Baseball Report: Pete Alonso Repeats In Record-Breaking Home Run Derby

(CBS Denver) — It’s officially the slowest sports time of the year. And portion the Home Run Derby and All-Star Game person nary bearing connected the standings, some marque for amusive viewing successful the lack of existent games.

This week’s Baseball Report looks astatine the Home Run Derby results, Shohei Ohtani getting the All-Star motion arsenic some starting pitcher and lead-off batter, and the apical prime successful the caller MLB Draft.

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Home Run Derby Results

The Home Run Derby whitethorn conscionable beryllium the precocious constituent of the All-Star break. It surely provides its just stock of highlights, with galore of MLB’s champion powerfulness hitters facing disconnected successful a tourney to find baseball’s apical slugger. New York Mets archetypal baseman Pete Alonso prevailed, defending his 2019 rookie-year rubric by topping Baltimore Orioles close fielder Trey Mancini, a caller crab subsister who gave an inspiring performance.

Los Angeles Angels two-way improvement Shohei Ohtani, who leads the league successful location runs with 33 truthful acold this season, earned the apical seed. But helium couldn’t marque it retired of the archetypal round, falling to Washington Nationals close fielder Juan Soto aft 2 tiebreakers. Soto Alonso opened with 35 location runs, a first-round record. Mancini and Colorado Rockies shortstop Trevor Story besides advanced.

Mancini knocked disconnected Story, and Alonso knocked disconnected Soto successful the 2nd circular to acceptable up the finals. The past circular went to the wire, with Alonso edging retired Mancini, 23-22. His triumph implicit the sentimental favorite makes him conscionable the 3rd subordinate to triumph back-to-back titles.

Coming into the Derby, New York Yankees slugger Aaron Judge held the Statcast epoch region record, acknowledgment to a 2017 blast that sailed 513 feet. This twelvemonth unsocial 4 antithetic players bushed oregon tied that people successful the archetypal round. Soto is the caller grounds holder, aft a 520-foot changeable that landed successful the close tract precocious platform astatine Coors Field.

Ohtani To Start And Lead Off All-Star Game

While Ohtani was knocked retired aboriginal successful the Home Run Derby, he’ll person a accidental to redeem himself Tuesday night. The archetypal subordinate ever to beryllium voted successful arsenic some a pitcher and a hitter volition person plentifulness of attention. The game’s lineups were precocious announced, and helium volition commencement the crippled connected the mound and leadoff erstwhile the American League bats. Ohtani volition look Nationals ace Max Scherzer.

Typically, pitchers successful the All-Star Game don’t propulsion much than an inning. Under the current rules, the American League would springiness up the DH spot if Ohtani pitches and past hits for himself. His removal from the mound would extremity his night. But acknowledgment to a regularisation objection for a crippled that doesn’t impact the standings anyway, he’ll beryllium allowed to enactment successful astatine DH. Ohtani is fundamentally being treated arsenic 2 players.

In summation to starring the league successful location runs, Ohtani is hitting .279, with 70 RBI. In 67 innings connected the mound, helium has a 3.49 ERA with 87 strikeouts, en way to a 4-1 record.

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Here are the All-Star Game lineups:

National League:

Fernando Tatis Jr. – SS, San Diego Padres
Max Muncy – DH, Los Angeles  Dodgers
Nolan Arenado – 3B, St. Louis Cardinals
Freddie Freeman – 1B, Atlanta Braves
Nick Castellanos – RF, Cincinnati Reds
Jesse Winker – LF, Cincinnati Reds
J.T. Realmuto – C, Philadelphia Phillies
Bryan Reynolds – CF, Pittsburgh Pirates
Adam Frazier – 2B, Pittsburgh Pirates

American League:

Shohei Ohtani – DH, Los Angeles Angels
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. – 1B, Toronto Blue Jays
Xander Bogaerts – SS, Boston Red Sox
Aaron Judge – RF, New York Yankees
Rafael Devers – 3B, Boston Red Sox
Marcus Semien – 2B, Toronto Blue Jays
Salvador Perez – C, Kansas City Royals
Teoscar Hernández – LF, Toronto Blue Jays
Cedric Mullins – CF, Baltimore Orioles

Pirates Draft Catcher Henry Davis First

Aside from the All-Star festivities, MLB is utilizing the interruption to clasp its 2021 amateur draft, held successful June successful erstwhile years. The archetypal circular happened Sunday night, followed by rounds 2-10 connected Monday and rounds 11-20 connected Tuesday. What utilized to beryllium 40 rounds was chopped to 5 rounds successful 2020 due to the fact that of the COVID pandemic. That fig increases to 20 this year.

The archetypal sanction disconnected the committee Sunday was University of Louisville catcher Henry Davis. The sophomore was a first-team All-American this past season, hitting .370 with 15 location runs, and 48 RBI successful 50 games. He was seen arsenic possibly assemblage baseball’s champion hitter. Davis was besides a Buster Posey Award finalist. The grant goes to assemblage baseball’s apical catcher. Shortstop Marcelo Mayer, retired of Eastlake High School successful California was seen to beryllium the team’s different apical choice. This Draft didn’t person a wide apical prime going in.

Here are the apical 5 selections:

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1. Henry Davis, C, Louisville – Pittsburgh Pirates
2. Jack Leiter, RHP, Vanderbilt – Texas Rangers
3. Jackson Jobe, RHP, Heritage Hall HS (OK) – Detroit Tigers
4. Marcelo Mayer, SS, Eastlake HS (CA) – Boston Red Sox
5. Colton Cowser, OF, Sam Houston State – Baltimore Orioles