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I didn't think I'd ever get angry about the Home Run Derby, but here we are. This year's edition of the annual event taking place on All-Star Monday is being altered again. This time, they are eliminating the clock.
My immediate reaction? I was livid.
I've been saying for years that I wanted to give a huge bear hug to whoever came up with the idea to slap a clock on that thing. My last memory of the event pre-clock is just watching Jose Bautista standing in the batter's box, taking pitch after pitch after pitch (apologies to Jose; everyone was doing it, he's just the one standing out in my memory).
I'm well aware that memories can play tricks on us, but what I have coursing through my brain from 2014 is the hitters taking more pitches than swinging. I'm sure I'm wrong, but it seriously feels like they swung at less than half the offerings -- and remember, these are batting practice pitchers who each competitor has personally chosen. This means that these pitchers are up there trying to let them hit home runs. And the hitters still just stand there, watching a parade of pitches pass them by.
MLB alters Home Run Derby format again, eliminates clock ahead of 2026 All-Star event Mike Axisa
Yes, I'm also aware why they are watching so many pitches. They are resting. Some miss the spot where they want it, but other times the hitter isn't swinging, no matter what, because he needs a break.
How compelling.
Sarcasm aside, it was becoming such a drag.
The clock took an event that, in my opinion, was on life support and breathed enough into it to make it better than ever. I'm going to miss glancing up at the clock and then back at the hitter, trying to guess if he has enough time to catch the player he's facing head-to-head.
If it was too tiring for the hitters, then shorten the clock. They were finding ways these last few years to extend the thing at every turn. Hell, just give them a minute. That's fine with me. Urgency is what a clock provides and now that's gone.
I will say, on the other hand, that I was pleased that the new format will simply have a number of swings per hitter instead of the old format, which was outs. That meant a player had 10 outs and could hit an unlimited number of home runs until 10 balls didn't leave the ballpark. In this format, they don't have an unlimited number of swings. That's a good thing.
The absolute last thing we need is the event to feel like it's dragging along and isn't exciting.
For me, the clock made it exponentially more exciting than it had been in the previous few years. I'm very angry -- yes, about an ostensibly meaningless event -- about the Home Run Derby. Sigh.
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