Jordan Walker (St. Louis Cardinals) has been crowned the All-Star Home Run Derby champion after a dramatic finish, hitting four consecutive home runs with only one swing opportunity remaining.

In the MLB Home Run Derby final held today at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, power hitter Kyle Schwarber (Philadelphia Phillies) went first, fueled by the enthusiastic support of the home crowd, and cleared the fence 11 times.

The Major League Baseball (MLB) All-Star Home Run Derby is conducted by giving participants 15 swing opportunities to hit as many home runs as possible, with additional opportunities granted only when the final swing results in a home run.

Walker, who had hit 8 home runs in his first 14 swings, needed to turn every remaining swing into a home run without a single failure to complete the comeback.

Despite the one-sided jeering from over 40,000 Philadelphia fans cheering for Schwarber, the 24-year-old Walker remained calm.

He precisely targeted good pitches to close the gap with Schwarber, hitting 4 home runs in 4 swings to pull off a comeback grand slam.

Walker won the title with a score of 12 to 11.

Born in 2002, Walker debuted in the big leagues in 2023 and has fully blossomed as a player this season.

In the first half of the season, he established himself as a core hitter with a batting average of .294, 22 home runs, and 74 RBIs.

His RBI total leads the league for the first half.

Invited to the All-Star stage for the first time in his life, Walker became the first player in St. Louis history to win the Home Run Derby.

He took home the $1 million (approximately 1.4966 billion KRW) prize money and a championship necklace embedded with 250 rubies to commemorate the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States.

Walker displayed exceptional power starting from the first round.

In the first round, which featured eight players, the top four advanced to the semifinals, and Walker tied for first place with Willson Contreras (Boston Red Sox) with 13 home runs.

In the semifinals, he hit 6 home runs to defeat Junior Caminero (Tampa Bay Rays), who finished with 5, and advanced to the finals.

"I grew up watching the All-Star Game and the Home Run Derby since I was a child. It is a day I truly dreamed of," Walker said, showing his remarkable composure by adding, "I swung with the most relaxed mindset of my life."

Walker's father, Derek Walker, who cheered for his son amidst the sea of Philadelphia fans, came down to the field after his son's victory was confirmed and recalled, "When he was young, my son even broke his grandmother's car window with a home run."

Walker comes from a highly educated family; his father graduated from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), and his mother, Katrina Walker, graduated from Harvard University.

"Since he was young, my son talked about nothing but baseball," Walker's father said with a laugh.

Schwarber, who was the National League (NL) home run leader with 56 home runs last year and leads the league with 32 home runs in the first half of this year, had to settle for the $500,000 runner-up prize.

"The fans gave me so much support. I did my best," Schwarber said, acknowledging the defeat.

(Photo: AP, Yonhap News)