You might be surprised that the Home Run Derby has been around since 1985 when Cincinnati Reds slugger Dave Parker won the inaugural event in Minnesota. Since the year Madonna’s “Like a Virgin” was tearing up the charts, a young Mr. T was leading The A-Team, and the Kansas City Royals won the World Series, a lot has changed for the Derby.
Unlike The A-Team, the early incarnations of the contest were not televised, gave hitters only five outs, and did not have an elimination format with multiple rounds.
By the early 90s, the Derby was taped for later broadcast and by 1998 broadcasted live in real-time.