PHILADELPHIA -- The sold-out crowd got on its feet, expecting hometown hero Kyle Schwarber to win his first ever Home Run Derby in his third try.
But St. Louis Cardinals outfielder Jordan Walker staged a dramatic finish, hitting six consecutive home runs in the finals to stun the Philadelphia faithful. He became the first player in Cardinals franchise history to take the derby crown.
"I can't even describe how it means to win it," Walker said. "It was a lot of swings, a lot of pressure, but I think I just had fun no matter what. Every round I was having a good time."
Walker hit 12 home runs in the finals to Schwarber's 11 as the latter watched the former win it with a 407-foot blast to left.
"I knew I was in a good position but I know anything can happen too," Schwaber said. "And Jordan was unbelievable there... so you can't say enough about how he was able to kind of slow the moment down and lock it in."
Schwarber beat Willson Contreras in the semifinals to advance while Walker outlasted Junior Caminero. Another Philadelphia player, first baseman Bryce Harper, was eliminated in Round 1 when he only hit eight home runs. He joined Jac Caglianone (8), Munetaka Murakami (9) and Ben Rice (7) on the sidelines after that opening round.
"It was great," Harper said of the experience. "I wish I got on a better roll than that. But I had a blast. I thought Kyle was going to get his first one but Walker came out and hit a [bunch] in a row to win it. Pretty cool."
The crowd got loudest in rooting against anyone that went up against the hometown favorites. When Contreras was eliminated by Schwarber, they let him know it. And they also tried their best to oust Walker -- though to no avail.
"My thought was Philly is brutal," Walker said of the crowd. "I mean, honestly. But I think it's pretty special because they love their players and that's what you want from where you play."
Players seemed to like the new format, which allowed for 20 untimed swings in the first round, 15 in the second and 15 more in the finals. Walker hit a total of 31 home runs -- the same amount that Schwarber hit on the night. The MLB's home run leader acknowledged the hometown crowd got him a little over-amped.
"From pitch one where I felt like I was just going too hard, trying way too hard because I wanted to go get it and I wanted to do it for them," Schwarber said. "I was talking to myself, I just have to slow it down here because it's rowdy and you feed off that."
Other highlights included Caminero's 491-foot blast in Round 1, the longest homer of the night. It landed one foot further than Contreras' longest, a 490-foot shot, also in Round 1. But it was Walker's dramatic finish that quieted the stadium for good.
"As I saw it carrying a little bit, I was getting excited," Walker said of his winning homer. "When it cleared the bleachers, that's when I kind of blacked out and just celebrated with my teammates."
