2012 Major League Baseball Home Run Derby

The 2012 Major League Baseball Home Run Derby (known through sponsorship as the State Farm Home Run Derby) pit four batters each from the National and American Leagues against one another in a home run hitting contest. The derby was held on July 9, 2012 at the site of the 2012 Major League Baseball All-Star Game, Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri.

Prince Fielder won the derby with five home runs in the first round, eleven home runs in the second round, and twelve runs in the finals. His twelve home runs in the final round ties Robinson Canó's record for final round home runs, set in 2011. Fielder beat Toronto outfielder Jose Bautista in the final round 12-7.

Each participant is thrown pitches by a pitcher of his choice. The hitter has the option of not swinging at a pitch without penalty. If he swings at a pitch and misses or hits the pitch anywhere but in home run territory, it is considered an out. Each player hits until he records ten outs in each round. When nine outs are reached in each round, the "gold money ball" comes into play, in which State Farm donates a certain amount of money to charities if a home run is hit. This repeats until the batter records the final out.

In the first two rounds, home run totals will carry over for those rounds. Should there be a tie after either of the first two rounds, a "swingoff" takes place. In a swingoff, each tied player gets five swings to hit as many home runs as possible. If after the five swings a tie still remains, players get three more swings to determine the winner. Home runs hit during a first round swingoff do not count towards the player's total going into the second round. All eight players participate in the first round; the four highest totals from round one will move to the semi-finals. The players with top two totals will face off in the finals, with the scores reset from the first two rounds.

Note: Italicized numbers denote swing-offs.