Frank Franklin II/Associated Press
Fans in the bleacher seats at Yankee Stadium cheered for Texas' Josh Hamilton, who hit a first-round record 28 home runs in the Home Run Derby. But Hamilton lost in the final round to Minnesota's Justin Morneau.
SAVE AND SHARE
Posted on Mon, Jul. 14, 2008
Utley out early in Home Run Derby
Philly.com staff report
Chase Utley failed to follow in the footsteps of Bobby Abreu and Ryan Howard, falling in the first round of the Home Run Derby at Yankee Stadium.
Utley hit only five home runs, the second-lowest total of the eight contestants.
Minnesota's Justin Morneau won the contest, beating Texas Rangers slugger Josh Hamilton by five home runs to three in the final round.
Hamilton took a huge early lead by clubbing a first-round record 28 homers, while Morneau and Houston's Lance Berkman hit eight each.
Florida's Dan Uggla and Cleveland's Grady Sizemore began the night by hitting six apiece, followed by three from Tampa Bay's Evan Longoria.
Utley still had a chance to make the second round at that point, as the top four finishers in the first round move on. But after Berkman knocked Utley down to fourth place, Morneau eliminated the Phillies' second baseman.
Milwaukee's Ryan Braun followed Utley and hit seven home runs. But he was eliminated by Hamilton's massive total, which beat Abreu's previous record of 24 when he won the 2005 contest.
Morneau and Hamilton advanced to the final round with the highest combined totals in the first two rounds.
Berkman hit six home runs and Braun seven, taking their totals to 14 each. Morneau hit nine homers to take his total to 17. Hamilton hit four, then stopped his round early with a total of 32.
The totals were erased for the final round, however, leading to Morneau's win. The packed house in the Bronx tried to rally Hamilton, but to no avail.
Utley's loss might end up being a good thing if he avoids the slump that struck Abreu three years ago. After hitting a total of 41 home runs at Detroit's Comerica Park, Abreu only hit six the rest of the season.
email this
print this
today's