The 2026 MLB Home Run Derby is turning back the clock and saying goodbye to it simultaneously. MLB officially announced Thursday that the midsummer slugging competition is set to return to a swing-based system for the first time since 2014.
While timed rounds have been part of the past 11 iterations of the Derby, hitters’ bouts will again have no time limit.
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Netflix will broadcast the twist July 13 at Philadelphia’s Citizens Bank Park, as the streaming service will take a hack at showcasing a timeless event that had been tethered to ESPN for decades.
Here’s the breakdown: Eight hitters will make up the first round, the second round will consist of four hitters, and the final round will pit the last two remaining against each other. Head-to-head competition begins in the second round, setting up a four-player semifinals to determine the two-way final. Prior to the semifinals, the four advancing players will be seeded based on their first-round homer totals. The big difference is that each participant will have 20 swings at his disposal in the first round, and those who are still raking in the final two rounds will have 15 swings in those turns at the plate.
That said, if a player goes yard on his final swing, he will be allowed to keep going until a swing doesn’t result in a home run. Farthest home-run distance will break first-round ties, and ties in the second and third rounds will be decided by the players in question engaging in three-swing swing-offs until a winner is determined.
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This format will no longer require fans to watch both a clock and the power-charged hitters. Batters will be allowed to take as much time as they need, just as they did when the Derby capped their rounds with a certain number of “outs,” or swings that didn’t produce home runs.
That also could help the participants, who won’t be in a rush to take as many whacks as possible and therefore could preserve more energy for later rounds.
