Participants for the 2015 MLB Home Run Derby are starting to be unveiled, and the eight-player competition is set to take on a revised format when the sport’s biggest sluggers step to the plate on July 13 at Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati.
This year, MLB has done away with the classic 10-out-per-round structure. Instead, batters will compete in a head-to-head bracket-style format that allots each participant five minutes to club as many home runs as possible.
According to MLB.com’s Paul Casella, “A running clock will begin counting down upon release of the first pitch, though it will stop for any home run hit during the final minute. The clock will stop immediately after those home run balls land and will not begin again until a non-home run ball lands or the batter swings and misses.”
MLB PR tweeted out an official overview of the new format and contest guidelines:
Participants
With new competitive guidelines primed to breathe some new life into the Derby, here’s the latest on who will be sending moonshots into the Cincinnati stands.
According to the Los Angeles Times‘ Mike DiGiovanna, Los Angeles Angels first baseman Albert Pujols has been confirmed as a participant for this year’s Home Run Derby.
The 35-year-old slugger has already tallied 25 home runs this season, which rank as the second most among all players behind the Miami Marlins’ Giancarlo Stanton.
Back on June 29, Pujols noted the circumstances under which he would participate in this year’s Derby.
“I think it would be the last one,” Pujols said, according to MLB.com’s Alden Gonzalez. “Like I told you last year, I won’t do it if I’m not at the [All-Star] Game. If that happens, I think I’m all for it.”
Recently selected as an All-Star for the first time since joining the Angels, Pujols is slated to start at first base as the replacement for the injured Miguel Cabrera.
According to ESPN.com, Pujols’ best-ever Home Run Derby finish came back in 2003, when he finished as the runner-up behind the Angels’ Garret Anderson.
Pujols also competed in the 2007 and 2009 long-ball showcases, but he didn’t advance past the second round on either occasion.
This year should represent one last shot at redemption for one of the league’s most seasoned masters of the dinger.
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