Blue Jays slugger Vladimir Guerrero Jr. stomps to Home Run Derby victory

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. from Toronto joined Vladimir Sr. becoming the first father-son duo to win the All-Star Home Run Derby, defeating Tampa Bay’s Randy Arozarena 25-23 in the final round on Monday night.

Guerrero beat Julio Rodriguez 21-20 in the semifinals after the Mariners star made a record 41 in the first round in front of his hometown fans.

Batting against Blue Jays manager John Schneider, Guerrero was the last semifinalist to swing and the first finalist. Vladimir Guerrero Sr. won the 2007 San Francisco derby while with the Los Angeles Angels, beating Alex Rios of the Blue Jays 3–2 in the final.

Batting against Tampa Bay field coordinator Tomas Francisco, Arozarena started his final 30-second segment with 21 home runs and quickly reached 23 before lining up and showing up on his final swings.

Arozarena defeated Luis Robert of the Chicago White Sox 35-22 in the semifinals. Robert made the longest drive of the night, a 150-yard shot to the left in the second round.

Trying to become the youngest Derby winner at the age of 22, Rodriguez knocked out two-time champion Alonso, who hit 21. Rodriguez defeated Corey Seager 32-24 in the first round at Dodger Stadium last year and then knocked out Alonso 31-23 before losing to Juan Soto 19-18 in the final.

Arozarena defeated Adolis Garcia of Texas 24-17 in the opening pair in front of a crowd of 46,952 at T-Mobile Park. Garcia is Arozarena’s daughter’s godfather, and the two jumped into each other’s arms during warm-up.

Robert knocked out Baltimore’s Adley Rutschman 28–27 in the opening round. Rutschman hit 21 left-handed, and the medley hit then turned to the right and hit six more right-handers during a 30-second bonus round. A native of Portland, Oregon, Rutschman grew up attending Mariners games.

Guerrero, back for the first time in four years, defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers’ Mookie Betts 26-11 in the first round. Four years ago in Cleveland, Guerrero hit 29 in the first round and 40 in the second, before losing to Alonso 23-22 in the final.

Alonso was trying for his third title in four years. Ken Griffey Jr. from Seattle is the only three-time winner, having won the title in 1994, ’98 and ’99.

Only three players have won the title at home: Ryne Sandberg of the Chicago Cubs in 1990, Todd Frazier of Cincinnati in 2015 and Bryce Harper of Washington in 2018.