Cardinals’ Jordan Walker hits walk-off blast to win Home Run Derby

St. Louis Cardinals rising star Jordan Walker broke the hearts of Philadelphia Phillies fans on Monday night, defeating Kyle Schwarber in a walkout to win the 2026 Home Run Derby.

Walker hit 12 home runs in his final outing, besting Schwarber’s 11 in MLB’s new format. As his family watched, Walker’s final home run hit the left field seats and he celebrated the only way you do when you win the Home Run Derby, crowning him the league’s best slugger during All-Star weekend.

MLB has once again introduced a new format to the Home Run Derby, this time giving all eight competitors 20 hits to hit as many home runs as possible. A word of warning: If your last swing results in a home run, you’ll keep swinging until you leave the yard.

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In this format, players did not have to fight the clock or focus on how far they hit balls to get into the bonus round. They can lock in and take their time if necessary.

Boston Red Sox star Willson Contreras, who played the most important role in the recovery of the team before entering the All-Star break this season, set the atmosphere by scoring 13 goals in 20 shots. But Walker matched him because both were the bar to reach to get to the semi-finals.

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Jac Caglianone of the Kansas City Royals hit the third base from right field, but his eight points were not enough to take him to the next round. And Munetaka Murakami, the Chicago White Sox’s new fan favorite, struck out nine to at least give himself a chance.

But Junior Caminero of the Tampa Bay Rays hit 12 home runs, behind the New York Yankees’ Ben Rice hitting seven. With three hitters reaching double figures, hometown favorites Schwarber and Bryce Harper knew they could punch their own ticket to the next round.

Schwarber went first and hit 10 home runs, which put some pressure on Harper. His Phillies teammate can either move on with 10+ innings, or he can go down himself.

Harper only managed to smash eight homers, leaving Schwarber as the final semifinalist. But it didn’t disappoint.

In the semi-finals, 15 shots was the limit and Schwarber began to find his rhythm. The left-hander was crushing balls into the stratosphere, hitting nine to set the tone against Contreras. The Red Sox star came close with eight homers, but it wasn’t enough for the Phillies star to get into the finals and please the Citizens Bank Park crowd.

Jordan Walker of the St. Louis Cardinals competes in the Home Run Derby at Citizens Bank Park on July 13, 2026 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Emilee Chinn/Getty Images)

In the other match, Walker continued his run and edged Caminero 6-5 to enter the competition for the Home Run Derby trophy.

But once again, Schwarber was unstoppable as he capitalized on the chants of the crowd in Philly. He put 11 of his 15 shots over the fence and put a lot of pressure on Walker, who put in second.

Walker was up for the challenge when it came time to bat, hitting four homers to get things started. But with only seven men left, Walker knew he had to be perfect to get to Schwarber.

With only one inning and seven runs remaining, Walker had to run. When Walker managed to hit 10 home runs, the tension was lethal for those watching.

Kyle Schwarber of the Philadelphia Phillies competes in the Home Run Derby semifinals at Citizens Bank Park on July 13, 2026 in Philadelphia. (Chris Graythen/Getty Images)

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As the Phillies-heavy crowd hummed, Walker found every bit of the burst that connected him to Schwarber as he threw several pitches. Then Walker, also patient, hit a moonshot into left field to ice the victory.

Walker ranked 10th in MLB with 22 home runs this season and hit .294 with 74 RBIs for the Cardinals.

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