Major League Baseball officially began the All-Star break on Monday as the league held its annual Home Run Derby at Coors Field. Many of the eyes were on Los Angeles Angels two-way star Shohei Ohtani. However, Ohtani ended up losing to Washington Nationals slugger Juan Soto in the first round.
When the dust settled, New York Mets first baseman Pete Alonso defeated Baltimore Orioles first baseman Trey Mancini in the final round to take home his second consecutive Home Run Derby title.
During Tuesday's installment of "Nothing Personal with David Samson," Samson touched on criticism that Alonso has received for not letting Mancini win as a result of Mancini being a cancer survivor.
"Don't yuck on Alonso for not letting Mancini win the final round, so it could be a feel-good story," Samson said. "This is for money folks. You think Pete Alonso is going to let Trey Mancini win the Home Run Derby, so Trey Mancini gets the $1 million because he's a cancer survivor? Listen, I'm all about feel-good stories. But when you're making $600K for a year of baseball and you have a chance to win a $1 million Home Run Derby, you're winning the Derby. It's not even a question."
Regardless of who won, the fans were treated to a spectacular show from all of the participants. Alonso himself hit 35 home runs in the first round and showed that he was there to defend his crown.
Samson is simply making the point that it's a competition at the end of the day and Alonso wants to win the prize money that comes along with the Home Run Derby title.
