Athletics slugger Brent Rooker just experienced a level of heartbreak that has never been seen before on the MLB Home Run Derby stage.
Rooker officially got eliminated in one of the closest calls you’ll ever see in the competition, after losing a tie-breaker with Seattle Mariners catcher and 2025 MLB home run leader Cal Raleigh, who also finished the first round with 17 dingers.
Per the rules of the competition, if two players finish with the same first-round total, the player with the farthest home run advances.
It was determined both players’ longest home run traveled 470 feet, but an official ruling declared Raleigh’s went 470.61 feet, while Rooker’s fell just .08 inches short at 470.53 feet. Yes, you read that right, .08 inches officially slammed the door on the A’s slugger’s chances of advancing to the next round of the competition.
Cal Raleigh advanced to the second round of the Home Run Derby by winning the tiebreaker over Brent Rooker by less than an inch 😳 pic.twitter.com/4O27P4BWyU
— ESPN (@espn) July 15, 2025
Rooker came out on fire in the opening round, launching 17 home runs into the stands at Truist Park, immediately passing Washington Nationals phenom James Woods who kicked off the competition with 16 long balls of his own.
Brent Rooker came out on FIRE in the first round 🔥
pic.twitter.com/f5YjkvM6Vf
— Athletics on NBCS (@NBCSAthletics) July 15, 2025
That momentum wouldn’t last long, however, as Pittsburgh Pirates shortstop Oneil Cruz (21), Minnesota Twins centerfielder Byron Buxton (20) and Tampa Bay Rays third baseman Junior Caminero (20) all surpassed Rooker’s first-round total.
Rooker appeared to maintain a path to the semifinal round by hanging onto the fourth and final spot needed to advance, but a late surge by Raleigh brought the pair of AL-West sluggers even, triggering an inconceivable tiebreaker scenario.
While Rooker can hold his head high after putting up a strong performance in the competition, the process by which he was eliminated likely will sting for years to come.