Home Run Derby

Home Run Derby was a short-lived syndicated series featuring top baseball players competing in a home-run hitting contest.

Broadcast
Syndication April 1960-October 1960 ESPN December 17, 1988-December 28, 1988; July 10, 1989-October 28, 1989 (Reruns of the 1960's series)

Host
Mark Scott

Umpire
Art Passarella

Packager
Homer Productions ZIV Television

Gameplay
Each week two players competed in a nine-inning contest, Hitting against batting practice pitchers. The players tried to hit home runs. Any ball not hit out of the park was an out and each player was allowed three outs per inning, Players who hit three consecutive home runs won an extra $500 (a fourth straight home run earned another $500 and each additional one beyond that earned $1,000). With the winner returning one the next show to take on another challenger.

Trivia

 * Some nineteen players participated in the show such as Hank Aaron won six times and collected $13,500. Mickey Mantle won four times and collected $10,000. Other players who competed on the show were: Willie Mays, Ernie Banks, Jackie Jensen, Harmon Killibrew, Rocky Colovito, Frank Robinson and Duke Snider. Prior to this, Jackie Jensen hit the most home runs in one game. With fourteen and the most consecutive, with five in a row. Hank Aaron, Baseball's all-time leasing home run hitter with 755 career home runs managed only nine home runs.


 * Believe it or not there were two Wrigley Fields that were both own by William Wrigley. One was in Chicago and was home to the Chicago Cubs while the other was in Los Angeles and was the home of the Pacific Coast League's Los Angeles Angels player their first three seasons in 1961. Prior to this, the Los Angeles Wrigley Field was demolished in the 1960s.