Home Run Derby 2017: Giancarlo Stanton highlights

The reigning MLB Home Run Derby Champion, Giancarlo Stanton, put on an amazing show for the Miami crowd. He just came up one home run short.

It was an amazing performance. New York Yankees’ catcher Gary Sanchez released the kraken, launching 16 home runs in his opening round matchup. Hometown hero and reigning champion Giancarlo Stanton followed.

The entire build-up in the event was for a final round of Aaron Judge versus Stanton. The idea of two of the biggest bombers in the game matching up in a slugfest was enticing. Could Stanton hold up his end of the deal?

Unfortunately, no. But the show he put on was stellar.

The performance started off very slow. Stanton only hit four home runs in the first minute and a half of his time. His third hit traveled 496 feet, ricocheting high off the back window of the stadium.

After taking a timeout, Stanton found his groove with hits traveling 482, 485, 492, 480, 487 and 489 feet. All of those came within the next minute-and-a-half. With 15 seconds on the clock, Stanton needed a few more. He launched two more, traveling 455 and 471.

Due to hitting four over 440 feet, he earned an extra 30 seconds. And needed two more to tie. It was to no avail. He hit one more for 488 feet.

That was all she wrote.

All in all, of his 16 home runs, most of them where just destroyed.

It was an amazing show. The new format of the Home Run Derby, the timed matchups and extra time for make the event entertaining. It also forced Stanton to up his pace as the pressure of 17 home runs proved too heavy to complete.

The tweet of the night came from Scott Van Pelt.

Still, the fact that half of his hits traveled 480 feet or more is amazing.

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And the funs had a blast.