From the surface the 2010 Home Run Derby looked as plain as the incessant suburban sprawl surrounding Angel Stadium in Anaheim. The lineup was as unspectacular as the list of guests appearing on “Last Call with Carson Daily.” And like I do every time I see the first few frames of “Last Call,” I asked myself why?

Why was Chris Young in a home run hitting contest? Why did Bobby Valentine call Big Papi “Jose Ortiz?” Why did Hanley Ramirez steal Aqua Man’s shoes? Why is Corey Hart’s beard a blonde replica of Abraham Lincoln’s? And why doesn’t someone let Carson use an actual studio? Are times that bad?

I’ll admit it, I was ready to dump on the derby. I had already decided it was baseball’s slam-dunk contest – going on for far too long and involving too few stars.

But all of a sudden David Ortiz dug into the box, spit on his batting gloves, clapped his hands, waved his magic 38-ounce wand, and single-handedly stole the show.

Big Papi was his gregarious self – beaming a broad smile, swinging from his heals, and fraternizing with everyone within an arm’s reach of him or any of his 32 homers. His adorable son was cheering him on from first-base line. Ortiz even made Ramirez – a ballplayer whose talents are obscured by a small market and a bad reputation – come across as affable if not innocent.

Ramirez served as the necessary salve in a competition that desperately needs at least two competitors at the top of their game. So he clicked his teal slippers, played the antagonist, and put on a laser show of his own.

But even when it was about Ramirez, it was about Big Papi.

Oritz vacillated between being the powerful slugger with laser focus, then the father figure to his fellow countrymen, wiping Ramirez’s sweaty brow with a towel, and cooling him down with some mid-round Gatorade. The two spoke after about the bond that grew between them during Ramirez’s time in the Red Sox organization.

Ortiz even did what no one saw coming – teaming a Red Sox up with a Yankee.

With Ortiz’s usual pitcher, Ino Guerrero, in the Dominican Republic for the All-Star break, Yankees’ bench coach Tony Pena was Papi’s hand-picked hurler on Monday. The move paid dividends as Papi was in a groove all night.

Once Ramirez grounded his last out softly through the left side, and the trophy belonged to Ortiz, Big Papi added another serving of human drama, dedicating the trophy to his friend, Jose Lima, the former Dominican player who recently died at the age of 37.

The night wasn’t without its flaws. At more than 2 ½ hours long the derby could use a nip here and tuck there. Miguel Cabrera and Will Ferrell both should probably reconsider the man-perm, and ESPN still hasn’t found away to combine its two greatest broadcasting tools – the ultra-slow-motion cam and Erin Andrews.

But for one balmy night in Southern California, Ortiz gave the Home Run Derby a much-needed facelift.

Used with permission of the author.

Theo is a staff reporter and feature writer for the Marin Independent Journal where he covers local prep and college sports. As an Associate Production Manager for ESPN, he helped produce Sunday Night Baseball among other national ESPN and ABC Sports telecasts. In addition to his contributions to Sports Climax, he is a columnist for Examiner.com and is the play-by-play voice for Sonoma State University baseball and softball.

Copyright ©2010 Sports Climax, LLC

ANAHEIM – There’s a new line-up for the 2010 State Farm Home Run Derby and familiar names like sluggers Prince Fielder, Albert Pujols, Ryan Howard and Josh Hamilton, who have a combined 80 home runs this season, won’t be in it. But don’t fret, there are plenty of other guys on the roster who can rip the cover off the ball and knock them over the fence.

The show begins Monday night at 8pm on ESPN and first time participants in the contest include Milwaukee Brewers Corey Hart, Arizona Diamondbacks Chris Young, N.Y. Yankees Nick Swisher, Florida Marlins Hanley Ramirez and the Blue Jays Vernon Wells. Rounding out the roster are Matt Holliday, Red Sox slugger David Ortiz and Detroit Tigers first baseman Miguel Cabrera.

Cabrera who returns to the event for the second time and enters the competition second in MLB with 22 round trippers, is many people’s favorite to win, including his teammate, rookie sensation Brennan Boesch who let his pick be known to his local newspaper The Detroit Free Press.

“If Scott Pickens, the batting practice guy, throws strikes, he’ll win. Miggy’s got the most power in baseball, I think. So if he throws strikes, Miguel is going to put on a show, and it will be fun to watch.”

“In the Home Run Derby, you have to be aggressive, because it’s a lot of pressure,” Cabrera said. “It’s different, because you don’t have the batting cage. You have more people see you. But if you get relaxed and put your best swing on the ball, it’s going to be OK.”

Swisher is also feeling some nerves well before the event.

 “It’s going to be a lot of fun and I’m nervous already, but I’m going to go out and have an absolute blast. I’m going to soak up that moment.”

Not in the competition is the MLB leading home run hitter, Blue Jays Jose Bautista who has hit 24 over the fence. Not seeing him in this line-up reminds us that the obvious choices do not always make it to the annual All-Star games.

Adding to the fun of the event, two banners were hung in the outfields and if any player hits those during the competition, Master Card will donate $1 million to charity.

Copyright ©2010 Sports Climax, LLC