Mets rookie Pete Alonso wins $1m in one night after victory in Home Run Derby
Mets rookie Pete Alonso has a milliondollar swing. New York’s newest slugger outlasted a worn-down Vladimir Guerrero Jr in the final round of the All-Star Home Run Derby on Monday night to win $1m, a sum nearly double his 2019 salary.
Alonso somehow had enough to edge Guerrero, who hit 91 homers but ran out of gas in the final following an epic semi-final against Dodgers outfielder Joc Pederson. Needing 23 homers to beat Guerrero, Alonso connected for a homer to left-center before flipping his bat high into the air and hugging his cousin Derek Morgan, the man he chose to pitch to him for the evening. Alonso was then swarmed by his fellow National League All-Stars who were treated to a power display unlike any in the event’s history. “This was surreal,” Alonso said.
Alonso is only the second rookie to win outright, following Yankees star Aaron Judge in 2017. He’s also the first Mets player to win the derby since Darryl Strawberry shared the title with Wally Joyner in 1986.
Alonso, making the major league minimum of $555,000 this season, has hit 30 home runs. He’ll showcase his swing again in Tuesday night’s All-Star Game as baseball continues this season of the longball. He’ll also give 10% of his prize money to charity, 5% each to the Wounded Warrior Project and to the Tunnel to Towers Foundation.
“I’ve been living a fantasy,” Alonso said. “And I just want to use my platform as almost kind of just reach out to people and just make people aware of these causes. And I hope that other people could find the kindness in their hearts.”
One of the few bright spots this season for the struggling Mets, Alonso gave New York’s NL fans something to brag about while the Yankees chase another title. Alonso showed some dramatic flair with two nail-biting wins to reach the final against Guerrero. He nipped Cleveland’s Carlos Santana 14-13 in the first round and Atlanta’s Ronald Acuna Jr 20-19 in the second to set up a
showdown with the 20-year-old Guerrero, whose father won the event in 2007.
“I was kind of scared he was going to beat me because he was hitting second,” Guerrero said afterwards. “It was backand-forth and back-and forth. It was really tiring.” His hands blistered, Guerrero more than equaled his season’s salary. He got $500,000 for finishing second, plus a $100,000 bonus for hitting the longest homer.
With one of baseball’s most fearsome swings, Guerrero figured to be a force but there was no way of predicting he’d hit 91 homers 74 more than his dad’s entire total 12 years ago. But Alonso was up to the challenge, and shocked Guerrero, who had electrified a crowd of 36,199 fans while also destroying an on-field camera with one of the balls he didn’t crush over the wall.