Home Run Derby: It’s Kyle Schwarber’s turn to confirm his participation

Over the next few days, the All-Star Game festivities will kick off in the world of baseball. The game will take place on Tuesday, but we'll also get to enjoy the home run derby the day before.

And the lineup of contenders is starting to look interesting: Junior Caminero, Ben Rice, Jac Caglianone, Willson Contreras, Jordan Walker, and Bryce Harper have all already confirmed their participation.

But last night, Don Mattingly hinted during his postgame press conference that Kyle Schwarber would also be taking part in the competition—even though it hadn't been confirmed.

But just a few minutes ago, it became clear that Mattingly did indeed let the cat out of the bag last night: Schwarber confirmed that he will be taking part in the competition.

So we'll have two Phillies players (Schwarber and Harper) in a competition taking place in Philadelphia.

It's worth noting that Schwarber leads the majors this season with 32 home runs, making him a logical candidate. He had recently expressed interest, noting that he wanted to make sure his back would hold up following a recent injury.

So there's reason to believe he's good to go, which is good news.

This will be Schwarber's third appearance in the competition; he was a finalist in 2018 (losing to Bryce Harper) and was eliminated in the first round in 2022.

That said, since then, Schwarber has established himself as one of MLB's best home run hitters. He's in a league of his own and must be considered the favorite as things stand.

Will he be able to win his first title in the competition? We'll see… but doing so in front of his home crowd would undoubtedly be a special moment for him.

That leaves one eighth and final contender to round out the picture. And one name being mentioned is James Wood.

It would be cool to see him go up against the Phillies.

That said, Schwarber is a major draw for the contest, and it's safe to say that will delight fans in Philadelphia.

Well done, then.

Created by humans, assisted by AI.