Best Home Run Derby Moments

By Chad Klassen
Love of Sports Correspondent

Out of all the All-Star Game festivities, the Home Run Derby has consistently been the most worthwhile event both for the fans in the stadium and for the viewers watching on TV.

Even with Bud Selig implementing a more meaningful format to the Midsummer Classic starting in 2003, with the winning league earning homefield advantage in the World Series, the Derby’s always produced the most excitement of the three-day period.

Inspired by the 28 dingers we witnessed from Rangers slugger Josh Hamilton in the opening round Monday night, here are the six most memorable Derbys in recent years.

TOP HOME RUN DERBYS

1. 1996 - Veterans Stadium, Philadelphia

The Derby participants who went head-to-head in the 1996 edition are arguably two of the top home run hitters of all time. Barry Bonds and Mark McGwire stepped to the plate in an epic showdown of two guys who could go yard at any moment throughout their careers. Both kept pace with the other through the first round, with four homers each. Bonds sent one more out of the park in each of the next two rounds, including the finals, when the Giant slugger hit three homers to McGwire’s two to win the event.

2. 2005 - Comerica Park, Detroit

Before Hamilton’s 28 home runs Monday night in New York, the 2005 event produced one of the most dominating performances ever in a single round. This one was memorable, because then Phillies outfielder Bobby Abreu sent 24 swings into the stands during the first round to set a Derby record at the time and win the event convincingly. His feat was made even more outstanding since Comerica Park is commonly known as a pitcher’s ballpark due to the deep fences making it difficult for balls to find the stands. It wasn’t the most intriguing showdown ever, as Abreu beat out hometown catcher Ivan “Pudge” Rodriguez 11-5 in the final round, but the spectacle of his opening round performance will not soon be forgotten.

3. 2006 - PNC Park, Pittsburgh

Two years ago, the Home Run Derby featured two of the major league’s up-and-coming superstars in Ryan Howard and David Wright. Both traded dominant performances in rounds one and two, beating out Miguel Cabrera and David Ortiz, as Wright out-slugged Howard 16-8 in the first and Howard doing the same to Wright 10-2 in the second. But Howard, the eventual National League MVP thanks to hitting 58 homers and 149 RBI, outlasted the Mets’ superstar third baseman in the finals with a 5-4 margin of victory.

4. 2008 - Yankee Stadium, New York

It was just a couple nights ago, but Hamilton’s record 28 home run effort in the first round at Yankee Stadium will live on for years to come. It had the best crop of young superstars participating in recent years, and Hamilton’s effort was simply special, to say the least. He advanced to the finals due to his dominating opening round, but unfortunately tired out and was eventually beaten by Twins’ Justin Morneau 5-3 in the deciding round. Incidentally, Morneau became the first Canadian to win the event. But even though he wound up winning, his victory will be overshadowed by Hamilton’s effort that had the New York crowd and baseball fans across the world buzzing.

5. 2002 - Miller Park, Milwaukee

In the same All-Star week that resulted in a tie and transformed midsummer classic in terms of its format, the Home Run Derby was one of the more intriguing head-to-head battles since the Bonds-McGwire showdown of ‘96. It featured a myriad of great hitters, including A-Rod and Bonds, but the two players that stole the show in Milwaukee were Jason Giambi and Sammy Sosa. The Cubs slugger took the first round with 12 home runs, while Giambi smacked 11 before the two eventually met in the finals. Sosa couldn’t get the momentum going from his first-round performance and finished short of Giambi, who won the final round 7-1 to capture one of the more closely contested Derbys.

6. 1999 - Fenway Park, Boston

With the imposing Green Monster facing derby participants, Ken Griffey, Jr. beat out the field for his unprecedented second straight Home Run Derby title. For any baseball fan, especially those like me who followed the Mariners in the Griffey era, it was always memorable to watch when he participated. He stepped up to the plate in eight Derbys, winning three. However, the festivities in Boston were uniquely awesome. Griffey was up against stiff competition in Mark McGwire and Jeromy Burnitz. Despite 13 dingers from McGwire in the first round, and only three from Griffey, the eventual champion came back with a vengeance in the second round, with 10 hits that found the seats in Fenway Park’s right field bleachers. He then went toe-to-toe with Burnitz in the finals and beat him 3-2.

OTHER TOP STORIES

--MLB’s Top 10 All-Star Game Moments

--Baseball’s Top 10 First Half Moments

--MLB’s Top 20 Future Hall of Famers

--Baseball’s 50 Strangest Moments

--Why We Love Josh Hamilton, The New Roy Hobbs

--Despite Losing, Federer’s Still the King

(I hope you were somewhere enjoying a cool beverage while watching the Home Run Derby the other night. I know we sure were! If so, check out our sister site, The Love of Beer, to see what flavor we’re featuring today.)