Bryce Harper has asked Dodgers third-base coach Dino Ebel to pitch to him in Monday night’s Home Run Derby, after the two worked together this spring for Team USA in the World Baseball Classic and Ebel threw to Harper regularly, according to the report. Ebel recalled first seeing Harper as a teenage prodigy and said, “You could see he was special” and that “there was big hype around him.”
Ebel brings extensive Derby experience. He was the batting-practice pitcher for Vladimir Guerrero Sr. when Guerrero won in 2007, stood behind the L screen when Albert Pujols won in 2015 and was on the field again when Teoscar Hernandez prevailed a couple of years ago. Ebel also threw to Kyle Schwarber during the swing-off that decided last year’s event, according to the report.
The report noted the pitcher plays a pivotal role in the Derby outcome. Cal Raleigh and his father, Todd, won last year, and the story said fathers or friends can sometimes be overwhelmed by the crowd and unusual field conditions. The account added that major-league coaches occasionally struggle to throw consistent strikes because they are not used to swinging without a batting cage.
Kyle Schwarber, now with the Philadelphia Phillies, has 32 home runs in 2026 and will have Rafael Pena, the Phillies’ assistant hitting coach, throw to him in the Derby. Schwarber said he prefers hitting in a cage but that he and Pena “match up well together,” and that they work on challenges in the cage including hard stuff, sliders and changeups, according to the report.
Yankees slugger Ben Rice has 29 home runs in 2026 and hits left-handed, which the report said could help him aim at Citizens Bank Park’s right-field porch. Rice practiced over the weekend with his father Dan, who said, “I feel pretty good,” after a session. Dan also recalled that his son’s name was inspired in part by Benjamin Franklin and called it fitting that his son will compete in Philadelphia, according to the report.
