Breakout slugger Walker wins HR Derby with electric final round, quieting Philly faithful

The T-Mobile Home Run Derby is always electric, and this year’s competition featured one of the most thrilling finishes we’ve seen since the event began in 1985.

Cardinals outfielder Jordan Walker captured the 2026 Derby crown with an incredible final round, beating Phillies designated hitter Kyle Schwarber 12-11 in front of a partisan Philly crowd at Citizens Bank Park.

Three home runs behind Schwarber with just one do-or-die swing remaining, Walker had his back squarely against the wall needing four homers in a row to surpass Schwarber and take the Derby chain. He did exactly that, stunning the Philadelphia faithful and becoming the Cardinals’ first-ever Derby winner.

Here are the round-by-round results from the 2026 T-Mobile Home Run Derby.

Finals

Jordan Walker defeats Kyle Schwarber

Walker
HR total: 12

It was a high bar for Walker to clear, as the hometown hero Schwarber put on quite the display in the final round -- but the Cardinals’ young star was up to the task. Walker crushed a dozen home runs, going on a heater at the end with a stretch of homers to surpass Schwarber and win the Derby. Walker homered on his final six swings -- including on four do-or-die swings in the bonus round -- stunning the Philly faithful and taking home the competition honors.

LONGEST HR: 455 feet
HARDEST HR: 113 mph
AVG. HR DISTANCE: 429 feet
AVG. HR EXIT VELO: 107 mph

Schwarber
HR total: 11

Schwarber set the tone in the Home Run Derby final, putting on a show for the Phillies faithful with an amazing final round at Citizens Bank Park. He started his round with a 109 mph, 444-foot dinger and launched six homers in his first eight swings to get off to an impressive start. Schwarber closed strong as well, winding up with 11 homers in his final Derby round.

LONGEST HR: 445 feet
HARDEST HR: 113 mph
AVG. HR DISTANCE: 416 feet
AVG. HR EXIT VELO: 107 mph

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Semifinals

Kyle Schwarber defeats Willson Contreras

Schwarber
HR total: 9

It looked like a subpar round for Schwarber at first, but MLB’s home run leader with 32 this season caught fire during his semifinal with the hometown crowd egging him on. The Phillies slugger failed to homer on his first three swings but followed with seven homers in eight swings, including a 449-foot shot. He launched two more homers on back-to-back swings to finish his round with nine dingers.

LONGEST HR: 449 feet
HARDEST HR: 111 mph
AVG. HR DISTANCE: 410 feet
AVG. HR EXIT VELO: 106 mph

Contreras
HR total: 8

Contreras put on quite the show and nearly advanced to the finals by matching Schwarber’s nine home runs. But down to his last swing, Contreras popped out and finished with eight, one shy of his semifinal opponent. Contreras averaged 435 feet on his home runs and topped out at 461 feet.

LONGEST HR: 461 feet
HARDEST HR: 115 mph
AVG. HR DISTANCE: 435 feet
AVG. HR EXIT VELO: 109 mph

Jordan Walker defeats Junior Caminero

Walker
HR total: 6

Walker only needed six home runs to surpass Caminero and he got there in short order. His elite pull-side power was on display as four of them traveled at least 420 feet, including one that traveled 468 feet. Through the first two rounds, Walker hit 19 home runs, 14 of which traveled 420-plus feet.

LONGEST HR: 468 feet
HARDEST HR: 114 mph
AVG. HR DISTANCE: 429 feet
AVG. HR EXIT VELO: 109 mph

Caminero
HR total: 5

After hitting 12 home runs on 20 swings in the first round, Caminero couldn’t quite replicate his performance in Round 2. Of his 15 swings in the semifinals, he managed just five home runs. Caminero’s fourth homer of the round was an absolute moonshot, traveling 491 feet -- the longest dinger of the night thus far, surpassing Willson Contreras’ 490-foot shot.

LONGEST HR: 491 feet
HARDEST HR: 113 mph
AVG. HR DISTANCE: 428 feet
AVG. HR EXIT VELO: 109 mph

Round 1

Bryce Harper, Phillies -- Eliminated
HR total: 8

Harper immediately followed his Phillies teammate Schwarber. Needing 10 homers to tie, Harper fell just shy with eight home runs. It was a sluggish start, but Harper went on an impressive run later in the round to make a serious bid at surpassing Schwarber. Harper topped out at 482 feet and sent five of his home runs at least 420 feet.

