SOUTH JORDAN — Former major league slugger Nick Swisher noticed the winds blowing out to right field as he toured The Ballpark at America First Square during a snowstorm shortly before this year’s baseball season started.
He was out scouting potential sites for MLB’s Home Run Derby X — a baseball event he helped create a few years ago — and knew it would be the perfect place to set up a stage for fans eager to snag a souvenir.
“It seemed like a no-brainer to be able to shift our stage towards that berm, where we could — No. 1 — put most of the fans, and also — No. 2 — where that jet stream goes out, as well,” he told KSL.com, as he recalled that visit.
Several months later, the stage is now set for that two-day event to take place.
The Home Run Derby X season-ending finals will be held this Friday and Saturday, ending with the crowning of a new champion and fireworks display. A drone show and kids clinic are also part of the festivities planned throughout the weekend.
What is Home Run Derby X?
Baseball fans are familiar with MLB’s annual Home Run Derby, as it’s been a staple of the MLB All-Star Game festivities since 1985.
Home Run Derby X is similar, but different.
For starters, batters will swing from a “hitting stage” set up near third base instead of at home plate. This directs more home runs toward the “home run zone” set up along the right field berm. It now celebrates both baseball and softball by having co-ed teams stacked with some of the top stars in both sports.
“It’s almost our version of getting to the good stuff. The most exciting play in the game of baseball is a home run, and everyone loves seeing the ball travel over the fence,” said Swisher, an MLB All-Star, World Series champion and proud “girl dad,” who helped create the first event in 2022 as part of MLB’s efforts to grow the game internationally.
A map showing the setup for Home Run Derby X at The Ballpark at America First Square. The two-day event will be held on Friday and Saturday. (Photo: Miller Sports + Entertainment)
There’s also defense, because if hitting a home run is the most exciting play in baseball, robbing one is right behind. Four teams are on the field during a game, and the three teams not hitting are out in the field trying to do just that.
The whole spectacle aims to provide entertainment for all ages, regardless of their baseball or softball knowledge. Swisher said it’s a way to give back to baseball and softball fans, while also building a new audience for both sports. About 20% of the audience at previous events said they weren’t fans before.
“If you are even somebody who has never seen the game of baseball before in your life, you find yourself in the middle of an absolute party with a bunch of home runs being hit,” he said. “It’s great to be able to have new fans coming into the ballpark all the time. … When they come to this event, they get the bug, and they realize how amazing the games of baseball and softball really are.”
It’s too early to say if having an MLB-related event is foreshadowing for MLB down the road, as Salt Lake City explores a big league franchise. At the very least, it’s Utah’s shot to showcase what it has to offer the baseball world, said Michelle Smith, president of Miller Sports + Entertainment.
“We absolutely love that that we get to be the place for the finals and showcase their skills and talent, so that we can continue to influence the excitement and support around baseball and softball in the state,” she said.
Who is competing?
Teams representing the Los Angeles Dodgers, St. Louis Cardinals, Toronto Blue Jays and Washington Nationals all qualified by winning events held at various U.S. cities since the “season” began with the All-Star Game weekend in Atlanta earlier this summer. Three wild card teams — including the New York Yankees and Kansas City Royals — will also compete, as will the home team, Salt Lake Bees.
Each team features at least one baseball and softball player.
Cole Tucker, a fan favorite who was with the Bees last season, will join former University of Utah standout Hannah Flippen and four-time MLB All-Star Jose Reyes on the team. In addition to Swisher, former big league stars like Todd Frazier, Adrián González, Mike Moustakas, Ryan Zimmerman and Adam Wainwright will compete.
While Home Run Derby X brings in former big leaguers, it also highlights top players in the Athletes Unlimited Softball League, and also some of the top college players through name, image and likeness possibilities. Jocelyn Alo, Taylor Shumaker and Ali Newland are among the participating softball stars.
The teams:
Bees: Hannah Flippen, Jose Reyes and Cole Tucker.Blue Jays: Rachel Garcia, Kevin Pillar and Devon Travis.Cardinals: Rick Ankiel, Taylor Shumaker and Adam Wainwright.Dodgers: Grady Emerson, Adrián González and Mya Perez.Nationals: Ian Desmond, Ali Newland and Ryan Zimmerman.Royals: Bri Ellis, Tiare Jennings and Mike Moustakas.Yankees: Jocelyn Alo, Todd Frazier and Nick Swisher.Wild Card: Jayda Coleman, Chris McHugh and Sydney Romero.
Gates open at 5:30 p.m. on both nights, and there will be music and entertainment before the event starts at 7 p.m. Ticket costs range from $20 to $55 per night.
The Key Takeaways for this article were generated with the assistance of large language models and reviewed by our editorial team. The article, itself, is solely human-written.