NFL training camp is a few weeks away. The NHL and NBA are taking summer siestas. So on Monday, Major League Baseball throws itself a pre-All-Star Game party with the annual Home Run Derby. Here are the 24-year-old events’ best:
10. 1992 » Jack Murphy Stadium
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One year after Cal Ripken Jr.’s record-setting performance, Oakland’s Mark McGwire tied the Iron Man’s record with a dozen homers at Jack Murphy Stadium in San Diego. Big Mac had all of two homers combined in his previous two attempts.
9. 1985 » Metrodome
Cincinnati’s Dave Parker was the winner in the inaugural Home Run Derby at the Metrodome in Minneapolis. But things were different back then. There was just one round and Parker won it with six homers. It would be tough to even qualify for the semifinals nowadays with that total.
Texas’ Juan Gonzalez won the 1993 derby at Oriole Park at Camden Yards, but Ken Griffey Jr. stole the show by hitting what remains one of the longest home runs in Camden Yards history. He slammed a pitch off the B&O Warehouse beyond the wall in right field. A number of players have bounced homers off the big brick building across Eutaw Street and earned a small plaque in the process. But Griffey remains the only player to hit the warehouse in the air. He would go on to win the event three times — the only player with multiple titles.
8. 2003 » U.S. Cellular Field
St. Louis Cardinals first baseman Albert Pujols set a new standard at Chicago’s U.S. Cellular Field with 14 homers in the semifinals. He knocked out Jason Giambi of the Yankees, who was eliminated despite 23 homers in two rounds. Pujols then got beat by Garrett Anderson, 9-8, in the final, but hit 26 total homers.
7. 2006 » PNC Park
A pair of National League East rivals squared off at PNC Park in Pittsburgh. New York’s David Wright finished with 22 homers while Philadelphia’s Ryan Howard had 23. And Howard left the field the winner thanks to a dramatic 5-4 victory in the finals.
6. 1995 » Ballpark in Arlington
The first monster Home Run Derby. Few players hit double-digits through the event’s first decade. But Chicago’s Frank Thomas and Cleveland’s Albert Belle crushed a combined 31 at the hitter’s palace that is the Ballpark in Arlington. Thomas ended up the winner. No one, other than Belle and Thomas, had more than six.
5. 1996 » The Vet
The event finally expanded into three rounds instead of just one. Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia hosted a showdown between Barry Bonds and Mark McGwire, who hit nine homers in the second round. It wasn’t enough. Bonds blasted 10 in that round and earned the win when the duo combined for just five in the final round.
4. 1993 » Camden Yards
Ken Griffey Jr. hit the warehouse at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. But Texas’ Juan Gonzalez shook off that moon shot and escaped with a win. Both men finished with seven home runs. It took two playoff rounds before Gonzalez grabbed the title. He needed just one ball to clear the fence in the second.
3. 1991 » SkyDome
Baltimore’s Cal Ripken Jr. put on a show in Toronto. He became the first All-Star to hit double digits with a then-record 12 home runs. No one else was even close — Cincinnati’s Paul O’Neill was second with five. Ripken went on to homer in the All-Star Game itself en route to an American League victory and game MVP honors.
2. 1999 » Fenway Park
A legendary All-Star week when Fenway Park celebrated Hall-of-Famer Ted Williams. But the day before belonged to Mark McGwire and Ken Griffey Jr. McGwire crushed 13 homers in the opening round — most soaring far beyond the Green Monster. But Griffey hit 10 of his own in the second round and beat Jeromy Burnitz in the final, 3-2.
1. 2008 » Yankee Stadium
Last year’s event breathed new life into the Home Run Derby — and again showed that you don’t always have to win to make a lasting impression. Texas slugger Josh Hamilton wowed the Yankee Stadium crowd with a record 28 homers in the first round. But he couldn’t keep it up, eventually losing to Minnesota’s Justin Morneau in the final, 5-3.
