One swing the difference in HR Derby as Teoscar defeats Witt in thriller

This year’s Home Run Derby field was not only star-studded, but also featured an intriguing mix of young superstars and veteran sluggers who were be playing under new rules. After a night full of dingers soaring through the Texas sky, it was an unlikely champion in Dodgers slugger Teoscar Hernández, who took the Derby crown by defeating young Royals star Bobby Witt Jr. in a thrilling final round.

See below for a round-by-round breakdown of the entire competition.

(4) Teoscar Hernández defeats (3) Bobby Witt Jr.

Witt HR total: 13
After hitting a combined 37 home runs between the first round and semifinals, Witt capped his night by hitting 13 in the finals but finishing just one short of Hernández. On his final swing in bonus time, Witt hit a ball 406 feet to one of the deepest parts of the ballpark in center field that hit the middle of the wall. Had it gone over, Witt and Hernández would’ve had a swing-off to determine the Derby champion.

LONGEST HR: 457 feet
HARDEST HR: 110 mph
AVG. HR DISTANCE: 409 feet
AVG. HR EXIT VELO: 102.7 mph

Hernández HR total: 14
Hernández’s timeout — and chat with Vladimir Guerrero Jr. — proved crucial in his finals performance, with the slugger hitting five homers in six swings at one point not long after the pause. Hernández averaged 430 feet on his 14 home runs, including two 449-foot blasts during bonus time. His longest homer, toward the end of regulation, traveled 454 feet.

LONGEST HR: 454 feet
HARDEST HR: 111 mph
AVG. HR DISTANCE: 430 feet
AVG. HR EXIT VELO: 106.5 mph

(4) Teoscar Hernández eliminates (1) Alec Bohm via swing-off

Swing-off: Hernández (2 HRs), Bohm (1 HR)
Hernández got the better of Bohm in the first swing-off of the 2024 Derby as both competitors hit 14 home runs in their semifinal rounds. Hernández homered on the last two of his three swings, ending things with his longest homer of the round (456 feet). Bohm homered on his second swing but couldn’t clear the fence on his final attempt, eliminating him and sending Hernández to the finals.

Bohm HR total: 14
Bohm crushed 21 home runs in the first round and another 14 in the semifinals, tying him with Hernández and leading to a swing-off. Entering the Derby with the fewest homers (11) of any contestant, Bohm’s performance was one of the most surprising developments.

LONGEST HR: 431 feet
HARDEST HR: 103.0 mph
AVG. HR DISTANCE: 402 feet
AVG. HR EXIT VELO: 98.0 mph

Hernández HR total: 14
After hitting 19 homers in the first round, Hernández went deep 14 times in the semifinals. Ten of those came in the second half of regulation as Hernández got red hot after his timeout midway through, slugging seven homers in a nine-pitch span. The Dodgers slugger found the most success to left-center field, although several of his homers went out to straightaway left. Hernández added one bonus-time homer.

LONGEST HR: 454 feet
HARDEST HR: 109 mph
AVG. HR DISTANCE: 423 feet
AVG. HR EXIT VELO: 105.5 mph

(3) Bobby Witt Jr. eliminates (2) José Ramírez

Witt HR total: 17
Witt closed out regulation on a hot streak, homering seven times on the final 10 pitches he saw. The third seed in the semifinals got in a groove after taking his timeout with 1:40 to go, hitting 11 homers after that point before the end of regulation. Witt couldn’t add on in bonus time, though, making outs on all three swings to end his semifinal round at 17 homers.

LONGEST HR: 454 feet
HARDEST HR: 108 mph
AVG. HR DISTANCE: 407 feet
AVG. HR EXIT VELO: 102.6 mph

Ramírez HR total: 12
Ramírez struggled to follow up on his excellent first round that featured 21 home runs. He had just 11 in regulation in the semifinals (compared to 15 in the first round) and one in bonus time after crushing six bonus home runs in the previous round. After having just one stretch of four straight homerless swings in the first round, Ramírez had a seven-swing stretch with no home runs and another six-swing drought in the semis.

LONGEST HR: 407 feet
HARDEST HR: 103.0 mph
AVG. HR DISTANCE: 385 feet
AVG. HR EXIT VELO: 97.6 mph

Alec Bohm (advanced to semifinals)
HR total: 21

Bohm got into a groove after a slow start, consistently finding the stands in left and left-center field toward the end of his round. The Phillies third baseman homered 10 times on the final 12 pitches before bonus time, including a string of five straight pitches. Bohm picked things up significantly after the first minute — he homered just once on his first seven pitches before starting to find his power swing. Bohm finished regulation with 20 home runs and added another homer in bonus time to finish with 21.

