


BASEBALL NOTES
Power play: Alonso wins HR Derby
Mets slugger bests fellow rookie Guerrero Jr. in final

Mets rookie Pete Alonso has a million-dollar swing.
New York’s newest slugger outlasted a worn-down Vladimir Guerrero Jr. in the final round of the All-Star Home Run Derby on Monday night in Cleveland to win $1 million — nearly double his 2019 salary.
Alonso somehow had enough to edge Guerrero, who hit 91 homers but ran out of gas in the last round following an epic semifinal matchup against Dodgers outfielder Joc Pederson.
Needing 23 homers to beat Guerrero, Alonso connected for a homer to left-center before flipping his bat high into the air and hugging his pitcher, cousin Derek Morgan. Alonso was then swarmed by the NL All-Stars who were treated to a power display unlike any in the event’s history.
Alonso is the second rookie to win, following the Yankees’ Aaron Judge in 2017. He’s also the first Mets player to win the derby outright. Darryl Strawberry shared the title with Wally Joyner in 1986.
Alonso has hit 30 homers so far this season and will play in Tuesday night’s All-Star Game.
Red Sox manager Alex Cora selected the former Cy Young Award winner to open up against the National League batters.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts selected Hyun-Jin Ryu from his own staff to make his first start for the NL.
A 36-year-old right-hander, Verlander is 10-4 with a 2.98 ERA, striking out 153 in 126
He allowed five runs in the first inning during the 2012 All-Star Game in Kansas City, including the first bases-loaded triple in All-Star history, to Pablo Sandoval.
Verlander, then with the Tigers, threw five pitches clocked at 100 mph and another at 101 during a 35-pitch inning.
“I don’t quite throw 100 anymore. Maybe I’ll try tomorrow,” he said. “The goal is to get guys out. That’s it.”
All-Star starters were openers before the term was coined. No starter has pitched more than two innings since Greg Maddux threw three in 1994, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.
Ryu, a 32-year-old left-hander from South Korea, is 10-2 with a major league-leading 1.73 ERA for the NL champion Dodgers. He is the second Asian All-Star starter after Dodgers rookie Hideo Nomo of Japan in 1995.
“When I signed with the Dodgers, all I wanted was to get a chance to compete with the best in Major League Baseball,” Ryu said through a translator. “I wasn’t necessarily thinking about pitching in an All-Star Game. But like I said before, this is all surreal to me.”
Yelich, who leads the majors with 31 home runs, will lead off for the NL.
Arrieta, 33, who won the 2015 NL Cy Young Award as a member of the Cubs, is 8-7 with a 4.67 ERA in his second season with the Phillies. He had season-ending surgery for the same issue in 2011 while with the Orioles.
Lucroy said he expected to be released from the hospital Monday. He plans to see an ENT after the All-Star break when his swelling has subsided.