Why Hunter Goodman Needs To Participate in the 2026 Home Run Derby

DENVER — With one day before Saturday’s announcement of 2026 All-Star Game rosters, Hunter Goodman of the Colorado Rockies is already to accept an invitation to the Home Run Derby.

“I would like to do it,” he said. “If they want to ask me, I definitely want to do it.”

Following his breakout campaign in 2025 that saw the Arlington, TN native shatter the franchise record for most home runs by a catcher with 31, Goodman is second in Major League Baseball this year with 27 home runs. 

The 26-year-old has more than picked up where he’s left off and appears to be a lock to represent the Rockies in the Midsummer Classic for the second year in a row. When he does, he’ll be the first to make consecutive NL rosters for Colorado since a trio did it in 2019: Nolan Arenado (2015-19), Charlie Blackmon (2017-19) and Trevor Story (2018-19).

His most recent blast on Wednesday night during a 6-3 win over the Miami Marlins broke a tie for second with Todd Helton and put Goodman level with Larry Walker for most home runs in team history before the All-Star break. 

“You look up out in right-center and you see their (retired) numbers and the Hall of Fame (ring), so anytime you’re mentioned with that caliber player, it’s pretty cool,” Goodman said of the club’s two Cooperstonians.

In the midst of a historical season that has the 26-year-old on pace to reach 50 homers and break the joint record of 49 held by Walker and Helton, Goodman is looking to join even more exclusive lists.

Derby Qualifications

No member of the Rockies has participated in the Home Run Derby since Trevor Story did in 2021, when Denver was the host city. The last All-Star for the club to participate in the Derby was Charlie Blackmon in 2017 at Marlins Park.

Kyle Schwarber of the Philadelphia Phillies, who leads the sport with 30 homers, seems a natural fit to participate in front of his hometown crowd. Goodman feels like the next most logical entrant to dazzle the fans at Citizens Bank Park on Monday, July 13.

“Yeah, he’d be very entertaining,” manager Warren Schaeffer said of Goodman. “He’d hit a lot of homers and he wouldn’t get tired out. He’s built like a machine.”

The last time Philly hosted the All-Star Game was in 1996. Ellis Burks participated in the Derby and came away with one home run in the rather spacious Veterans Stadium, the fewest in franchise history. Though Barry Bonds won that competition 30 years ago, he managed to hit only 17 home runs through the three rounds. 

Story has the record for most homers (32) in a single Derby: 20 during a first round win over Joey Gallo and 12 in a semifinal loss to Trey Mancini. Only Walker, who lost to Tino Martinez in 1997, has ever reached the finals.

It’s not just his manager who’d like to see Goodman in the field of eight. Other Rockies are on board as well.

Braxton Fulford, drafted as a catcher alongside Goodman in 2021 and a teammate throughout multiple levels of the minors, is hopeful and excited for it to come to fruition.

“I’ve been teammates with him for a long time, and I’ve seen him do a lot of impressive things, and that’s just what he does. He slugs, he hits homers,” Fulford said.

It’s hard to argue with that given Goodman’s 72 home runs in 318 contest with Colorado, second-most in team history for a primary catcher.

Record Breaker

The month of June was a fruitful one for the University of Memphis product. His 13 dingers were the most in the majors and second-most for the Rockies in a calendar month behind Troy Tulowitzki’s 15 in Sept. 2010.

It was only the fourth occurrence of a catcher hitting that many in a month. Of the previous three — Ozzie Virgil (1987), Gary Carter (1985) and Walker Cooper (1947) — all were selected to the All-Star Game and two ended up receiving MVP votes in their respective season.

Before opening July with his 27th homer of the year, he finished with five home runs in the final five games of June, including a three-homer performance on June 27 in Minnesota. Reaching 26 homers before July 1 is something which only he can lay claim for the franchise.

Even after becoming the 21st player in team history to hit three in a game, Goodman felt four would have be even better as he stepped to the plate one final time in the top of the eighth against the Twins.

“I was definitely thinking I want four,” Goodman admitted. “He gave me two strikes to try. I probably got a little big and tried to do a little too much. But I mean, how many opportunities are you gonna have to do it?”

Goodman’s 18 homers on the road are the most in MLB. It’s also the most for the club away from Coors Field before the All-Star break. That total already places him in the single-season top 10 for most road homers by a Rockie with 37 games on the road left this season.

His 11.44 at-bats per home run trails only Schwarber this season. There are 10 more games to determine if he can best Todd Helton’s franchise mark of 12.12 AB/HR before the All-Star break.

And can we not discuss that Goodman is doing this primarily as a catcher? 

“I think he’s got a long lucrative career in front of him,” Schaeffer said. “Just the way he goes about his business on a daily basis, how he takes care of his body, what he believes in himself, how good of a team guy is — all the peripheral stuff that actually absolutely matters to longevity. He does it now, so there’s no reason for me to think that this would slow down.”

Goodman is the third primary catcher to reach the 27 homer mark pre-All-Star break since the very first Midsummer Classic in 1933. Cal Raleigh (38, 2025) and Johnny Bench (28, 1970) are the only others.

All-Star Game? Indeed. Home Run Derby? Please.

Derby Details

Over the 32 All-Star Games since Denver received an expansion franchise in 1993, only 12 players have ever participated in the Home Run Derby. Larry Walker (1997, 1999) and Carlos González (2012, 2016) are the two who have done it more than once.

On five occasions, Colorado’s slugger made it out of the first round. 

Were Goodman to participate, it would end a five-year drought since the last Rockie took part in the Derby. It’s the longest stretch without a purple participant since the six years between Todd Helton in 2001 (Seattle) and Matt Holliday in 2007 (San Francisco).

Besides Story, who participated in the Home Run Derby despite not being named to the NL roster in 2021, Justin Morneau in 2014 is the only other non-All-Star to feature in the exhibition. That year’s game took place in Minnesota, where Morneau had spent 11 seasons and won the 2006 AL MVP.