Home Run Derby: 5 best performances of all time

By Brad Weiss | Jul 9, 2016

Jul 13, 2015; Cincinnati, OH, USA; General view of the video board as the home run derby participants stand for the National Anthem prior to the 2015 Home Run Derby the day before the MLB All Star Game at Great American Ballpark. Mandatory Credit: David Kohl-USA TODAY Sports /

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NEW YORK – JULY 14: Josh Hamilton of the Texas Rangers bats during the 2008 MLB All-Star State Farm Home Run Derby at Yankee Stadium on July 14, 2008 in the Bronx borough of New York City. (Photo by Rob Tringali/Sportschrome/Getty Images) /

1. 2008: Josh Hamilton, Yankee Stadium

The New York Yankees hosted the 2008 All-Star festivities, an honor bestowed upon them due to the fact that they would be moving out of the old Yankee Stadium for the 2009 season. It was a stadium that housed plenty of memories, and for some fans, a couple of ghosts. However, on a hot summer night in the Bronx, it would be a Texas Ranger who would become a legend.

Josh Hamilton was a feel good story for Major League Baseball heading into the 2008 season. The one-time can’t miss prospect had nearly ruined his career due to drug use and was making his first All-Star Game appearance. Blessed with a sweet left-handed power stroke, it looked as if Hamilton was made for Yankee Stadium, and on this night, he was.

All Hamilton did was put on a show for the ages, blasting a derby-record 28 home runs in the first round alone. Not only did he hit the ball out, but he crushed the baseball time and time again, bringing the Yankee Stadium crowd to its feet.

Though he would fall to Justin Morneau for the title, the night belonged to Hamilton, who retook his place as one of the top young talents in Major League Baseball.

There have been plenty of historical events in the old Yankee Stadium, and the night Josh Hamilton captivated New York City is definitely one of them.

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