Latin baseball’s biggest stars will join top names in entertainment at loanDepot Park on December 6 for La Gente Del Barrio’s 2025 Home Run Derby and Celebrity Softball Game. This year’s event, backed by Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and the VG27 Foundation, features one of the strongest hitting fields yet. With a week and a half to go, here are the ten confirmed participants for the Home Run Derby.

Of those ten, you can brace yourself to see some epic swings from New York Mets outfielder Juan Soto, San Diego Padres star Fernando Tatis Jr., Cleveland Guardians third baseman Jose Ramirez, and Arizona Diamondbacks second baseman Ketel Marte.

In fact, Elly De La Cruz and Noelvi Marte – two of the Cincinnati Reds’ rising stars will also be in the mix for the Home Run Derby.

Now, if you’re concerned about Elly De La Cruz’s health heading into the event, here’s what you need to know. Reds’ President of Baseball Operations Nick Krall did confirm that De La Cruz was playing through a partially torn quadriceps from late July onward. But now, moving forward, he’s expected to enter the spring training healthy.

Also joining the lineup on December 6 are big leaguers Anthony Santander (Blue Jays), Gleyber Torres (Tigers), Santiago Espinal (free agent), Julio Rodríguez (Mariners), Ezequiel Tovar (Rockies), Lourdes Gurriel Jr. (D-backs), and Miguel Rojas (Dodgers).

Four-time World Series champion Jorge Posada and Laura Posada will be part of the event as well.

Intriguingly, the Home Run Derby will be played with aluminum bats. According to La Gente Del Barrio’s promotional material, that could mean 500-foot moonshots flying under the roof at loanDepot Park. The design choice was made purely to amp up the fan excitement.

All the proceeds from the Home Run Derby and Celebrity Softball Game will go straight to the La Gente del Barrio Foundation, Vladimir Guerrero Jr.’s VG27 Foundation, and other charitable partners. All of them focus on youth development and community programs across Latin America and the USA.

The idea of the entire event is designed to bring together music, baseball, and Latin culture.

On another note, ESPN has acquired MLB.TV rights, while Netflix will air the Home Run Derby through 2028.

Netflix secures the Home Run Derby through 2028

Netflix will stream live MLB games for the first time. It has picked up a special package of marquee matchups that fits its push into big one-off events. The deal includes the season opener, the Home Run Derby, and the Field of Dreams game.

Bela Bajaria, Netflix chief content officer, expressed, “We are incredibly thankful for our partnership with Major League Baseball. We started with critically acclaimed documentaries, deepening the existing global passion for baseball. Now, we are seizing that moment by bringing massive cultural spectacles, from Opening Night to the Home Run Derby, directly to our members, reinforcing Netflix as the ultimate home for both the story and the sport.”

Even MLB commissioner Rob Manfred took a moment to share his take. “Our new media rights agreements with ESPN, NBCUniversal, and Netflix provide us with a great opportunity to expand our reach to fans through three powerful destinations for live sports, entertainment, and marquee events.”

ESPN’s last seven-year-long deal with MLB was worth about US$500 million a year. However, both parties decided to split after the 2025 season. ESPN argued that the price no longer made sense compared to what other broadcasters were paying.

The network also felt that local rights would drive subscriptions more effectively than national games. Sunday Night Baseball’s audience jumped 21 percent last season, averaging 1.8 million viewers. It marked its best numbers in 12 years.

It would have been hard to imagine MLB disappearing from ESPN. After all, it was the biggest and most influential sports platform in the U.S. and a direct line to highly engaged fans. This shorter deal keeps that connection intact while also giving MLB traditional network audiences through NBC and younger, streaming-first viewers on Netflix.