Ranking the top 3 Orioles' Home Run Derby performances

It feels like just yesterday that pitchers and catchers were reporting to spring training to get the baseball season underway, but here we are just days away from the all-star break. Arguably the most exciting part of the all-star festivities is the Home Run Derby, which can be seen Monday at 8pm E.T. on ESPN. The derby first became part of all-star week in 1985 and though it has changed format several time since then, it has remained a fan favorite.

The field of eight contestants is now set and contain some of the games most feared power hitters. The Baltimore Orioles' Gunnar Henderson was the first to announce that he would be participating, followed by Alec Bohm, Jose Ramirez, Pete Alonso, Adolis Garcia, Marcell Ozuna, Bobby Witt Jr. and Teoscar Hernandez.

The derby will return to advancing the top four home run hitters from the first round so the contestants are not ranked and paired against each other this year. Henderson has the most home runs of the group and should be considered among the favorites.

Because the format of the derby has changed so drastically over the years, it's hard to compare some of the past Orioles performances with each other. It's all the Home Run Derby so it's not quite apples to oranges, but maybe red apples to green apples. That being said, here are the three best Home Run Derby performances by an Oriole.

3: Trey Mancini (2021)

Trey Mancini missed the entire 2020 season after receiving a colorectal cancer diagnosis. After beating cancer, Mancini made a triumphant return to baseball in 2021 highlighted but an inspiring performance in the Home Run Derby.

In a format where the players were seeded and matched up head-to-head, Mancini seeded 6th and out slugged Luis Robert in the first round 24 homers to 23. The second round was another nail biter that again saw Mancini prevail by one, this time it was 13-12 over Trevor Story. Mancini gave it his all in the finals and mashed a very impressive 22 homers, but Pete Alonso was just in a grove and his 23 final round home runs took the crown.

2: Miguel Tejada (2004)

The field in the 2004 derby is possibly the most prolific groups of hitters ever put together. Barry Bonds (762), Jim Thome (612),  Sammy Sosa (609), Rafael Palmeiro (569) and David Ortiz (541) all participated in this derby, but it was Tejada, who beat Lance Berkman in the finals, that got the win.

The format at this point was three rounds in which each player got 10 outs per round. Tejada, who was in the first year of his first stint with the Birds, tied with Berkman for third by hitting seven first round homers. He then set a new derby single round record by bashing 15 home runs in the second round before winning the derby with his fifth home run in the final round.

It should be noted that he still had five outs remaining when he won. Tejada also hit the longest home run of that derby with a monumental 497 foot shot.

1: Cal Ripken Jr. (1991)

Some people say that Ripken saved baseball with all the positive attention he brought to the game in 1995 after the strike ended the previous season. It can also be argued that he save the Home Run Derby. After an embarrassing performance where the eight players involved in 1990 mustered a grand total of five home runs, Ripken blew away the competition the next year.

The format at the time consisted of two innings per batter and each batter got five outs per inning. Any swing that did not result in a home run was an out. The Iron Man hit a record 12 long balls to win the derby. It was the first time anyone hit double digit home runs and the other seven players combined for a mere 15 homers. Ripken ushered a new era of power into the derby. He went on to win the all-star MVP and regular season MVP that year as well.

Honorable mention: Adley Rutschman (2023) who hit 27 first round homers and did so from both sides of the plate. He hit more home runs than eventual champion Vladimir Guerrero Jr. hit in any individual round, but he didn't make it past the first round.

Since its inception, numerous Orioles have participated in the derby, but only Ripken and Tejada have come away victorious. They are also the only two shortstops to ever have won the Home Run Derby. Can Henderson make it three?