Royals

How to watch Royals standout Jac Caglianone participate in 2026 HR Derby

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Key Takeaways

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  • Jac Caglianone will participate in the 2026 Home Run Derby on July 13.
  • The Derby will air exclusively on Netflix at 7 p.m. Central.
  • Derby format has top-4 players advance in first round, then head-to-head matchups.

Kansas City Royals slugger Jac Caglianone will take part in the 2026 T-Mobile Home Run Derby on Monday night at Citizens Bank Park.

Caglianone will be the first Royal to participate since Bobby Witt Jr. in 2024. The annual event is one of the feature showcases during Major League Baseball’s All-Star Week in Philadelphia.

This season, Caglianone has belted 15 home runs. He leads the Royals and is tied for 49th among all MLB players.

Caglianone will be among eight players invited to participate. It will be a special moment as his father, Jeff, is set to pitch to him.

Here’s what to know about the Monday’s Home Run Derby:

When is the Home Run Derby?

The Home Run Derby will take place on Monday, July 13.

What time is the Home Run Derby?

Fans can catch the Home Run Derby at 7 p.m. Central exclusively on Netflix.

What is the Home Run Derby format?

There are new rules for the 2026 Home Run Derby. After years operating as a timed event, the focus is now on the swings.

Major League Baseball got rid of the running clock. Now, each participant will get 20 swings in the first round, 15 in the second round, and 15 in the final round.

Any contact counts as a swing. This can be a home run, a foul ball or a ground ball.

Also, there will be no bracket in the opening round. All eight players will participate with the top four scores advancing to the next round.

From there, the participants will be seeded according to their Round 1 home run total, and they’ll go head-to-head (No. 1 vs. No. 4, No. 2 vs. No 3.).

If a player homers in their final swing, they will keep going until they produce an out. In the case of a tie, home run distance will determine the winner in Round 1. A three-swing swing-off will break any tie in Rounds 2 and 3.

Who are the Home Run Derby participants?

Jac Caglianone (Kansas City Royals) | 15 HRs in 2026

Bryce Harper (Philadelphia Phillies) | 20 HRs in 2026

Kyle Schwarber (Philadelphia Phillies) | 32 HRs in 2026

Junior Caminero (Tampa Bay Rays) | 28 HRs in 2026

Ben Rice (New York Yankees) | 29 HRs in 2026

Munetaka Murakami (Chicago White Sox) | 20 HRs in 2026

Willson Contreras (Boston Red Sox) | 20 HRs in 2026

Jordan Walker (St. Louis Cardinals) | 22 HRs in 2026

Has a Royal ever won the Home Run Derby?

The Royals have never had a player win the Home Run Derby. Since the event’s inception, the club had six players participate with Witt being the closest to winning in 2024.

Jaylon Thompson
The Kansas City Star
Jaylon Thompson covers the Royals for The Kansas City Star. He previously covered the 2021 World Series and the 2016 Summer Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Jaylon is a proud alumnus of the University of Georgia.
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