MLB announces lineup for 2024 Home Run Derby at Globe Life Field
The MLB has announced half of the eight participants that are set to compete in the T-Mobile 2024 Home Run Derby.
The first player announced in the completion was Baltimore Orioles shortstop Gunnar Henderson.
Philadelphia Phillies third baseman Alec Bohm, Kansas City Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr, Cleveland third baseman Jose Ramirez, Atlanta outfielder Marcell Ozuna and New York Mets first baseman Pete Alonso and Texas Rangers outfielder Adolis Garcia will join the Orioles star.
The last player announced was Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Teoscar Hernández who has 19 home runs on the season and will be participating in his first Home Run Derby.
Henderson leads the group in home runs with 27, good for third-best in the majors, followed by Ozuna and Ramírez’s 23 which places them fourth in the MLB.
Out of the rest of the participants only Alonso (T-15th), Garcia (T-20th) and Hernández (T-12th) rank inside the top 20 in the Majors.
The Derby will operate with different rules this year, the first round will have all eight participants compete with no individual matchups in the first round with tiebreakers decided by home run distance.
After the first round half the batters will be eliminated and the top seed, determined by who has hit the most home runs during the completion, will play the fourth seed with the second seed playing the third seed in the semifinal round.
Another rule change concerns the number of pitchers a batter can face. Previously it was unlimited within the allotted time and now hitters will be capped after 40 pitches in the first two rounds and 27 pitches in the final round.
The way bonus pitches changed was also reworked to eliminate time as a factor. Instead of being granted an extra 30 seconds automatically or by home run distance as in years past, now players get bonus pitches until they’ve tallied three outs and can earn an extra out by hitting a bonus ball at least 425 feet.
The Home Run Derby begins at 7 p.m. on July 15 at Globe Life Field.
This story was originally published July 8, 2024 at 2:48 PM.
