MLB Home Run Derby lineup: Meet the 2025 participants, from Cal Raleigh to James Wood

The Home Run Derby section of 8 is set, and immoderate young sluggers are fresh to compete for their first title. 

No 1 successful nan 2025 Home Run Derby has won nan arena before. Of nan progressive winners, nary elected to participate, mounting nan shape for immoderate caller humor to deterioration nan concatenation successful Atlanta. 

The section features 2 players who are conscionable 22 years old, on pinch MLB's location tally leader, a erstwhile MVP, MLB's exit velocity king, 1 of nan game's biggest personalities and 2 veterans enjoying terrific seasons. 

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Here's what you request to cognize astir each Home Run Derby subordinate arsenic nan action gets underway astatine Truist Park. 

MORE: Who will triumph nan Home Run Derby?

2025 MLB Home Run Derby participants

Byron Buxton, Twins

• Age: 31
• Appearance: 1st
• HRs successful 2025: 20
• Career HRs: 153

The oldest subordinate successful nan field, Twins prima Byron Buxton is making his Home Run Derby debut. Buxton comes pinch a lengthy wounded history, but he's closing successful connected playing astatine slightest 100 games successful back-to-back seasons for nan first clip successful his career. A existent five-tool subordinate erstwhile astatine his best, Buxton is having 1 of nan champion power-hitting seasons of his profession and earned his 2nd All-Star action to correspond an different middling Twins squad successful Atlanta. Buxton is looking to go nan Twins' first Home Run Derby victor since Justin Morneau successful 2008.

MORE: Looking backmost astatine nan youngest Home Run Derby winners successful history

Junior Caminero, Rays

• Age: 22
• Appearance: 1st
• HRs successful 2025: 23
• Career HRs: 30

Rays 3B Junior Caminero has nan fewest profession location runs of nan 8 Home Run Derby participants, but he's a worthy choice. The 22-year-old erstwhile apical imaginable has surgery retired successful his first play pinch an mundane player, blasting 23 location runs done his first 88 games. While Caminero tin still information retired his floor plan by becoming a much accordant interaction hitter, nan Rays look for illustration they person a subordinate worthy building around. Caminero is looking to go nan first subordinate successful Rays history to triumph nan Home Run Derby.

MORE: Does nan Home Run Derby really ruin players' swings?

Jazz Chisholm Jr., Yankees

• Age: 27
• Appearance: 1st
• HRs successful 2025: 17 (missed 31 games)
• Career HRs: 94

Yankees INF Jazz Chisholm Jr. went connected nan IL pinch a dismal .181 AVG successful April, but he has an OPS northbound of 1.000 since returning and has shape-shifted into nan powerfulness hitter New York hoped nan erstwhile Marlins standout would go pinch 10 location runs successful hardly much than a month. An electrifying subordinate and characteristic who will undoubtedly bring immoderate flair to nan derby, Chisholm is looking to go nan Yankees' first Home Run Derby victor since teammate Aaron Judge won successful 2017. 

MORE: Ranking nan 13 top Home Run Derby performances successful history

Oneil Cruz, Pirates

• Age: 26
• Appearance: 1st
• HRs successful 2025: 16
• Career HRs: 56

Pirates CF Oneil Cruz hasn't had thing adjacent to nan play he wanted to this point, hardly hovering complete a .200 AVG aft hitting truthful good down nan agelong successful 2024, but he is 1 of nan Home Run Derby favorites for a reason. The only non All-Star successful nan field, Cruz collapsed his ain grounds this play for MLB's hardest-hit shot of nan Statcast era (2015-present), and he tin mammoth location runs erstwhile he gets ahold of nan ball. Cruz is closing successful connected his career-high of 21 location runs successful a season, and a controlled situation successful Atlanta without truthful overmuch swing-and-miss imaginable should make him dangerous. Cruz is looking to go nan Pirates' first-ever Home Run Derby winner; he's their first subordinate since 2013. 

MORE: Complete database of nan longest tape-measure shots successful Home Run Derby history

Matt Olson, Braves

• Age: 31
• Appearance: 2nd
• HRs successful 2025: 17
• Career HRs: 276

A precocious summation to nan section aft Ronald Acuna Jr. pulled retired owed to a backmost issue, Olson is some nan only competitor who has participated successful nan derby earlier and nan starring profession location tally hitter among nan group. Olson's powerfulness has been inconsistent complete nan past 2 seasons, pinch 46 location runs betwixt 2024 and 2025 aft he blasted a stunning 54 successful 2023, but location is nary uncertainty his plaything is built to make him a contender successful his location ballpark. Olson deed 23 first information location runs successful his first derby quality but fell to Trey Mancini, who reached nan finals. Olson is aiming to go nan Braves' first-ever Home Run Derby winner.

Cal Raleigh, Mariners

• Age: 28
• Appearance: 1st
• HRs successful 2025: 36
• Career HRs: 129

Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh has had a sensational season, threatening nan grounds for astir location runs earlier nan All-Star break and putting nan single-season grounds for location runs by a catcher successful superior jeopardy. Once an all-or-nothing hitter who was possibly astir valuable for his protect activity down nan plate, Raleigh has shape-shifted into nan complete package. Raleigh already averages nan highest motorboat perspective of immoderate qualified hitter, truthful his plaything will beryllium fresh to spell arsenic he tries to go nan Mariners' first Home Run Derby victor since Ken Griffey Jr. successful 1999.

MORE: Why did Ken Griffey Jr. deterioration his chapeau backwards successful nan Home Run Derby?

Brent Rooker, Athletics 

• Age: 30
• Appearance: 1st
• HRs successful 2025: 19
• Career HRs: 98

Athletics DH Brent Rooker was 1 of nan champion stories successful shot complete nan past 2 years, morphing from a journeyman into 1 of nan game's premier powerfulness hitter for a franchise that severely needed thing to guidelines for. After astir hitting 40 location runs past season, Rooker has proven his occurrence is not fluke, and he is an All-Star successful 2025 pinch 19 location runs earlier nan break. Rooker is looking to go nan A's first Home Run Derby victor since Yoenis Cespedes successful 2014; a triumph would necktie nan franchise pinch nan Yankees for astir derby wins.

MORE: Complete database of each Home Run Derby victor by year

James Wood, Nationals

• Age: 22
• Appearance: 1st
• HRs successful 2025: 24
• Career HRs: 33

Nationals OF James Wood has nan astir caller debut of anyone successful nan field, only arriving to nan fields a small much than a twelvemonth ago, but what a twelvemonth it's been. The 22-year-old has quickly go 1 of nan astir feared hitters successful baseball, and not conscionable because of his size. With 24 location runs, an on-base percent flirting pinch .400 and an OPS+ 65 points supra convention average, Wood is simply a agleam spot connected a Nationals squad that has different stalled since past season. Wood, a Maryland native, was acquired from nan Padres arsenic portion of nan Juan Soto woody successful 2022 — he tin now go Washington's first derby victor since Soto, who won little than 3 weeks earlier nan trade.

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