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Guerrero swings to Home Run Derby title

Defending champ Howard goes down in first round with just three homers

Image: Vladimir GuerreroReuters
Vladimir Guerrero, center, is congratulated after hitting in the first round of the Home Run Derby.

SAN FRANCISCO - With Barry Bonds sitting out, this derby was dry — and Vladimir Guerrero was San Francisco’s home run king for a day.

The Los Angeles Angels slugger won the Home Run Derby on Monday night, hitting 17 homers and beating Toronto’s Alex Rios 3-2 in the final round of the All-Star competition.

None of the eight batters managed a true “splash hit” over the right-field fence and into the waterfront park’s iconic McCovey Cove. Dozens of eager fans wearing wetsuits and carrying nets amid the flotilla of kayaks and rafts ended up scrambling for just a handful of foul balls and ricochets during nearly six hours of batting practice and derby slugging.

But the four semifinalists sent balls into every other corner of a park that’s usually a nightmare for any hitter not named Bonds.

Guerrero, who managed just two homers in his only previous derby appearance back in 2000, also produced the contest’s most fearsome shot: a 503-footer to left that fell just short of the oversized baseball mitt looming over the outfield bleachers — a target that still hasn’t been hit during a game in the park’s 8-year history.

“The first time I came in 2000, I swung at every pitch, so you learn,” Guerrero said through an interpreter. “I came back this year with a different philosophy. I was going to try to take a pitch between, to rest a little bit.”

Guerrero indulged in various shenanigans with his friends and AL teammates during the first two rounds, re-taping his fingers and getting a towel-down in the middle of competition — and when Guerrero failed to homer on his first three swings in the first round, David Ortiz made a special delivery.

The Boston star charged to home plate, dramatically tossed away Guerrero’s bat and called for a friend to carry a large wooden case to them. After removing a new bat from the case, Ortiz kissed the lumber and presented it to Guerrero, who used it to hit five homers on his next nine swings.

“It was my bat, and we had it planned if I wasn’t doing well at the beginning, he was going to bring it out to me,” said Guerrero, who slept late Monday to rest up after finishing a nine-game road trip with the Angels in New York.

He was all business in the final, homering on his first pitch before finishing it with three swings to spare. Guerrero casually discarded his bat and didn’t even watch as his final shot settled in the left-field stands, celebrating with his cousin from the Dominican Republic.

Rios, added to the derby field on Sunday, had a remarkable 12-homer binge in the second round, but lost his swing in the final, managing just two more to finish with 19.

“It was the pitcher just throwing me the ball where I wanted,” Rios said. “I was a little surprised at how far they carried. ... I guess I just didn’t warm up enough (before the final).”

Bonds, who’s just four homers shy of tying Hank Aaron’s career homer record of 755, turned down the chance to participate in the homer contest, though he took part in early batting practice and stuck around to watch the derby with Alex Rodriguez, the majors’ homers leader with 30 for the Yankees.


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