The Home Run Derby Clock Is GONE and Cal Raleigh's Title Defense Is About To Get WILD

Yo, M's fans, you hear this wild news dropping today? Hold up, because this is HUGE for our guy! It's official: MLB is scrapping the clock for the Home Run Derby! That's right, the timed rounds? Gone. Kaput. And you know what that means for Cal Raleigh? Our friggin' defending champion, Mr. Clutch himself, is about to defend his crown in a whole new ballgame come July 13 in Philly!

The Clock Strikes Midnight For The Derby

Can you believe they're actually going back to how it was? For years, this league swore by time. Remember how they brought the clock into the Derby back in 2015? It was supposed to add "urgency" they said. Even though, hilariously, they had to cut it from five minutes to four minutes permanently in 2016 because of, get this, "inclement weather" during the first run. The irony is, a sport that literally has NO clock for its actual games, embraced it for the Derby! They even slapped a pitch clock on the main game in 2023, and yeah, that actually has sped things up. But for the Derby? Nah, the clock is officially out.

Swing Away, Big Dumper!

So, what's the deal now? It's all about the swings, baby! The new format, which we

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'll see go down live on Netflix for the first time ever, is all about raw power and endurance. We're talking 20 swings in the first round for each of the eight competitors. Then, for the semifinals and finals, it drops to 15 swings per round. And get this, if you smash a homer on your final swing, you keep going until you don't! That's HUGE for momentum! It's a bracket-style setup too: Round 1 cuts the field to four, then the top home-run hitter faces the one who hits the fourth most home runs, and the second and third finishers also square off. Winners go to the finals. It's gonna be a pure slugfest, just like the good old days when Dave Parker won the very first one in '85. This is a massive shift, especially for our guy Cal. He conquered the clock last year in Atlanta, ripping dingers at Truist Park and taking home the 2025 title. Now, he's gotta adapt his whole strategy to a swings-based challenge. We know Big Dumper loves a challenge, right? So get ready, Mariners fans! We've got July 13 circled on our calendars. Our defending champ is gonna step up to the plate, and T-Mobile Park will be roaring with pride even from afar. Let's see Cal Raleigh make history again and show the league that the Emerald City runs the Home Run Derby, clock or no clock!

This article was created with AI assistance and reviewed by Seattle On Tap editorial staff. Always verify information with official team sources.