On Monday, in advance of its All-Star game, Major League Baseball will hold its annual Home Run Derby at Citizens Bank Park in South Philadelphia . Eight men will take part in the competition, including the Philadelphia Phillies ' Bryce Harper and Kyle Schwarber .
Harper and Schwarber took part in the Home Run Derby in 2018, back when Harper was with the Washington Nationals and Schwarber was a member of the Chicago Cubs . Harper ended up winning, and it was Schwarber whom he got past in the final round.
The event was previously held in Philadelphia in 1996, which was the last time the All-Star game took place there. Since its inaugural edition in 1985, seven members of the Phillies have been in the Home Run Derby, and a couple of them have won.
Here is a look back at each participant who was a member of Philadelphia during the year he took part in the Home Run Derby.
Jun 16, 2012; Toronto, ON, Canada; Philadelphia Phillies designated hitter Jim Thome (25) bats against the Toronto Blue Jays at the Rogers Centre. The Blue Jays beat the Phillies 6-5. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
Thome, a Hall of Fame inductee, spent three years with the Phillies from 2003 to 2005, then returned to the team in 2012. In 2004, he competed in the Home Run Derby a year after leading Major League Baseball with 47 home runs.
While he hit four homers in the first round, he ended up finishing sixth. Miguel Tejada of the Baltimore Orioles defeated Lance Berkman in the final round to take the title.
Mar 1, 2014; Tampa, FL, USA; Philadelphia Phillies right fielder Bobby Abreu (53) at bat against the New York Yankees at George M. Steinbrenner Field. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
In his nine years with Philadelphia, Abreu made two All-Star teams in 2004 and 2005. In 2005, he took part in the Home Run Derby, even though he was never known as a true power hitter, but he still managed to put on a show at Comerica Park.
The prior year, Tejada hit a record 27 home runs at the event. Abreu went well above and beyond that with 41 dingers, giving him the title. Pudge Rodriguez, his competitor in the final round, was simply no match for him.
Feb 24, 2010, Clearwater, FL, USA; Philadelphia Phillies first baseman Ryan Howard during photo day at Bright House Field in Clearwater. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
Howard spent all 13 of his MLB seasons with the Phillies, during which time he made three All-Star teams and played a pivotal role in the team winning the 2008 World Series championship. A couple of years before that, he beat all comers at the Home Run Derby.
Over at PNC Park, the home of the Pittsburgh Pirates , which is located right next to the Allegheny River, Howard was excellent during the 2006 iteration of the contest. He had 23 home runs, and six of them landed in the river. He defeated David Wright of the New York Mets in the final round to emerge victorious.
2006 was simply a sensational year for Howard all around, as he led the majors with 58 home runs and 149 runs batted in while batting .313 and achieving an OPS of 1.084. That earned him National League MVP honors just one year after he was the National League Rookie of the Year.
Howard didn't do nearly as well in his other two appearances in the Home Run Derby. He was eliminated in the first round in 2007, and in 2009, he made it to the semifinals before exiting.
May 5, 2008; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Philadelphia Phillies second baseman Chase Utley against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase Field. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
Like Howard, Utley had a long tenure in Philadelphia and helped the team win it all in 2008. That same year, he took part in the Home Run Derby at the original Yankee Stadium during its final year of use.
That season, Utley recorded 104 runs batted in and a career-high 33 home runs. At the Home Run Derby, he had five homers but finished in seventh place while Yankees fans booed him loudly. He was remembered for his profane comment to the Florida Marlins ' Dan Uggla : "Boo? [Expletive] you."
Mar 23, 2018; Bradenton, FL, USA; Philadelphia Phillies left fielder Rhys Hoskins (17) against the Pittsburgh Pirates at LECOM Park. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
In his nine years thus far in Major League Baseball, Hoskins hasn't been named to the All-Star Game. But he did compete in the Home Run Derby in 2018.
He was hot early that day. He knocked out 17 home runs in the first round, and he then went for 20 more in the second round. However, Schwarber just edged him out in the second round with 21 homers, and Schwarber's 21st came just before the clock ran out.
Philadelphia Phillies designated hitter Kyle Schwarber (12) bats against Detroit Tigers during the first inning at Comerica Park in Detroit on Sunday, July 12, 2026. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
In his second Home Run Derby appearance, Schwarber was the top seed and went toe-to-toe with the legendary Albert Pujols in the first round. He and Pujols knocked in 13 home runs apiece, which resulted in a swing-off for the right to face off against Juan Soto in the next round.
Schwarber narrowly lost to the St. Louis Cardinals superstar by one homer. Soto ended up winning the event by edging out Julio Rodriguez in the last round.
Philadelphia Phillies first baseman Alec Bohm (28) holds his broken bat after striking out during the eighth inning against the Arizona Diamondbacks in game seven of the NLCS at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia on Oct. 24, 2023. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
Pretty much no one expected Bohm to win the 2024 edition of the event . But early on, it looked like he had a real shot.
He launched 21 home runs in the first round, which allowed him to advance to the semifinals. There, he faced the Los Angeles Dodgers ' Teoscar Hernndez, and he went on a late tear to force a swing-off. However, Hernndez got the best of Bohm in that swing-off with two home runs to Bohm's one.
This article was originally published on www.si.com/mlb/phillies/onsi as Full History of Every Phillies Player To Participate in the Home Run Derby .