LONGEST HR: 482 feet
HARDEST HR: 112 mph
AVG. HR DISTANCE: 433 feet
AVG. HR EXIT VELO: 109 mph

Kyle Schwarber, Phillies
HR total: 10

Schwarber started slow in his third career Home Run Derby, but he picked it up quickly to electrify his home crowd. After failing to leave the yard on his first five swings, Schwarber crushed four in a row -- kick-started by a 109 mph, 438-foot blast -- to get into gear. He went for distance during the second half of his round, slugging two 451-foot homers as well as a 461-footer. Schwarber wound up with 10 homers, putting himself in position to advance.

LONGEST HR: 461 feet
HARDEST HR: 112 mph
AVG. HR DISTANCE: 426 feet
AVG. HR EXIT VELO: 107 mph

Junior Caminero, Rays
HR total: 12

A year after finishing second in the Derby, Caminero returned and didn’t disappoint in the first round, crushing a dozen home runs. The young Rays slugger hit nine of those at least 420 feet, with three of them traveling 487, 479 and 478 feet. Caminero has not only vaulted himself into the conversation for one of the best young players in baseball -- he’s also going to be a fixture in this competition for years to come.

LONGEST HR: 487 feet
HARDEST HR: 116 mph
AVG. HR DISTANCE: 444 feet
AVG. HR EXIT VELO: 112 mph

Ben Rice, Yankees -- Eliminated
HR total: 7

Rice did not advance to the semifinals after hitting seven home runs, fewer than the Derby’s first four participants. With his father Dan pitching, Rice took a moment to get into a rhythm, failing to homer until his fifth swing. He got hot after that, hitting two more in his next three swings and launching several dingers into the second deck. Needing a homer on his final swing in the bonus round to get a chance to pass Jac Caglianone and stay in contention to advance, Rice couldn’t quite get one over the fence.

LONGEST HR: 443 feet
HARDEST HR: 109 mph
AVG. HR DISTANCE: 417 feet
AVG. HR EXIT VELO: 104 mph

Munetaka Murakami, White Sox -- Eliminated
HR total: 9

The second Japanese-born player to participate in the Derby (following Shohei Ohtani, 2021 at Coors Field), Murakami had a slow start in his round, but really turned on the afterburners as it progressed. The left-handed slugger crushed nine home runs, averaging 421 feet on his homers and topping out at 466 feet. Five of those home runs traveled at least 420 feet, which gave us a glimpse at the type of power he’s displayed for the South Siders this season.

LONGEST HR: 466 feet
HARDEST HR: 114 mph
AVG. HR DISTANCE: 421 feet
AVG. HR EXIT VELO: 110 mph

Jac Caglianone, Royals -- Eliminated
HR total: 8

The first lefty to swing in this year’s Derby, Caglianone couldn’t quite muster up the home run power of Contreras or Walker. After a 462-foot dinger on his second swing, Caglianone failed to clear the fences on seven consecutive cuts, settling for line drives to right field. When he did get hot, though, it was something to watch. The Royals star launched a 475-foot dinger on his 10th swing, beginning a stretch of four straight homers, the last of which traveled 477 feet. He even cleared the ivy-covered batter’s eye in center field with a 463-foot shot later in the round, finishing with eight home runs in his first Derby.

LONGEST HR: 477 feet
HARDEST HR: 116 mph
AVG. HR DISTANCE: 448 feet
AVG. HR EXIT VELO: 111 mph

Jordan Walker, Cardinals
HR total: 13

Walker followed up Contreras with quite the performance, matching him with 13 home runs, with many of them coming early in his round. Ten of those homers traveled at least 420 feet, including a 470-foot home run on his sixth swing. The Cardinals’ breakout star tired as the round progressed, but Walker showed the type of power that led him to making his first All-Star Game and Home Run Derby.

LONGEST HR: 470 feet
HARDEST HR: 115 mph
AVG. HR DISTANCE: 428 feet
AVG. HR EXIT VELO: 107 mph

Willson Contreras, Red Sox
HR total: 13

Contreras got the Derby started with a bang, routinely crushing dingers to left field at Citizens Bank Park and reaching a part of the stadium where home runs rarely land. His very first home run traveled 463 feet, and he proceeded to launch seven homers in his first 10 swings -- including three straight cuts that produced homers of 482, 487 and 470 feet, respectively. Contreras’ eighth home run went 490 feet before he seemed to tire a bit, but he still hit five more homers to end up at 13, an impressive total for the first round.

LONGEST HR: 490 feet
HARDEST HR: 115 mph
AVG. HR DISTANCE: 449 feet
AVG. HR EXIT VELO: 112 mph