MLB changes Home Run Derby format for 2026 without a clock
MLB.com • 1 min read • Latest: Jun 18, 2026, 11:53 AM
Last updated Jun 18, 2026
Major League Baseball is set to modify the Home Run Derby format in 2026, eliminating the clock for the first time since 2015. Instead, contestants will have a set number of swings—20 in the first round and 15 in later rounds. This change follows the trend of increasing home run totals in recent years, with Cal Raleigh winning in 2025 with 54 home runs, compared to Todd Frazier’s 39 in 2015, the first year of the timed format. The new swing-count format may shift the emphasis from speed to swing efficiency, impacting player performance evaluations in the event.
- •2026 Home Run Derby will remove the timed format.
- •Contestants will have 20 swings in the first round and 15 in later rounds.
- •Cal Raleigh won the 2025 Derby with 54 home runs.
- •Todd Frazier's 39 homers in 2015 were the lowest in the timed format.
- •The new format may prioritize swing efficiency over volume.
- 9:37 PMMLB.com — Changes coming to 2026 Home Run Derby - MLB.com
- 11:53 AMYahoo Sports — Home Run Derby stat shows how new 2026 rules could change player totals
"Major League Baseball is reportedly preparing another major change to the Home Run Derby format for 2026, with the event expected to move away from the clock for the first time since the timed format was introduced in 2015. That timing matters because the winning total in 2015 was far lower than the biggest numbers produced in later editions of the modern event.
"The T-Mobile Home Run Derby will have a new format in 2026. Major League Baseball is doing away with the timer that's governed the Home Run Derby since 2015, reverting to a swing-based format for this year's competition at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia o…
Sources
External links- MLB.comJun 18, 2026, 9:37 PMChanges coming to 2026 Home Run Derby - MLB.com
The T-Mobile Home Run Derby will have a new format in 2026. Major League Baseball is doing away with the timer that's governed the Home Run Derby since 2015, reverting to a swing-based format for this year's competition at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia o…
- Yahoo SportsJun 18, 2026, 11:53 AMHome Run Derby stat shows how new 2026 rules could change player totals
Major League Baseball is reportedly preparing another major change to the Home Run Derby format for 2026, with the event expected to move away from the clock for the first time since the timed format was introduced in 2015. That timing matters because the winning total in 2015 was far lower than the biggest numbers produced in later editions of the modern event.
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