2021 home run derby
Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports

Let’s recap what went down in Colorado for this year’s version of the Home Run Derby, which featured a familiar face in Pete Alonso.

With the 2020 season lacking an All-Star break, Major League Baseball fans have been waiting for this year’s Home Run Derby in anticipation.

Here’s a breakdown of everything that happened at Coors Field during the annual event Monday night.

Round One 

Olson (3) vs. Mancini (6) 

Trey Mancini

24 HR 

Mancini looked a little nervous heading into the first round but fell into a nice groove after his break. Considering he spent 2020 battling cancer, it’s pretty amazing the amount of stamina and power he possessed.

Mancini did a great job mainly hitting balls that were in his sweet spot and his pitcher additionally impressed at keeping the balls in that zone.

Bonus Time: Earned

Matt Olson

23 HR

Matt Olson began hitting eight of nine out of the park and then fell off a tad bit. He swung at the majority of the balls that were being thrown at him, which possibly tired him out more rapidly than he had hoped.

Quickly approaching Mancini’s total, there was hope Olson could pull ahead — that hope ran out though.

Bonus Time: Earned

Moving on: Trey Mancini

Gallo (2) vs. Story (7)

Trevor Story 

20 HR

Trevor Story hit the ball insanely hard right off the bat and swiftly earned his bonus time. He took his break pretty early on after hitting seven home runs. With a 518-foot bomb, Story broke Aaron Judge’s record (513 feet).

Bonus Time: Earned

Joey Gallo 

19 HR

Considering Joey Gallo is the only MLB player to hit 100 home runs before 100 singles, his time at the plate was initially rough.

Only smacking one home run in his first nine balls, his exit velocity and distance started out great but his launch angle is what led him to struggle.

Once the bonus time arrived, Gallo nearly made an insane comeback after being behind by nine homers. However, he sadly fell a run short.

Bonus Time: Earned

Moving on: Trevor Story

Perez (4) vs. Alonso (5)

Pete Alonso

35 HR 

The 2019 Home Run Derby champ started off as he should with the three hardest-hit home runs of the night. Anyone could tell Pete Alonso was having a great time just crushing balls to centerfield.

With the reigning champ dancing in between breaks, Alonso looked the calmest he’s been at the plate in a while, finishing with an insane 35 home runs.

Bonus Time: Earned (very quickly)

Salvador Perez

28 HR

Perez was a little rocky to start but quickly fell into a groove, hitting eight home runs before his break. He had a lot to go up against and didn’t have great odds going into his bonus time with 17 homers.

Salvador did his best, but totaled 28 homers and fell short of Pete’s 35.

Bonus Time: Earned

Moving on: Pete Alonso

Ohtani (1) vs. Soto (8) 

Juan Soto 

22 HR

Soto began the night hitting the ball ridiculously hard. He broke the previous record set by Story after hitting a 520-foot homer.

With nine bombs going into his break, Soto was in a good spot.

He did an amazing job hitting the ball all over the park and had a great time doing so, finishing with 22 homers.

Bonus Time: Earned

Shohei Ohtani 

Ohtani was slow to begin his performance, really struggling to get under the ball while his pitcher continued to miss the sweet spot. Ohtani entered his bonus time with 17 homers, hitting all of the hardest-hit balls of the night at 117 mph.

Shohei ended up tying Soto at 22 home runs at the buzzer.

Bonus Time: Earned

Totals after tiebreaker:

Soto: 28

Ohtani: 28

Totals after swing-off: 

Soto: 31

Ohtani: 28

Moving on: Juan Soto

Semifinals

Story (7) vs. Mancini (6) 

Trevor Story 

10 HR

Story started off slow, only hitting two home runs in the first minute. Despite having a solid amount of time left, the shortstop seemed pretty tired, calling a timeout around the halfway point with just five homers.

He began falling into a groove and smacked three consecutive home runs but finished the three minutes (without the bonus) at ten home runs.

Bonus Time: Not Earned

Trey Mancini

13 HR

It was obvious Mancini was tired heading into the semifinals, but pickiness and a good pitcher provided sheer assistance. His pitcher placed his balls very well, which helped Trey get under them despite having a shorter swing.

Mancini, an underdog in the Derby, ultimately ousted Story to advance to the finals

Bonus Time: Not Needed

Moving On: Trey Mancini

Alonso (5) vs. Soto (8) 

Juan Soto

15 HR

Soto was initially slow but ended up hitting five home runs in the first minute. Going into the semifinals, Juan was noticeably exhausted, which was understandable considering he had to put in extra work to reach that point.

Soto finished his bonus time with 15 home runs, wishing a 16th had gone out.

Bonus Time: Earned

Pete Alonso

16 HR

Pete launched his first five homers on seven hits, making it look easy. With still a minute and a half left, Pete had already crushed ten balls out of the park.

Going into the break with 14 homers on 21 swings, Alonso beat Soto with a minute left.

Bonus Time: Not Needed

Moving On: Pete Alonso

Finals 

Mancini (6) vs. Alonso (5)

Trey Mancini 

22 HR

Mancini commenced the finals by hitting five balls out of the park before taking a break in the two-minute round.

Finishing up his final round with 17 homers before the bonus time, Mancini was electric.

During the bonus minute, Trey shelled out five more homers, finishing with a total of 22.

Bonus Time: Earned

Pete Alonso 

Alonso began his final round by quickly hitting the bonus; he smacked three homers in the first 30 seconds (and seven straight).

Going into his break with 12 homers, Pete finished his final round before the bonus with 17 balls crushed over the fence.

Pete subsequently defended his title with six home runs on as many balls, winning his second consecutive Home Run Derby.

Bonus Time: Earned

Winner: Pete Alonso

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Tatiana Snedeker
http://Clippings.me/tatianasnedeker
A long island native, Tatiana is a 21-year-old health studies student, an EMT, and runs her own small business. A self-proclaimed "loud New York sports fan" with a passion for baseball she loves to spend her free time writing about anything and everything about the sport. Follow her on Twitter for more of her work! @TatianaAudley

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