Stanton, Judge headline Home Run Derby.
Marlins slugger defending Derby crown from hard-swinging field
It is baseball for the short-attention span age, and the perfectly framed answer to thosewhocontend that thegamemoves too slowly and doesn’t deliver enough pop.
In the All-Star Home Run Derby, balls soar over the fence every few seconds, more frequently than NBA free-wheelers can put up shots from downtown.
Monday’s gone-a-thon at Marlins Park offers the added allure of a showdown with the accompanying buzz worthy of heavyweight fights of the past. It is difficult to recall a more highly anticipated Derby encounter than oversized sluggers Giancarlo Stanton and Aaron Judge, the top two seeds in an eight-man tournament.
“Everybody knew theywere going to see the [All-Star] Game but they don’t know what’s going to happen in the home runhitting contest,” Hall of Famer Tony Perez said. “I think people are looking forward to that more than they are looking forward to the game.”
Stanton, who hit 39 homers that exceeded 440 feet among a record 61 in last year’s contest, had been the Sultan of Statcast since theMLBAdvancedMedia system began quantifying everything that happens on the field.
Then along comes New York Yankees’ Judge, whoat 6feet8,282poundsis notably larger than the statuesque Stanton, and he’s hitting balls harder and farther.
Judge has the longest homer, 495 feet, and the four hardest-hit balls of the season so far (121.1mph was tops), compared to Stanton’s 468 feet and 118.7 mph.
Might the intrigue about what will happen when those two begin launching balls over the Budweiser Bar and clanking off the home run sculpture overshadow the game the following night?
“I don’t think so,” said former Marlin Jeff Conine, a studio analyst for the team’ s games on Fox Sports Florida. “The game itself is a collection of the best baseball has to offer. That, for me, is always the marquee event of this weekend.
“But that match-up is going to be front and center on Monday. That is going to be something fun to watch.”
Karl Ravech, who takes over as the lead broadcaster of ESPN’s coverage of the Derby, says the game has lost some luster with the outcome no longer determining home-field advantage for the World Series, while the Derby field has never been more compelling.
“It really feels like the preeminent event of the All-Star Week, given that the game is again an exhibition,” Ravech said. “I think it has the ability to generate more excitement than the game itself.”
The Home Run Derby, of course, is not real baseball. It’s a sideshow, like basketball’s dunk contest and other skills challenges that accompany all-star games in other sports.
The All- Star Game, which began in 1933, still draws a larger television audience than its sidekick, which will be spotlighted live Monday night on ESPN. The audience hasn’t been impressive for either lately.
Stanton‘s one-man power show a year ago in San Diego, when he pounded a composite 5.1 miles of homers out of Petco Park, received the lowest TV rating for the contest since at least 1997, according to Sports Media Watch.
The average audience of 5.524 million for the derby was down from 7.1 million the year before. It did win the night for cable viewing on the coveted adult 18-49 demo.
The All-Star Game hit a record low with 8.707 million viewers, down 20 percent fromthe previous year and the first time it failed to top 10 million.
An informal survey Friday of patrons at FanFest showed that many are more eager to see what happens in the Derby.
“I’m more excited about that than the game,” said Curtiss Morgan, 43, of Pembroke Pines. “Just watching guys showcase their talents. Everybody loves the home run. Everybody loves the big event. With Stanton being in there it’s big for us.”
But Jon Goodman, a Coral Springs resident from New York, was representative of those stillmore drawn to watching all of the best players competing together.
“There’s something about the All-Star Game: Pete Rose bowling over [Ray Fosse] at home plate. Competitive nature always comes out in people who are real winners, and that’s what I like seeing,” said Goodman.
There is reason for hope of a ratings rebound this year. People are digging the home run again, with balls flying over the fence during the first half of the season at a record pace, even topping the era of juiced-up players. Charges that the ball is juiced are popping up, especially among pitchers.
Even the expansive outfield at Marlins Park should be no match for the eight mas hers Monday.
“I think the ball has been traveling pretty well this year. We’ve seen so far up to this point in the season, we’ve had more home runs hit at Marlins Park than any other time in our short history,” Conine said. “So I think we’re going to see some electrifying shots, in places that we’ve probably not seen a ball go before.”
TV ratings are increasingly difficult to forecast in a time of scattered viewing habits and media platforms. But hope for a rise in derby viewership can be pinned on the presence of two Yankees in the field.
It’s a safe bet that’s the reason Gary Sanchez was included along with Judge — much to the consternation of Tampa Bay’s Logan Morrison, a former Marlin, who with 11 more homers seems a more legitimate choice.
Consider that in 2015 Derby ratings got a nice bump aided by a field with two Chicago Cubs (Kris Bryant and Anthony Rizzo). Thatwas also when rules were altered with the addition of a clock to speed up swings, making the contest more appealing.
This year the national fascination is with Judge, who with his 29th homer this week tied Joe DiMaggio’s Yankees team rookie record for a full season. In addition, Dodgers rookie Cody Bellinger is hitting homers at a ridiculous rate as another big-market draw.
Bryce Harper (waiting for next year in Washington) and Mike Trout (injury) are missing. But the rest of the field has Marlins first baseman Justin Bour to give Stanton another ally in the field, plus Mike Moustakas (Royals), Miguel Sano (Twins) and Charlie Blackmon (Rockies) to appeal to the heartlands.
All-Star replacements
Seattle second baseman Robinson Cano, Tampa Bay pitcher Chris Archer and Toronto reliever Roberto Osuna are among seven replacement players selected for Tuesday’s AllStar Game in Miami.
Houston reliever Chris Devenski, Minnesota reliever Brandon Kintzler and Detroit outfielder Justin Upton also were added to the AL roster Friday. Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Alex Wood was added to the NL All-Stars.
Three of the original AllStars are on the disabled list and won’t be active for the game: Los Angeles Angels outfielder Mike Trout, New York Yankees second baseman Star lin Castro and Houston pitcher Dallas Keuchel. Four pitchers on the All-Star rosters won’t be active because they are scheduled to start Sunday: the Dodgers’ Clayton Kershaw, Texas’ Yu Darvish, Cleveland’s Corey Kluber and Detroit’s Michael Fulmer.