Jordan Walker walked into Citizens Bank Park as a 21-year-old Cardinal nobody outside St. Louis was picking to win anything, and he walked out with a Home Run Derby trophy, a Liberty Bell necklace, and a stadium full of people who wanted absolutely nothing to do with him. That's just how Philly does All-Star week.
Predictably in Philly. Harper and Schwarber got thunderous ovations when introduced for the Home Run Derby while the other 6 competitors were vociferously booed. Ben Rice got the loudest boos. So good for him!
The pattern was set before a single ball left the yard. Bryce Harper and Kyle Schwarber got the hero's welcome during introductions, and the other six Derby entrants got buried in boos, with Ben Rice reportedly catching it worst of all. Willson Contreras still put on a show in the first round, and Schwarber obliged the crowd by mashing his way to the finals — only for Walker to blow the whole script up.
JORDAN WALKER IS YOUR 2026 HOME RUN DERBY CHAMPION
Walker beat Schwarber 12-11 in the final, according to MLB.com, homering on his last six swings to erase the deficit in front of a crowd that had spent the whole night chanting for the other guy. It made him the first Cardinal to ever win the Derby, and the $1 million prize amounted to a 125 percent raise on his 2026 salary. Philadelphia didn't care about any of that. It just wanted Schwarber to win, and when he didn't, the building went dead silent.
The booing didn't stop when the Derby ended — it just found new targets. By All-Star Game intros, Walker was getting jeered like he suited up for the Braves or Mets, and even the mascots weren't safe.
Mr. and Mrs. Met were just mercilessly booed by the Citizens Bank Park crowd during mascot introductions. Never change, Phillies fans.
According to Jon Heyman, the Philly crowd's hate list during introductions ran through the Mets, Yankees, Dodgers, Braves, Astros, and Jordan Walker — basically anyone who isn't wearing red pinstripes. A fan who wandered into Reading Terminal Market in a Juan Soto jersey found that out the hard way, getting the same boos-and-thumbs-down treatment Ben Rice got at the Derby, just for wearing the wrong shirt to a sandwich shop.
A fan in a Juan Soto jersey walked into Reading Terminal Market here in Philly, and you have to say this fellow has guts. He was treated like Ben Rice at the Home Run Derby. Boos and thumbs down 👎 all around.
And then there's Mike Trout, proof that this crowd isn't just reflexively mean — it's loyal to a very specific idea of home. Trout is a Millville, New Jersey native, and per multiple outlets this was the first All-Star Game hosted in Philadelphia in roughly 30 years, with Trout batting leadoff for the AL and openly copping to being a lifelong Phillies and Eagles fan growing up. That earned him a full hero's ovation from the same crowd that buried Walker minutes later.
Mike Trout - a South Jersey native and big Philadelphia sports fan - gets a big ovation from the Philly crowd.
None of this is new for Philadelphia — Mark Feinsand pointed out fans once showed up at the train station just to boo the Yankees before a World Series game back in 2009. The city doesn't do neutral. Walker leaves with a trophy, a bigger paycheck, and a story he'll be telling for years about the night he silenced an entire ballpark that wanted him to lose.