Teoscar Hernández hit 19 home runs in opening round of the 2024 MLB Home Run Derby, placing him in a tough position to move on in the event.
Through his first minute and a half, Hernández blasted six homers on 17 pitches, but four of them came on his first six pitches. He then started to get into a groove and concluded his final 18 pitches with seven more home runs to put him at 13 total.
In the bonus round, Hernández really took off, hitting seven home runs with the four outs he had to work with.
Under the new rules, players have 40 pitchers or three minutes to hit as many homers as possible. Hernández left five pitches on the board when the time ran out.
For the bonus round, players get three more outs to hit as many homers as possible, and they can unlock a bonus out with a homer of 425 feet or further.
The first round concludes after all eight players hit. From there, the top four players will advance to the semi-final round.
Hernández finished one ahead of Adolis García with 19, which placed third for among the first four hitters. Alec Bohm hit 21 before Bobby Witt Jr. followed with 20.
Pete Alonso only hit 12 and was the first player eliminated. García became the second player eliminated after he was surpassed by José Ramírez, who finished with 21.
Marcell Ozuna was eliminated after hitting just 16.
Hernández became the 11th player to represent the Los Angeles Dodgers in the Home Run Derby. Throughout its history, the Dodgers have not fared particularly well, and they have never had a winner of the event.
Joc Pederson has been their most successful player.
In 2015, he was not only the first Dodgers player to make it out of the first round, but he also nearly won the whole thing. Pederson ended up losing to Todd Frazier in the final round by one homer.
He was even better in 2019, but lost to Vladimir Guerrero Jr. in the semifinals despite hitting 39 home runs in the round. No Dodgers player has reached the finals aside from Pederson in 2015.
Teoscar Hernández picked Dino Ebel to pitch in the Home Run Derby
Hernández had Dodgers third base coach Dino Ebel pitch to him for the event, and explained his reasoning behind that decision.
Ebel has thrown in a Home Run Derby on four occasions, including most recently in 2019 to Pederson. He most notably pitched to Vladimir Guerrero Sr. in 2007 during his stint with the Los Angeles Angels.
Prior to the Dodgers facing the Detroit Tigers on Saturday afternoon, Hernández resumed Home Run Derby preparations with Ebel. It represented the second day Hernández and Ebel went through the practice of taking swings.
Have you subscribed to the Dodger Blue YouTube channel? Be sure to ring the notification bell to watch player interviews, participate in shows and giveaways, and stay up to date on all Dodgers news and rumors!