With a new format and a new platform, the Home Run Derby will take place tonight at 6 p.m. MDT at Citizens Ballpark in Philadelphia.
With player health and audience attention spans in mind, the format will change this year to prevent long rounds with 40-plus homers and contests that take longer than a nine-inning game. The biggest change is that there will be three rounds, and instead of timed rounds and a finite number of outs per round, each round will consist of a set number of swings for all eight participants: 20 in Round 1, 15 in Round 2 and 15 in the final round. However, if a player hits a homer on their last swing, they can keep swinging until they stop homering.
The players with the top four home run totals from the first round will advance to the semifinals, where they’ll be seeded based on their first-round homer totals. They will face off head-to-head (No. 1 vs. No. 4 and No. 2 vs. No. 3) to determine the two finalists.
In the event of ties, they will be broken by home run distance, with the player who hit the longest homer in the first round. In the final two rounds, three-swing swing-offs will settle any ties until a winner is determined.
In the past, players risked wearing themselves out by swinging hard and rapidly in early rounds. MLB has tried out different formats in past years and time constraints to make it go faster, but neither worked as well as intended.
In addition, for the first time in the home run contest’s history, the Derby will be streamed live on Netflix.
Here’s a look at the 2026 HR Derby field:
Bryce Harper and Kyle Schwarber will each be making their third Derby performance, and will have the Phillies home crowd cheering them on. Harper is the only hitter who has won the contest before (2018 as a Washington National at Nationals Park). Junior Caminero is the only participant who competed in the 2025 HR Derby.
For the fifth consecutive season, the Rockies don’t have anyone in the HR Derby. This is despite the fact that Rockies catcher Hunter Goodman, their lone All-Star, has 27 home runs, which ranks sixth-most in MLB and is more than five of the 2026 participants.
Trevor Story was the last Colorado player in the Derby, and he hit 20 in front of his home crowd at Coors Field in 2021.
Here’s a look at the last 10 years of Derby winners:
