m. Big Papi returns to the Home Run Derby for the fourth time, and the first since back-to-back-to-back appearances between 2004 and 2006.

Ortiz finished joint last with just three longballs in his HRD debut six years ago at Minute Maid Park, but he made a run through to the semifinals in ’05 in Detroit after running out of steam in the second round.

2006 wasn’t much better for Ortiz, as he failed to make the final round once again, losing out to eventual winner Ryan Howard and the Mets’ David Wright.

The Red Sox slugger had seen his production drop for three straight years after hitting 54 homers in ’06, but he looks to be back on track this season after a dreadful first month. The left-hander will have more success pulling the ball than a right-hander will, but it probably doesn’t bode too well that his slugging percentage in Angel Stadium (.415) is the worst out of any park he has played in more than six times.

8:56 p.m. David Ortiz needs six home runs to guarantee his place in the next round. Chris Young is already out and Vernon Wells will be eliminated if Papi goes deep three times.

8:54 p.m. Two quick outs for Holliday on a fly ball and roller, but he goes yard 434 feet to left field over the bullpen. He chops one foul for the third out, and makes three more quick outs to bring up six outs and still one home run.

He lines what would have been a double to left, and he pops one up down the right field line for the ninth out. He just clears the wall on a 412 foot blast, and that is followed by his second consecutive bomb to give him three…make that four on a 497-foot blast to the second tier. He moves into second place and passes Swisher with his fifth homer, but that’s all.

If you get a chance, check out the 497-foot blast off the second deck facing. It was absolutely crushed and it’s the longest tonight by 33 feet.

8:48 p.m. Matt Holliday can guarantee his spot in the second round with 13 or more right here.

The Cardinals outfielder has a ton of power, but he will have to harness it better than he did in 2007 when we squared off with Big Daddy Vlad and Co. in AT&T Park in San Francisco.

Holliday failed to make it to the finals—as did Pujols—and considering the duo of Guerrero and Alex Rios only combined for five home runs in the last round, it is likely that either one could have won it had they not crashed out earlier.

The left fielder has 16 home runs so far this season, showing the sort of raw power that made him a smash hit in Colorado as a promising young ballplayer in his mid 20s.

Holliday is a streaky power hitter. He hit three home runs in the first six games of the season, but he then only hit one more in his next 35 games. Similarly, after six homers up until June 16 (243 at-bats), Holliday then hit four home runs in 17 at-bats over a 10-RBI, five day tear.

The slugger is 8-28 with five dingers in the last week, so he’s definitely in the mood to go yard. He could explode tonight. He has 13 to chase.

8:44 p.m. Swisher fouls a ball to the backstop, rolling over the ball. He hits his first home run to right-center and pulls his second down the line inside the fould pole in right. There’s two outs on Swish, and then three as is rolls down the line.

There’s now five outs on the Yankees outfielder, but he hits his third longball 426 feet to right-center again. That’s as many as the first two combined. He goes 440 feet for his fourth home run, but rolls over another for his seventh out. He has two outs to go, but he will need some more, and that popup isn’t going to help.

He just misses his fifth home run to the deepest part of the park in front of the 400 foot sign in center, and he finishes with four, good enough for second at this point.

8:38 p.m. Nick Swisher will be up fourth with a tough act to follow.

The Yankees didn’t want Robinson Cano messing up his swing, but they had no trouble to ‘Send Swish’ to the derby. Yes, I know the Yanks said it was because of Cano’s back, but there will be some sceptics and conspiracy theorists out there.

Swisher’s 15 home runs put his season in line with his career averages, although he has really blossomed with a strong batting average in 2010. That won’t help him tonight where it is all about the longball.

It’s his first time at the All-Star game and his first appearance in the derby, so expect him to enjoy his time swinging for the fences. He’s always got a big smile on his face, and it’s no different now. He is only one home run behind Cano, who he is effectively replacing, and two behind Mark Teixeira in the Yankees lineup, so he deserves to be here. Let’s see what he’s got.

8:36 p.m. Two quick outs bring up eight outs, and he looks tired as he grounds one down to left field. 12 home runs and one out left…Make that 13 as he goes into the rock pool again. That’s it for Hart as he finishes with 13 and receives a standing ovation.

8:34 p.m. Hart takes three pitches but then lines into an out. His fifth ball goes off the bullpen fence and he follows it with a ball into the shrubs in center. Hart goes to centerfield again for his third home run and then clears the fence again for No. 4.

Hart spins on one for his fifth at 419 feet but makes an out after five in a row. He just catches enough of one to the rocks in the outfield, but that’s out No. 3. Hart clears the bullpen in left field for his seventh dinger and looks very good. The ball solunds good off the bat for the eighth home run (also to the pen) and he crushed one 464 feet for No. 9. That was an absolute blast.

Hart’s 10th goes 459 feet and his third in a row goes 463. He is putting on a show! He continues with a shot down the line for a dozen, but that is out No. 6. He still has four outs left.

8:28 p.m. Corey Hart doesn’t have much of a target to go at early on. He needs only three to take the lead. Hart is having the time of his life in his seventh year as a Brewer. He already has 21 home runs this season and he leads the NL with 65 runs batted in. The two-time All-Star needs only three more home runs to equal his career high, set in 2007 when he played 140 games.

It’s a safe bet to say that Hart will shatter he previous highs of home runs and walks in the second half of the year, but his power appears to have come at the expense of speed (just four stolen bases) and discipline (70 Ks).

