© Brett Davis-Imagn Images
Brent Rooker had himself a week during the All-Star Game festivities in Atlanta, Georgia. The Athletics outfielder participated in the Home Run Derby before playing in the Midsummer Classic.
His attendance at Truist Park didn’t come without drama. Rooker was involved in a HR Derby controversy before being bizarrely criticized by a viewer.
The slugger landed his spot in the lineup this week due to incredible production on the diamond. Through 98 games, he’s hitting .279 with 20 home runs and 54 RBIs.
Rooker’s on pace to record his third straight 30-home run season. He got the opportunity to showcase that power at the Derby in Atlanta.
The slugger smacked 17 home runs in his first round, good for the fourth-most in the field. Unfortunately, he was eliminated due to a technicality.
His longest home run traveled 470.53 feet. MLB HR leader Cal Raleigh, who also hit 17 first round homers, saw his longest blast go 470.61 feet.
Home Run Derby rule states that distance is the tiebreaker. Raleigh advanced and later won the event. Rooker was eliminated.
Brent Rooker was criticized for the oddest of reasons.
Rooker later voiced his frustration with the HR Derby setup. “You know, maybe if they have it to the decimal point, they should display that during the Derby and not wait until everyone’s done to bring out that information,” he said. “That might be helpful.”
While disappointed in the elimination, he stayed on to enjoy the rest of the competition.
At one point, cameras panned to the outfielder feeding his baby daughter a bottle of milk. For some reason, that struck a nerve with one viewer.
Hey Rooker… did you really need to feed your baby on camera? Sometimes people just want to see you play.
-@adamo_smith1 / X
The slugger cleverly responded to the bizarre hate in a response online. “Yes, it was necessary to feed my 11-month-old child her nighttime bottle at like 9:00 pm,” he replied. “Thank you for asking.”
After seeing the strange criticism go viral, the A’s spammed social media timelines with images of Rooker and his family at the All-Star Game.
The organization also weighed in on his controversial HR Derby elimination.
Brent Rooker made a seventh inning at-bat in the All-Star Game with the American League trailing, 6-0. He put his team on the board with a three-run blast to deep left field.
The home run was a no-doubter. It traveled 407 feet before disappearing into the crowd. The A’s posted a video of the clip on Instagram with a caption that read, “Didn’t need to measure that one.”
Rooker enjoyed his time at the All-Star Game. He was one of the more entertaining personalities on hand. He pushed past controversy to post a stellar performance.
He’ll now look ahead to the second half of the MLB season. The A’s are currently 41-57 and 16 games back in the AL West standings.