NEWSLETTER
Last night, Kyle Schwarber and Javy Baez represented the Chicago Cubs in the 2018 Home Run Derby and it was freakin’ awesome.
Before the night started I went on about how much I loved the event, but last night brought it to an entirely new level. That was easily the best HR Derby of my lifetime, and that includes the time Barry Bonds was intentionally walked at the derby back in 2004.
Baez went into the event as the 6 seed, squaring off against the Dodgers’ Max Muncy, but although Baez put up a strong 16 homers in his four minutes (which would’ve beat Bryce Harper in round one and tied Kyle Schwarber), Muncy threw up 17 and advanced to the semi-finals.
But because Javy is Javy, you know he still left his mark on the derby, and that includes the longest homer of the first round (and ultimately the night):
Longest HR of the first round? @javy23baez got bragging rights. pic.twitter.com/iA0e3wZOnh
— MLB (@MLB) July 17, 2018
Baez’s third homer of the evening traveled 479 feet and left the bat at 108 MPH. That’s an absolute BOMB, even in a derby, and was deserving of some love.
But the real star of the night (well, other than the winner) was Kyle Schwarber, whose 55 home runs (with a bonus round he didn’t even need to use) led the event and took him all the way to the final round. But before that was PLENTY of excitement. Schwarber won each of his first two rounds (Alex Bregman and Rhys Hoskins) by just one home run, including an absolute insane hot streak and literal buzzer beater at the end of the semifinals.
Relive the excitement:
Confirming what we already knew.@kschwarb12 hits BOMBS. pic.twitter.com/j80b7NsXFP
— Chicago Cubs (@Cubs) July 17, 2018
Here’s a look at all 21 homers, Mr. Schwarber hit this round:
All 21 of Kyle Schwarber's homers! Wow! What a round! @Cubs pic.twitter.com/deLVXyoWrG
— Daren Willman (@darenw) July 17, 2018
And the bat flip …
Schwarber vs. Harper in the finals.
Let's go. pic.twitter.com/9CHsaLM05E
— Chicago Cubs (@Cubs) July 17, 2018
And that brought us to the finals.
Although my number 1 wish was to see Javy Baez versus Kyle Schwarber in the championship – because MY GOD would that have been awesome – watching Schwarber take on Bryce Harper was about as close to a perfect consolation prize as it gets. And of course, they did not disappoint at all.
Going first against the home town hero, Kyle Schwarber put up a massive 18 home runs on the board. Keep in mind, he’d already taken the most big hacks in the event at that point, so he was gassed. And he STILL put up 18.
Here’s a quick highlight reel of those shots:
18 homers in the final round and 55 total.@kschwarb12 with an unreal performance. pic.twitter.com/Q9gglDQoBw
— MLB (@MLB) July 17, 2018
But behind the stands as Schwarber was taking hacks, Bryce Harper was warming up … with a few bunts:
https://twitter.com/MLB/status/1019068121448054784
And apparently that paid off. After starting off his final round very slowly, Harper went on an absolute tear with eight straight homers at one point. He then tied Schwarber on the FINAL swing of his regulation time and won it all with the second swing of his home run in bonus time:
Bryce Harper won the Home Run Derby in the most dramatic way possible. pic.twitter.com/qpnvbcx0xe
— ESPN (@espn) July 17, 2018
It’s not easy to top this moment:
Haters look away. pic.twitter.com/pNyqtrb8j9
— MLB (@MLB) July 17, 2018
I saw some people complain about Harper’s Dad, the pitcher, not waiting until the balls were landing to throw another pitch in there, but … ah, come one. That was as thrilling as the event could have been, and the fact that it was Harper winning it in extra-time in front of his hometown fans in what’s likely to be his final season in Washington D.C.?! That’s amazing.
After the event, two finalists gave each other some love, which is a good thing because they’ll be patrolling the outfield together at Wrigley Field this time next year or something:
What a show by @Bharper3407! @Nationals Park was rockin! Ran out of gas at the end but hope you all enjoyed it as much as I did! Thank you for the opportunity and see you in Chicago!
— Kyle Schwarber (@kschwarb12) July 17, 2018
Thanks big man! Great to compete against you! #classact https://t.co/yGWucLzMMg
— Bryce Harper (@Bharper3407) July 17, 2018
And finally, before the night’s events, I made a promise to donate $1 to Make-A-Wish for the #BNBlogathon for every home run hit by Javy Baez and Kyle Schwarber last night, which all added up to a grand total $71.00!
So here’s my proof:
I'll donate $1 to the @BleacherNation #BNBlogathon for every home run hit by Kyle Schwarber and Javy Baez tonight. Plus an extra $25 if #ElMago wins the whole thing.
Who is with me (or has a similar bet!)?
— Michael Cerami (@Michael_Cerami) July 16, 2018
Okay, here it is! $16 for 16 Baez Blasts and $55 for 55 Schwar-bombs.
That's $71 more for @MakeAWish ! pic.twitter.com/FL6HMNWc8A— Michael Cerami (@Michael_Cerami) July 17, 2018
Brett did the same thing, but added an extra $100 for Schwarber making the final round:
I pledged $1 per Cubs homer, and $100 if a Cub made the final tonight to @MakeAWish @WishIllinois for the #BNBlogathon, and I've never been happier to drop $171 for a great cause. You can donate here: https://t.co/mD5D2CoKCE pic.twitter.com/Kmv5iHkJ48
— Bleacher Nation (@BleacherNation) July 17, 2018
And with the additional love from some BN readers, we’ve already gotten up to $5,536 total dollars as of me writing this, which is nearly half-way to our goal!
So get over to Make-A-Wish and donate. ANY donation you can give, helps, no matter how small. Whaddaya say we make a couple of kids’ dreams come true … and send Brett on a 40-hour blogging-spree into madness? Sounds good to me.
