ESPN will be the exclusive home of the 2023 T-Mobile Home Run Derby on Monday, July 10. Sluggers including Seattle Mariners outfielder Julio Rodríguez, New York Mets first baseman Pete Alonso and Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Mookie Betts. The presentation of the Home Run Derby will contain various changes from ESPN highlighted by new 3D ball-tracking technology to accentuate the viewing experience. Taking a similar approach to golf broadcasts, ESPN will present a rendering of T-Mobile Park, the home of the Seattle Mariners, and utilize Statcast data to outline where the home runs are landing.
Karl Ravech, who took over for Chris Berman after he stepped aside following the 2016 iteration of the event, will be on the call. Ravech compared the role to serving as an air traffic controller. Essentially, he will need to monitor multiple pieces of action simultaneously and ensure viewers are not confused by what is occurring.
“The Home Run Derby’s as difficult an event that I call because of the speed of it,” Ravech expressed. “The concept of, ‘You can’t throw a pitch until the prior one lands,’ is not necessarily obeyed all the time.”
The allure of the Home Run Derby has long captivated baseball fans since the first time the event took place on the All-Star stage in 1985. Over the years, the competition has become baseball’s version of a skills competition. Because of the popularity of home runs and the excitement they catalyze in spectators, an enigmatic feeling penetrates the atmosphere and adds an extra layer of significance to the event.
“I do think in a lot of ways when we grew up, the heavyweight champion of the world was recognized as universal as any other athlete,” Ravech said. “If you go way, way back to when Babe Ruth was playing, there is something about a home run and a home run champion.”
ESPN’s baseball property is optimistic that its Home Run Derby viewership will continue to rise after it drew an average of 6.9 million viewers last year across ESPN and ESPN2, peaking at 7.5 million viewers. On the night before though, ESPN, in conjunction with MLB Network, will present the first round and compensatory selections for the 2023 MLB Draft, taking place from Lumen Field, the home of the Seattle Seahawks.
ESPN’s coverage of the T-Mobile Home Run Derby begins at 4 p.m. EST/ 1 p.m. PST with a special edition of Baseball Tonight on ESPN. The action continues at 7 p.m. when a Statcast edition of the show airs on ESPN2, along with an alternate broadcast of the action focused on the analytics and technology beginning at 8 p.m. featuring Kevin Brown, Jessica Mendoza and Mike Petriello. The traditional broadcast of the event takes place at the same time on ESPN featuring Ravech and Pérez. On Sunday night, the MLB Draft presented by Nike begins at 7 p.m. EST/4 p.m. PST on ESPN and ESPN+, preceded by an hour-long edition of Baseball Tonight.
