With Luis Robert Jr. and Adolis Garcia accepting invitations the past few days, the field of eight for the 2023 T-Mobile Home Run Derby in Seattle this Monday was finalized.
Wednesday afternoon on a special broadcast, ESPN released the seeding and bracket for the annual display of power by some of Major League Baseball’s top home-run hitters.
The field, which was seeded by home runs hit coming into the announcement, will be:
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- Luis Robert Jr., White Sox, 25 homers
- Pete Alonso, Mets, 25 homers
- Mookie Betts, Dodgers, 23 homers
- Adolis Garcia, Rangers, 21 homers
- Randy Arozarena, Rays, 16 homers
- Vladimir Guerrero, Jr., Blue Jays, 13 homers
- Julio Rodriguez, Mariners, 13 homers
- Adley Rutschman, Orioles, 11 homers
Of that group, only Alonso, Guerrero and Rodriguez have participated in the Home Run Derby.
The seeding process ignores past performance, including Rodriguez’s outstanding showing last season when he finished second to Juan Soto.
Because of his slow start this season, Rodriguez will have to go up against two-time Home Run Derby champion Pete Alonso, who was seeded second, in the first round. Alonso, nicknamed the Polar Bear, won the event in 2019 and 2021.
It will be a rematch of the 2022 Home Run Derby semifinals at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, where Rodriguez defeated Alonso 31-25 to advance to the finals.
The other first-round matchup on that side of the bracket will be Betts vs. Guerrero. Not known as a home-run hitter or someone who fits the physical profile, Betts is a superior athlete who has more power than most people realize.
Guerrero holds the record for most home runs hit in one derby with 91 over three rounds. Rodriguez hit 81 homers in 2022, and Alonso hit 74 in the 2021 derby.
The first-round matchups on the opposing side of the bracket feature Robert vs. Rutschman and Arozarena vs. Garcia.
Rutschman was born in Portland and is a former All-American at Oregon State. His grandfather, Ad, was a Hall of Fame football coach at Linfield College. Rutschman will have his father, Randy, serve as his pitcher in the event.
Arozarena and Garcia will be a match-up of Cuban-born players who were originally signed by the Cardinals and traded to their respective teams.
The initial betting odds were released with Alonso at +250, while Betts was the biggest longshot at +1200. Rodriguez was listed at +300.
Under the current format, which helped regenerate interest in the derby, a hitter will have a three-minute round with a timeout to hit as many homers as possible. A player can add a 30-second bonus if he hits a ball more than 440 feet per MLB Statcast data. The bonus time is capped at one minute. If there is a tie, there will be a one-minute overtime round.
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