# 2026 Major League Baseball Home Run Derby
The 2026 Major League Baseball Home Run Derby was the annual home run hitting contest held at [Citizens Bank Park](https://www.edgepedia.org/citizens-bank-park) in Philadelphia on July 13, 2026, as part of All-Star week, and it was won by Jordan Walker of the [St. Louis Cardinals](https://www.edgepedia.org/st-louis-cardinals), who hit six straight home runs in the final round.[1](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mUN6bv04okY) • [2](https://www.mlb.com/athletics/news/home-run-derby-format-change-for-2026) The event was the first Derby to stream live on Netflix, moving off the ESPN broadcasts that had carried it for decades.[2](https://www.mlb.com/athletics/news/home-run-derby-format-change-for-2026)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Date and venue | July 13, 2026, Citizens Bank Park, Philadelphia[2](https://www.mlb.com/athletics/news/home-run-derby-format-change-for-2026) |
| Broadcast | First Home Run Derby to stream live on Netflix[2](https://www.mlb.com/athletics/news/home-run-derby-format-change-for-2026) |
| Format | Swing-based: 20 swings in Round 1, 15 in Round 2, 15 in the final; no timer and no "outs"[2](https://www.mlb.com/athletics/news/home-run-derby-format-change-for-2026) |
| Field | Eight players in a single pool; top four homer totals advance to head-to-head semifinals (No. 1 vs. No. 4, No. 2 vs. No. 3)[2](https://www.mlb.com/athletics/news/home-run-derby-format-change-for-2026) |
| Tiebreakers | Home run distance in Round 1; three-swing swing-offs in Rounds 2 and 3[2](https://www.mlb.com/athletics/news/home-run-derby-format-change-for-2026) |
| Winner | Jordan Walker, with six consecutive home runs in the final round[1](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mUN6bv04okY) |
## The 2026 format change
[Major League Baseball](https://www.edgepedia.org/major-league-baseball) did away with the timer that had governed the [Home Run Derby](https://www.edgepedia.org/home-run-derby) since 2015, reverting to a swing-based format for the 2026 competition.[2](https://www.mlb.com/athletics/news/home-run-derby-format-change-for-2026) The clock had been introduced in 2015, when the event moved away from the older "outs" system in which each rounder began with a fixed number of outs and every non-homer swing counted toward that total.[3](https://www.mlb.com/giants/news/new-home-run-derby-format-rules-announced-2024) The timed era produced dramatic finishes, including [Todd Frazier](https://www.edgepedia.org/todd-frazier)'s last-second win in the clock's first year, but the rounds often became a race in which the hitter and pitcher tried to push through as many swings as possible, leaving little time to watch each drive land.[4](https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/mlb-home-run-derby-format/) • [5](https://abcnews.com/Sports/home-run-derby-rule-aimed-reducing-frantic-pace/story?id=111563888)
**The swing allotments.** Each participant started a round with a finite number of swings: 20 in Round 1, 15 in Round 2, and 15 again in the final round. Every swing counted against the allotment whether it produced a homer or not, but a player who homered on his final swing of a round could keep swinging until he failed to hit one out.[2](https://www.mlb.com/athletics/news/home-run-derby-format-change-for-2026) There was no bonus round and no bracket for the first round, both features of the 2024 and 2025 versions.[2](https://www.mlb.com/athletics/news/home-run-derby-format-change-for-2026)
**Advancement and ties.** As in 2024 and 2025, all eight hitters entered a single pool for Round 1, and the four highest home run totals advanced to the semifinals, where they were seeded by first-round totals and met head-to-head, No. 1 against No. 4 and No. 2 against No. 3, to determine the two finalists.[2](https://www.mlb.com/athletics/news/home-run-derby-format-change-for-2026) A tie in the first round was broken by home run distance, with the tied participant who hit the longest homer advancing; later rounds used three-swing swing-offs until a winner was decided.[2](https://www.mlb.com/athletics/news/home-run-derby-format-change-for-2026)
The new setup is closer to the pre-2015 era, when players began each round with a set number of "outs" and tried to hit as many homers as possible before running out.[2](https://www.mlb.com/athletics/news/home-run-derby-format-change-for-2026)
