by Daniel Gettinger

• 2 Home runs?  Come on Adrian, I can’t say I expected more, but I was certainly hoping for at least a respectable performance.  That said, while 2 home runs is pretty weak, I’m willing to give Adrian a pass this time.  Not only does the home run derby not matter, but it sounds like just getting to the park was a bit of an adventure.
• Every year I get somewhat excited for the derby, and every year, I get bored after about 5 minutes. The first few home runs are cool, and some of them do go quite far, which is very impressive, but after a little while, I find myself rooting for outs rather than home runs.  I force myself to sit through the whole thing, but don’t really enjoy it.
• Over the weekend, I was channel surfing and watched a few minutes of the 1999 home run derby. Ken Griffey Jr. won his third derby.  ”Pitching” to him was former Rockies manager Clint Hurdle.
• Chris Berman has only one home run call: “back, back, back, back, back…”!  And its been that way for well over a decade, maybe even two decades.  For something like the home run derby, I don’t really mind his schtick, but just a bit more creativity would be nice.
• I know Nelson Cruz has hit 22 home runs this season, but I did not want to see him win the home run derby.  When I think about home run hitters, Nelson Cruz does not come to mind.  Prince Fielder does.  The derby is about watching fan favorite power hitters put on a display.  Prince is the type of guy I want to see win the thing, not someone like Nelson Cruz.
• I love the umpires in the outfield.  Those guys are not umpires so much as they are baby-sitters for the ball-kids in the outfield.
• Speaking of the ball-kids…is anybody else surprised more of them don’t get smacked with a line drive or hit in the face with a ball?  That outfield is total chaos with dozens of kids waving their gloves in the air and doing anything in their power to catch each and every ball.  The balls are hit hard, and with all the distractions, I can’t imagine they have a great view of the ball.
• I get a real kick out of the fans who will do anything to grab a home run ball.  45 year old guys routinely push 8 year old kids out of the way while diving face first onto concrete stadium steps for a chance at a ball.  Have they forgotten that this is a home run derby?  Dozens of home runs are hit. Grabbing a ball is nothing special.  Those balls have minimal monetary value.  They are certainly worth less than the dozens of beers that are dropped in the quest to take a ball home.
• If San Diego ever hosts the all-star game, I think they should let the derby participants use aluminum bats.  Otherwise, a record for quickest home run derby of all time could easily be set.