LONGEST HR: 445 feet
HARDEST HR: 105 mph
AVG. HR DISTANCE: 407 feet
AVG. HR EXIT VELO: 100.7 mph

Bobby Witt Jr. (advanced to semifinals)
HR total: 20

Selected to his first All-Star Game and appearing in the Derby for the first time, Witt struggled to get things going but went on a serious run to finish. After homering just five times before his first timeout, the Texas native had 11 home runs in the rest of regulation, including on six of his final nine swings to finish with 16 regulation homers. Witt added four more in bonus time to finish with 20.

LONGEST HR: 442 feet
HARDEST HR: 111 mph
AVG. HR DISTANCE: 409 feet
AVG. HR EXIT VELO: 105.0 mph

Adolis García (eliminated)
HR total: 18

Just like he did in the 2023 postseason, García got hot seemingly in an instant. A few swings after his timeout midway through his round, “El Bombi” powered up with nine home runs in an 11-pitch span. The hot stretch helped García reach 18 regulation homers, but he didn’t hit one on any of his three swings in bonus time.

LONGEST HR: 435 feet
HARDEST HR: 106 mph
AVG. HR DISTANCE: 403 feet
AVG. HR EXIT VELO: 100.7 mph

Teoscar Hernández (advanced to semifinals)
HR total: 19

Appearing in his second career All-Star Game and first Derby, Hernández started hot by homering on four of the first five swings he took within the first 30 seconds. After slowing down in the rest of regulation, he went on a serious tear with six home runs in the bonus round to finish with 19 total. Hernández crushed six home runs that traveled 440-plus feet, including a 466-foot clout.

LONGEST HR: 466 feet
HARDEST HR: 111 mph
AVG. HR DISTANCE: 430 feet
AVG. HR EXIT VELO: 105.1 mph

Pete Alonso (eliminated)
HR total: 12

Alonso, the 2019 and 2021 Derby champion bidding for his third title, did not hit enough home runs to finish in the top four and advance to the next round. It was tough sledding for the Polar Bear throughout his round — he hit five homers before taking his timeout with 1:37 remaining and hit just four more in the rest of regulation. Alonso added three homers during bonus time, but it wasn’t enough to move on.

LONGEST HR: 446 feet
HARDEST HR: 109 mph
AVG. HR DISTANCE: 417 feet
AVG. HR EXIT VELO: 105.5 mph

José Ramírez (advanced to semifinals)
HR total: 21

After hitting 17 first-round home runs as a righty at the 2022 Derby at Dodger Stadium, Ramírez’s decision to hit left-handed this year paid off with 21 first-round homers. Ramírez remained remarkably consistent, with few prolonged homerless stretches while hitting homers between 380-420 feet. Ramírez homered 10 times before his timeout and went deep six times in the bonus round.

LONGEST HR: 419 feet
HARDEST HR: 107.0 mph
AVG. HR DISTANCE: 398 feet
AVG. HR EXIT VELO: 101.2 mph

Marcell Ozuna (eliminated)
HR total: 16

Ozuna picked things up after taking a timeout with just four homers under his belt and 1:40 remaining, homering on six of eight pitches at one point to pick up his pace significantly. He outpaced all of the previous first-round hitters in terms of distance, topping out with a 473-foot blast and averaging 426 feet on his homers. Ozuna crushed 14 homers in regulation and added two more in bonus time, but it wasn’t enough to advance to the semifinals.

LONGEST HR: 473 feet
HARDEST HR: 110 mph
AVG. HR DISTANCE: 426 feet
AVG. HR EXIT VELO: 105.1 mph

Gunnar Henderson (eliminated)
HR total: 11

Entering the All-Star break with the third-most home runs (28) in the Majors and the most among Derby participants, Henderson struggled outside of a stretch during which he homered on four straight swings in regulation. While the 23-year-old Orioles superstar didn’t flash the raw power we’ve become so accustomed to, there are ample chances for Henderson to redeem himself in a future contest.

LONGEST HR: 438 feet
HARDEST HR: 106.0 mph
AVG. HR DISTANCE: 414 feet
AVG. HR EXIT VELO: 103.5 mph