{"id":746403,"date":"2026-07-08T14:21:15","date_gmt":"2026-07-08T14:21:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/746403\/"},"modified":"2026-07-08T14:21:15","modified_gmt":"2026-07-08T14:21:15","slug":"sf-giants-bryce-eldridge-wants-to-be-in-home-run-derby","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/746403\/","title":{"rendered":"SF Giants Bryce Eldridge wants to be in Home Run Derby"},"content":{"rendered":"

SAN FRANCISCO \u2014 When the field for next week\u2019s Home Run Derby is revealed, it won\u2019t include Bryce Eldridge<\/a>. <\/p>\n

After all, it would be pretty outlandish for MLB to extend an invite to a 21-year-old with seven career homers, and he confirmed to the Post he hasn\u2019t been asked.<\/p>\n

Giants rookie Bryce Eldridge has made it clear that he has a goal of participating in the Home Run derby one season. Getty Images<\/p>\n

But if the league office comes calling down the road?<\/p>\n

Consider him interested.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019d say so,\u201d the Giants\u2019 star rookie first baseman said. \u201cI think if anyone got the opportunity to do it, they\u2019d be a fool not to do it. It is, like, one of the coolest things you can do as a player, in my opinion.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

And why wouldn\u2019t the 6-foot-7 slugger be presented the opportunity one day?<\/a><\/p>\n

Eldridge only has 7 home runs this season, but has displayed impressive power. Getty Images<\/p>\n

Already, with a mere 57 games and 226 plate appearances in the big leagues, he has proven the prodigious power that made him one of the game\u2019s top prospects plays at its highest level.<\/p>\n

Look no further than his gargantuan blast that cleared the bullpens at Coors Field<\/a> over the weekend. Albeit with a mile-high asterisk, that was measured at an impressive 458 feet, breaking his own record for the longest home run hit by a Giant this season.<\/p>\n

Sure, Rafael Devers one-upped him a day later, with a 463-footer that landed in the upper deck. But Eldridge still has claim to some bragging rights: That was the first time Devers has sent a ball soaring further than 450 feet this season.<\/p>\n

Eldridge is one of only seven players around the league to do it twice.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\tSign up for the California Morning Report newsletter\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tCalifornia’s top news, sports and entertainment delivered to your inbox every day.\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\tThanks for signing up!\n\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

That company alone would make for an enticing Derby field: Kyle Schwarber, the only slugger with three homers of at least 450 feet; Junior Caminero, the first confirmed participant; as well as the A\u2019s modern-day Bash Brothers, Shea Langeliers and Nick Kurtz, young Cardinals star Jordan Walker and Cam Smith, the raw but tantalizing outfielder for the Astros.<\/p>\n

Of the group, Eldridge and Smith are the only ones with fewer than 20 homers. And in Eldridge\u2019s case, he has seen about half as many pitches (796) as the other six (1,486, on average), having only been called up after the calendar turned to May.<\/p>\n

Eldridge is one of seven players with multiple 450-foot homeruns this season. Getty Images<\/p>\n

Since the day he arrived, Eldridge has made it clear that all this \u2014 his meteoric rise, the mammoth blasts and immediate star turn<\/a> \u2014 is part of something larger he envisioned for himself since he was young. And, yes, that manifest destiny, he hopes, extends to the Home Run Derby.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt least for me, growing up, I wanted to watch the Derby more than I wanted to watch the All-Star Game,\u201d Eldridge said. \u201cIf that was ever something that I was offered to do, I\u2019d be happy to do it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Download The California Post App, follow us on social, and subscribe to our newsletters <\/p>\n

California Post News: Facebook<\/a>, Instagram<\/a>, TikTok<\/a>, X<\/a>, YouTube<\/a>, WhatsApp<\/a>, LinkedIn<\/a>
California Post Sports Facebook<\/a>, Instagram<\/a>, TikTok<\/a>, YouTube<\/a>, X<\/a>
California Post Opinion<\/a>
California Post Newsletters: Sign up here!<\/a>
California Post App: Download here!<\/a>
Home delivery: Sign up here!<\/a>
<\/a>Page Six Hollywood: Sign up here!<\/a><\/p>\n

Frankly, would it be so insane for that dream to realize itself this year? Last year, MLB invited the Brewers\u2019 young lightning rod, Jacob Misiorowski, to pitch in the All-Star Game after making only six starts but flashing a fastball that touched an unprecedented 105 mph.<\/p>\n

Couldn\u2019t Eldridge bring a similar infusion of youth and excitement to the Derby? It can hardly be considered hallowed grounds, given the changes coming this year (a move to Netflix, reverting back to an outs-based format from the time limit that had been in place since 2015).<\/p>\n

Or, even better \u2026 how about 2028 at Oracle Park?<\/p>\n

Just a rookie, Eldridge could develop into one of the league\u2019s premier sluggers. MLB Photos via Getty Images<\/p>\n

Eldridge may not punch his ticket to the City of Brotherly Love, but the Giants are sending some representatives to Philly with the 2028 Midsummer Classic on their minds.<\/p>\n

San Francisco could host the festivities for the first time since 2007 if major-league players work out an agreement to compete in the coinciding 2028 Summer Games in Los Angeles.<\/p>\n

By then, Eldridge may just be entering his prime \u2014 ready to unleash fury on the flotilla of kayakers in McCovey Cove like none of the entrants was able to two decades prior.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019d be sick,\u201d Eldridge said. \u201cIt\u2019s a good place to hit \u2014 hit it out to right.\u201d<\/p>\n

You don\u2019t have to tell the young Washington Nationals fan the power of a hometown Derby hero.<\/p>\n

Eldridge was 13 years old when he watched Bryce Harper belt 19 homers in the final round to beat Schwarber and become the third player to win the Derby in his home ballpark.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat was my guy,\u201d Eldridge said. \u201cI think his dad was throwing to him, which was pretty cool. Had a crazy comeback, so I remember that pretty well.\u201d<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t