MLB fans, brace yourselves. ESPN insider Jeff Passan just dropped a truth bomb on First Take Monday morning, and it's not the kind of hype you want to hear on Home Run Derby day. His blunt assessment of the new format? “I think it's gonna stink.”
Passan's warning comes as Major League Baseball debuts a revamped structure for its annual slugfest, which airs Monday night on Netflix. Instead of the timed rounds or outs-based system fans have grown used to, this year every hitter gets exactly 20 swings in the first round and 15 in each subsequent round. No clock. No countdown. Just pure, raw swings.
And that, according to Passan, is the problem.
“The whole reason that the timer came in in the first place is because it felt really slow,” Passan explained. “The timer brought urgency, and the timer brought a countdown and an end. And we're just gonna see tonight, time between pitches, it's gonna grind a little bit.”
In other words, the very thing that made the Derby a must-watch – that frantic, heartbeat-racing race against the clock – has been yanked away. Instead, we may get long pauses, slower pacing, and a whole lot of waiting around. Not exactly the recipe for a thrilling night of baseball.
This isn't just a random complaint from a talking head. Passan is one of the most respected voices in baseball journalism, and when he sounds the alarm, it's worth paying attention. His criticism echoes a broader concern among fans: that MLB is tinkering with something that already worked. The timer, introduced in recent years, turned the Derby into a high-octane event. Now, with the clock gone, the fear is that the energy will fizzle.
So who's stepping into the box Monday night? The eight-player field is a mix of established stars and rising young mashers: Kyle Schwarber, Bryce Harper, Junior Caminero, Munetaka Murakami, Jordan Walker, Jac Caglianone, Willson Contreras, and Ben Rice. According to MLB.com, Schwarber enters as the favorite, partly because he's playing at his home park in Philadelphia. “If there's ever a year when he's going to win the whole thing, this is it,” the site notes.
Still, even a stacked lineup can't guarantee a good show if the format drags. Passan's warning has already sparked debate across social media, with some fans calling for a return to the old outs format – a topic that's been explored in recent discussions about MLB's evolving Derby rules.
Whether you agree with Passan or not, one thing's for sure: all eyes will be on the screen tonight to see if the Derby delivers – or if, as the insider predicts, it truly stinks.
