Pete Alonso knew it would take a lot to repeat as Home Run Derby champion, especially with current MLB home run leader Shohei Ohtani on his side of the bracket. However, Alonso said he was "on a mission" to win back-to-back Derbies, and mission accomplished.
Alonso hit a total of 74 home runs on Monday night, and defeated Baltimore Orioles first baseman Trey Mancini, 23-22, in the final round to win his second-straight Home Run Derby.
In the first round, Alonso hit a round-high 35 home runs – a first round record and third most in any round ever – to defeat Salvador Perez (whose 28 were the third most in the round) in Round 1, with nine of his 35 surpassing the 475-foot threshold needed to earn an extra 30 seconds of bonus time. Two of Alonso’s homers went more than 500 feet, one going 512 and another 514, and he ranged between 99 MPH and 115 MPH on his exit velocity (with only the second of his 35 failing to come off the bat at triple-digit speed).
That prompted the Mets to post this thin-air graphic:
And then the internet nearly came crashing down:
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Come the semifinal round at Coors Field in Denver, though, it wasn’t Ohtani in his way, but a division rival in Washington Nationals outfielder Juan Soto. After tying Ohtani 22-22 in regulation and 6-6 in a one-minute tiebreaker, Soto defeated Ohtani in a three-swing swing-off, going 3-for-3, while the MLB home run leader hit a ground ball on his only swing.
Soto may have been gassed, hitting just 15 home runs over his four minutes at the plate. Alonso clearly wasn’t tired, cracking 14 home runs in the first 1:57 of the semifinals before calling time out to milk it a little. Once returned, Alonso needed just two pitches to advance, crushing a pair of home runs for an official total of 16, and added one more post-advance for good measure.
Then it was on to face Trey Mancini, who hit 24 home runs in the first round and 13 in the second – 37 total, two more than Alonso hit in Round 1 alone – in the finals, which cut the main time down to two minutes.
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Mancini went on a surge after calling time out about 45 seconds into the round, and finished with 17 home runs in regulation, then another five in his one minute of extra time. That gave Alonso the total to beat: 22, one shy of the final round record 23 Alonso belted in winning the 2019 Home Run Derby.
Alonso crushed his first pitch for a 509-foot home run that cemented him the 30-second distance bonus, reeled off seven in a row at one point, and called time out with 12 in the bank and 36 seconds left.
When asked by ESPN during the break how he felt, Mancini joked: “Not too good right now! He’s got a really good game plan, and makes it look so easy.”
Alonso had to wait as one of the folks shagging balls on the field was helped off due to an injury, but "Polar Bear" just "Polar Beared," bouncing to “Hypnotize” by Notorious B.I.G. before blasting five of his last eight swings out for 17 as the two-minute regulation ended.
That left him needing five to tie and a record-tying six to win. He needed less than 30 seconds to do so, launching all six of Dave Jauss’ pitches into the seats to make 23 and take the trophy from Ken Griffey Jr., who won the 1998 Home Run Derby at Coors Field.
“I’ve done this before, and I’m extremely confident in my ability. I feel like I’m the best power hitter in the game and that was on display tonight,” Alonso told ESPN’s Buster Olney after the Derby, adding that “this is awesome” and winning it “never gets old.”
But will he be back in 2022 to go for the three-peat?
“I don’t know, we’ll see. This event is so fun, and I’m going to enjoy this one for now, but I’ll think on it.”
Follow Lou DiPietro on Twitter: @LouDiPietroWFAN