Exclusive: Ex-Yankee Nick Swisher all hype as he hopes to bring excitement with a new brand of baseball to London

Former New York Yankee Nick Swisher has claimed that MLB’s Home Run Derby X could be just the thing that helps bring in a new crowd to baseball.

A study in 2017 showed that of the four major American sports leagues, fans of baseball were by far the oldest, with an average age of 57 (up from 52 in 2006), with the NFL’s standing at 50, NHL at 49 and the NBA at 42. 

Whilst Major League Baseball has taken some steps to try and make things more appealing and faster to attract a younger audience back in the states, such as the implementation of a ‘pitch clock’ in 2023 after a success in the minor leagues, they clearly think there’s still a lot that can be done.

That’s where Home Run Derby X comes in, as not only are MLB trying to attract a younger audience, but with the vast majority of players coming from North and Central America, a chance to bring the game to the rest of the world. 

Speaking in an exclusive interview with GiveMeSport ahead of Home Run Derby X’s stop in London on 9th July, Swisher, who played 11 years in the Major League most notably with the New York Yankees, the team he’ll be representing in Crystal Palace Park, hopes that something like this will help bring people on board with what can be a rather drawn-out affair.

Photo credit Cake UK

“Sometimes baseball can be a little boring, right? So I think that’s what Home Run Derby X is going to be, I think it’s going to be hopefully that little bit more of excitement that some people want. Being able to do things on both sides of the ball, being able to play defence in a home run derby, I think that’s absolutely amazing. 

“Being able to hit targets for our line-drive hitters that we have in here. Being able to bring athletes from all over the world to compete