PHOENIX - It's become the most popular All-Star event in any sport other than the game itself, and tonight it will turn Chase Field into Cape Canaveral.
The State Farm Home Run Derby is sure to show just what kind of launching pad Arizona's hitter-friendly stadium truly is.
This year, the contestants were chosen a little differently. Major League Baseball tabbed Boston slugger David Ortiz and Milwaukee big bopper Prince Fielder as captains and let them hand-pick the homer-happy participants.
Ortiz selected his teammate, Red Sox first baseman Adrian Gonzalez, along with Blue Jays outfielder Jose Bautista and Yankees second baseman Robinson Cano.
Fielder chose teammate Rickie Weeks, the Brewers' second baseman, along with outfielders Matt Holliday of the Cardinals and Matt Kemp of the Dodgers.
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"Knowing the stadium we're going to be hitting in, I expect a lot of home runs," said Bautista, who led the majors last season with 54 homers and leads again this year with 29 through Thursday.
Chase Field serves up the long ball the way a Las Vegas buffet goes through peel-and-eat shrimp. But competing in the Home Run Derby can be exhausting and mentally challenging.
So say the two former major leaguers who will be serving as analysts during ESPN's live coverage.
"There's a strategy involved in these guys pacing themselves, being selective at the plate, taking pitches to get rest," John Kruk said. "Everybody thinks, 'God, that looked like a pretty good pitch, why didn't he swing?' Well, he might not have been able to at that point. He had to take a couple pitches so he could get the strength back in his arms."
Nomar Garciaparra, who will be critiquing the derby next to Kruk and alongside host Chris Berman, remembers how he felt after competing in the 1999 event at Fenway Park.
"When I was done, every muscle in my body was hurting from head to toe and I had to jump into the hot tub just to have my body calm down," he said. "That's how much it takes out of you."
This isn't batting practice, after all, where a hitter finds a comfortable rhythm and hardly ever steps out of the box to admire a shot that's hit way, way, way back. The derby, though, is all about that, so timing can be disrupted by a batter constantly stepping out of the box and regrouping.
Ortiz and Fielder have taken both criticism for some of their derby selections, although not to the extent of the criticism National League manager Bruce Bochy of the Giants received for his initial additions to the All-Star roster.
Fielder passed on notable NL sluggers such as the Cardinals' Lance Berkman, the Marlins' Mike Stanton and Justin Upton of the host-city Diamondbacks.
"I wish I could have invited everyone I knew," said Fielder, the 2009 derby winner in St. Louis.
Ortiz, who won last year's event in Anaheim, passed on the Yankees' Curtis Granderson and the White Sox's Paul Konerko. New York's Mark Teixeira, who is not on the AL All-Star roster, declined his invitation.
"Can you believe that?" Ortiz said.
Kruk and Garciaparra had their own ideas on whom they would have picked. Kruk said Upton deserved to go and Garciaparra said Seattle's Ichiro Suzuki would have been an interesting choice.
"He's got one home run this year," Garciaparra said, "but if you ask anybody around baseball, he puts on an absolute display for batting practice."
Since a derby contestant didn't have to be an All-Star, Kruk said he would have also liked to see Nationals prospect Bryce Harper, who is playing in Double-A ball.
"He's the next big thing in baseball," Kruk said. "We've all heard about the 500-foot home runs he's hit, the 450-foot and 475-foot home runs he's hit. You put him on this stage and it would be an unbelievable ratings boom for ESPN because people would want to see this kid and see what he's all about."
The Home Run Derby always plays well on television. But they'll likely have to keep the lid on at Chase Field because of Arizona's summer heat. Will the derby lose some of its magic with the roof closed so balls likely won't carry as far?
Probably, but the hefty Kruk doesn't care.
"They better have the roof closed," he deadpanned, "or else I'll die."
Today's MLB All-Star events
Fanfest
• When: 9 a.m.-8 p.m.
• Where: Phoenix Convention Center.
Jr. RBI Classic
• When: 9 a.m.
• Where: Salt River Fields at Talking Stick, Chaparral Park.
Aquafina MLB Pitch, Hit & Run National Finals
• When: 12:15 p.m.
• Where: Chase Field.
• What: Finals of the national baseball skills competition. Representing the Diamondbacks will be Lita Vorseth of Mesa (girls 7-8 age bracket), Richelyn Villanueva of Winslow (girls 13-14) and Ryan Novis of Tempe (boys 13-14).
All-Star workouts
• When: 2 p.m.
• Where: Chase Field.
• What: Batting practice for both teams. Open to ticket-holders only.
State Farm Home Run Derby
• When: 5 p.m. (ESPN)
• Where: Chase Field.
• What: Eight players take aim at the Chase Field bleachers and pool.
