HRDX Fort Wayne Rosters revealed
Michael Clair
@michaelsclairIf you saw Teoscar Hern¨˘ndez take the Home Run Derby chain last month and were bereft that you were out of home run crushin' competitions, you were in tears now that tater-tracking tiffs were over for the summer, well, you're in luck: Home Run Derby X is back. The competition, which not only highlights light-tower power but defense as well, is a showdown between four co-ed teams of three.
Each team has a former Major League star, a women's baseball or softball standout, and a local player who is ready to show off their skills and take on some pros.
The rules are a little different from derbies you may be used to. Click here for more information, but here's a quick primer:
- Each batter gets two minutes and 30 seconds to take as many swings as possible.
- They get one point for every home run -- with an extra point being awarded for a ball that flies through the outfield target.
- During each at-bat, hitters can call for a "hot streak." They'll get double points for every ball they hit during the hot streak.
- The defense can make plays, too. For every ball they catch, they earn one point. If it's during a hot streak? They get two.
Here are the rosters for HRDX at Fort Wayne, Indiana -- home of the TinCaps, the High-A affiliate of the San Diego Padres.
Team 1: Manzanas Luchadoras
Carlos Gomez
A veteran of 13 big league seasons, Gomez smashed 145 home runs, stole 268 bases, was a two-time All-Star and won one Gold Glove Award en route to earning election to the Brewers' Hall of Fame. A fan-favorite for his enthusiastic style of play and home run trots, spectators should be ready for a show.
Paige Halstead
Halstead already has plenty of trophies in her cabinet and will be looking to add one from HRDX. She won a gold and silver medal in separate tournaments with the USA softball team, and helped defeat powerhouse Oklahoma for the College World Series as a member of UCLA's softball team in 2019. Halstead now catches professionally for Athletes Unlimited and even has her own line of catching gear from All Star Sports.
Jack Ferguson
A rising sophomore at Indiana Tech, Ferguson has been playing baseball since he was introduced to tee-ball in kindergarten. Looking forward to "meeting legends of the game and take batting practice at Parkview Field," Ferguson will hope to impress against the pros when he gets his shot at the plate.
Pitcher: Mack Jenkins
The Reds pitching coach from 2016-18, Jenkins helped oversee the development of future stars like starter Luis Castillo and closer Raisel Iglesias. He also has a pretty unique highlight: He broke up the longest winning streak in American professional baseball history when he snapped the Salt Lake Trappers' 29-game winning streak while in the Minor Leagues in 1987. He's now a coach for the Pro5 Baseball Academy.
Team 2: Hoosier State Tenderloins
Nick Swisher
The most outgoing person in sports, Swisher played for five big league teams but is perhaps best known for his time in Yankees pinstripes. Swisher won the 2009 World Series, was elected to the 2010 All-Star Game and, oh yeah, has also appeared in the popular shows "How I Met Your Mother," and "Sweet Magnolias."
Swisher has been competing in HRDX since the event began in 2022.
Alex Hugo
Another veteran from HRDX's first campaign in '22, Hugo has won ballgames and accolades wherever she's gone. The only two-time US Sportswoman of the Year Award winner, Hugo recently represented Team USA at the Women's Baseball World Cup, where the team won silver. A former softball star at the University of Georgia and in the National Pro Fastpitch league, Hugo helped the U.S. win gold at the 2019 Pan-American Championships and earned the Most Valuable Player Award at last year's World Cup group stage.
Justin Osterhouse
Currently playing baseball at Purdue Fort Wayne, Osterhouse took home All-Horizon League Second Team and All-Horizon League Freshman Team Awards this year, hitting .355 with 9 home runs in his first college season. He hit his first ever home run while playing a game at the home of the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York.
Justin Kunz
A four-year standout at Gardner-Webb University, collecting All-American and First-Team All Conference player awards during his stay there. Kunz hit .319 with 11 home runs in his senior season before being selected by the Angels in the 2019 Draft. The youngest BP pitcher at HRDX, Kunz now coaches at Pro5 Baseball Academy.
Team 3: Fort Wayne Daisies
Dexter Fowler
A member of the World Series-winning Cubs in 2016, Fowler hit 127 home runs and was named to an All-Star Game during a 14-year career. The former outfielder made his HRDX debut in London for Home Run Derby X: The Cage. Most recently, however, Fowler earned his Bachelor of Science in Organizational and Professional Communication from Penn State University after promising his family he would earn his degree.
Jocelyn Alo
When talking home runs, you can begin and end with Alo. The Oklahoma Sooners superstar won two Women's College World Series titles with the Sooners and finished as the all-time NCAA leader -- among men and women -- in home runs with 122, total bases (761) and slugging percentage (.987). She helped the Red Sox win HRDX 2022, earned Sports Illustrated's Female Athlete of the Year Award that same year, and was selected first overall by the Smash It Vipers in the Women's Professional Fastpitch draft.
Alo has hit the longest home run in HRDX history and -- with 50 home runs on just 100 swings -- leads all women's players in HR per swing.
Sam Gladd
A rising junior at Taylor University, where he hit .306 with 11 home runs last season, Gladd is also a strength and conditioning intern at Mac Training. He's most excited to meet Nick Swisher at HRDX -- even though they'll be playing against each other.
Jay Stott
Stott is the current GM of the Pro5 Baseball academy and an respected force in international baseball. A former UNC Wilmington college player, Stott has held clinics in Germany, Hungary, Spain, Austria, Slovakia among others and helped coach the Czech National Team at the 2019 European Championships.
Team 4: Fort Wayne TinCaps
Jake Arrieta
Arrieta was one of the most dominant pitchers during his 12-year Major League career, winning 115 games with a 3.98 career ERA. He won the 2015 NY Cy Young Award and helped the Cubs end a 108-year World Series drought the next year, winning two games in the series against Cleveland. He was also one of the game's best hitting pitchers, bashing six home runs in his big league career. He made his debut at HRDX in 2023.
Ashton Lansdell
A HRDX veteran since 2022, Lansdell has seen and done it all on the ballfield. A trailblazing infielder, Lansdell made the USA Baseball roster at just 17 years old in 2018 and was the first woman to play baseball at the NJCAA level in 2021. After switching her focus to softball, she played at FIU for two seasons before recently announcing her transfer to Ole Miss ahead of next season.
Lansdell also leads all women's HRDX players with 82 dingers.
Sam Pesa
A member of the University of Saint Francis baseball team, Pesa has a career .278 batting average with 21 home runs in his first three seasons at the school.
"I decided to participate because of this very unique opportunity to be in front of a large number of people including family and friends," Pesa said. "I also grew up watching these MLB legends and know it would be an honor to meet them. I think that this will be truly a one of one experience."
Corey Lee
A first-round Draft pick by the Rangers in 1999, Lee made his big league debut later that summer. He would go on to play two seasons in Japan for the Nippon-Ham Fighters, where he would win the Japan Series. He has been the pitching coach for the Czech Republic and South Africa national teams before taking on that role for Lithuania, who recently clinched a place at next year's European Championships. He now coaches at PRO5 Baseball academy.