## The competition
Jordan Walker won the Derby, closing the final round with six straight home runs.[1](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mUN6bv04okY) MLB's coverage placed him among the youngest Derby champions.[2](https://www.mlb.com/athletics/news/home-run-derby-format-change-for-2026) In the semifinal round, [Kyle Schwarber](https://www.edgepedia.org/kyle-schwarber), Willson Contreras, and Junior Caminero all showed notable power before Walker took the title.[1](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mUN6bv04okY)
## Broadcast and presentation
The Derby's television home had been in flux. ESPN opted out of its MLB contract in February 2025, giving up a package that averaged $550 million per season and included the Home Run Derby and Wild Card games, and Netflix, NBC/Peacock, and Apple TV were reported to be in talks for the Derby rights.[6](https://apnews.com/article/35aa6d8f9cf9c748a43dc572f4085e1c) The 2026 event became the first Derby streamed live on Netflix.[2](https://www.mlb.com/athletics/news/home-run-derby-format-change-for-2026)
Participants wore their home team uniforms, a change MLB announced in 2024 when it scrapped the special All-Star jerseys used from 2021 through 2024; other players on the field watching the competition wore special uniforms.[7](https://apnews.com/article/8f3891854c6aab41e02a8a08c4263ea2)
## Context in Derby history
The Derby has been a midsummer staple during the All-Star break since 1985, and its format has changed many times, with eight players typically competing in head-to-head matchups until a winner is determined.[8](https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/2325967120983350) The 2015 switch to a clock was widely praised at the time, but the 2024 rules changes, which capped the number of pitches a hitter could see per round, were already an attempt to slow the frantic pace.[9](https://www.sportingnews.com/ca/mlb/news/home-run-derby-format-rounds-time-limits-tie-rules/52bd645d5e13d6c32a7a77bc) • [10](https://www.si.com/mlb/mlb-new-home-run-derby-rules-explained) The 2026 elimination of the timer went further, returning the contest to a swing-count basis for the first time in eleven years.[2](https://www.mlb.com/athletics/news/home-run-derby-format-change-for-2026)
## References
1. [Jordan Walker hits 6 STRAIGHT HOMERS to win the 2026 HOME RUN DERBY! (MLB, YouTube)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mUN6bv04okY)
2. [Changes coming to 2026 Home Run Derby, MLB.com](https://www.mlb.com/athletics/news/home-run-derby-format-change-for-2026)
3. [New Home Run Derby format, rules announced 2024, MLB.com](https://www.mlb.com/giants/news/new-home-run-derby-format-rules-announced-2024)
4. [MLB alters Home Run Derby format again, eliminates clock, CBS Sports](https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/mlb-home-run-derby-format/)
5. [Home Run Derby rule changes aimed at reducing frantic pace, ABC News](https://abcnews.com/Sports/home-run-derby-rule-aimed-reducing-frantic-pace/story?id=111563888)
6. [How MLB's upcoming deals will change how you watch out-of-market, Sunday night and Wild Card games, AP News](https://apnews.com/article/35aa6d8f9cf9c748a43dc572f4085e1c)
7. [Major League Baseball scraps criticized All-Star Game uniforms and goes back to team jerseys, AP News](https://apnews.com/article/8f3891854c6aab41e02a8a08c4263ea2)
8. [Home Run Derby Participation in MLB Players: Injury Risk and Second-Half Performance, Orthopaedic Journal of Sports Medicine](https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/2325967120983350)
9. [home run derby format, explained:number of rounds, time limits, tie rules for mlb's slugfest | sporting news](https://www.sportingnews.com/ca/mlb/news/home-run-derby-format-rounds-time-limits-tie-rules/52bd645d5e13d6c32a7a77bc)
10. [Explaining MLB's New Home Run Derby Rules, Sports Illustrated](https://www.si.com/mlb/mlb-new-home-run-derby-rules-explained)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Sports, games, and recreation › Other team and ball sports › Baseball and related bat sports › Professional baseball in the Americas › MLB seasons and year-in-baseball chronology › Drafts, All-Star Games, and honors*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 21, 2026 · Edited: Oct 11, 2026; Oct 21, 2026 · Last review: Oct 21, 2026*
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License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license