Pete Alonso is a Home Run Derby machine as he wins second straight Derby

There are home run hitters and then there is Pete Alonso. It may have been a year later than expected but the New York Mets first baseman lived up to his dominating 2019 Home Run Derby winning performance by defeating Baltimore Orioles Trey Mancini to win his second consecutive Home Run Derby title.

Alonso began his night with a bang by hitting a personal best 35 home runs in the first round. Despite Salvador Perez hitting the second most homers in regulation in the first round, he still lost by seven.

Pete Alonso crushes 35 bombs in the first round of the Home Run Derby. 💣⚾️🔥 pic.twitter.com/DBQvcd3dcr

— The Comeback (@thecomeback) July 13, 2021

Participating in his first Home Run Derby this year, Shohei Ohtani was one of the favorites to win. He and Juan Soto had themselves a competitive first round that went to a swing-off but Soto won 31-28 and met Alonso in the semifinal.

In the semis, Soto was no match for Alonso. In fact, Alonso caught up to Soto so fast that he had plenty of time to hit the winning homer, which he pulled off with about 50 seconds left in the round.

In the final, Mancini gave it his all and hit 22 home runs. It made Alonso sweat a little but but he was still in control and hit the winning shot with 35 seconds left.

Pete Alonso has won back-to-back Home Run Derby titles! Launched massive bombs like crazy to win the final round. 💣💣💣 pic.twitter.com/jac5djDGTY

— The Comeback (@thecomeback) July 13, 2021

Nothing should be taken away from Mancini. One year ago, people didn’t know if he would be able to play baseball again. Mancini had to miss the 2020 season to undergo treatment for stage three colon cancer. After revealing he was cancer free toward the end of 2020, Mancini is in all-star form and was hitting home runs with the best of them. It’s a shame Mancini had to lose but he sure had nothing to feel bad about finishing runner-up to Alonso.

In the end, it’s going to be Alonso taking the trophy for the second consecutive time. Alonso becomes the third person to win back-to-back Home Run Derby titles, joining Ken Griffey Jr. (1998 and 99) and Yoenis Céspedes (2013 and 14).