His .288 batting average is above his career average and his OPS numbers are more than 100 points higher than in the past six years. There’s no doubt that Hart has been raking this year, but he better keep pulling the ball in Angel Stadium if he wants to even think about picking up the trophy tonight in his HRD debut. He’s only ever played three games in the stadium, but he will know that right down the line is the best place to aim for here.

That said, the first two right-handed batters didn’t make much noise!

8:25 p.m. Wells makes two quick outs, but the third almost carries to left-centerfield. A fan reaches over to catch a home run ball at just 361 feet—it probably would have fallen short had he not grabbed it.

Wells gets under another ball for the sixth out, and he rips one foul down the line in left for the eighth. He crushed his second one on a 428-foot blast that was a no doubt blast, and he ends his day with a ball that hit the bottom of the wall. His score of two is top right now, but it’s been very quiet. Only 18 pitches seen for Wells, apparently. There must be a power failure here, because this has been somewhat disappointing so far. Give it time though.

8:22 p.m. Vernon Wells will bat second. Wells might have himself a career year if he stays healthy after the break. He is on track to break his 33 home run watermark set in ’03, and he could seriously challenge some of his other career highs (especially double and walks) if he maitains his hot start.

Trouble is, he’s just 3-for-36 in his last 10 games and he hasn’t hit a home run in the month of July. He has just four home runs in the last month after hitting four in Toronto’s first three games of the year.

Wells does not really use the whole field, so expect everything to go to left and left-centre field. If the ball hugs the third base line he could hit home runs in bunches, but if not he could have an early exit.

8:20 p.m. Chris Young took the first thee pitches before hitting a routine fly ball to left field. He ripped a line drive foul down the third base line and then cranked a home run 410 feet. His third out came under a fly ball off the warning track and the fourth was a line drive that one-hopped the wall.

A ground ball was out No. 6 and another weak fly ball to left field was No. 7. Young takes a time out and shouts “Let’s go baby,” to his soft tosser. He just missed a home run and then lined another ball that would have been a single through the hole between short and third.

Young has had nothing, and the right-hander flies out to a kid in shallow center field to end his day.

8:14 p.m. Chris Young is up first. Young is another batch of the new generation of outfielders who can handle the lumber and rip up the base paths.

He is a free swinger who can rip the cover off of a ball when he makes contact, and he will be looking to bring home the silverware to Arizona when all is said and done. He has 15 blasts on the season, including three in his last 13 games.

Here’s a fun fact about Young: He has NEVER hit a home run to the opposite field, so make sure you’re standing in straightaway left field tonight if you want a souvenir. I’m not convinced he will be hitting too many balls over the 400 marker in center, but you can sure that he will be peppering that foul pole.

Young will be only the second D’back to ever take part in the derby. The first? Luis Gonzalez who won it with 16 in 2001, beating Sammy Sosa, Jason Giambi, Barry Bonds, and A-Rod.

8:12 p.m. A quick reminder of the rules. Each player gets 10 outs each round, and any swing that does not produce a home run is an out. The top four advance to the second round and the top two after the second round advance to the final. The totals roll over from the first round into the second, but not from the second to the final.

8:10 p.m. Joe Morgan has picked Miggy Cabrera to win the derby, while Bobby Valentine has picked…Jose Ortiz?!? I’ll have to rewind the DVR, but I’m sure that’s what he said. Bo Jackson throws out the ceremonial pitch and we are set to go.

8:06 p.m. The players are being announced. First up will be Chris Young, followed by Vernon Wells from the AL. Corey Hart bats third with Nick Swisher—booed by the fans surprisingly—fourth. Matt Holliday is fifth and David Ortiz, also greeted by jeers, sixth. Hanley Ramirez is the final NL batter, and Miguel Cabrera will close out the first round.

7:58 p.m. Batting practice is over, Train has almost finished performing, and we are moments away from the start. There’s a great crowd on hand and the players are soaking in the atmosphere.

7:50 p.m. Some early statistics from ESPN about average home run length. Vernon Wells’ average home run length is 408 feet. That would clear any of the fences here at Angel Stadium, where the deepest part of the ballpark is 400 feet to straightaway center.

Only one participant has an average distance of less than 400 feet this year…Corey Hart (395 feet).

7:40 p.m. An early look at the sports betting websites has Miguel Cabrera out in front, followed closely by David Ortiz. Corey Hart and Nick Swisher have decent odds around 5/1, with Chris Young and Hanley Ramirez the outsiders.

7:30 p.m. Hello and welcome to Bleacher Report’s live blog of the 2010 Home Run Derby.

Eight of the game’s best sluggers will shoot for the moon at 8pm EST, hoping to wow fans at Angel Stadium and take Prince Fielder’s crown.

The four representatives from the American League are: David Ortiz (Red Sox), Miguel Cabrera (Tigers), Vernon Wells (Blue Jays), and Nick Swisher. Representing the National League are Corey Hart (brewers), Matt Holliday (Cardinals), Hanley Ramirez (Marlins), and Chris Young (D’Backs).

Who do you expect to win? What will be the key to victory? Will 16 home runs be enough to advance to the finals? Will anyone come close to the 35 bombs that Josh Hamilton hit two years ago at Yankee Stadium? Who will hit the biggest blast?

All of this and much, much more, in the coming hours. Let me know your thoughts below.

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