Carlos Santana should be in the Home Run Derby

Carlos Santana wants to be in the Home Run Derby. Get Carlos Santana in the Home Run Derby.

Carlos Santana, aka Lando Calrossian the man who hits dingers to Cloud City, wants to represent the Indians in the Home Run Derby. A Home Run Derby that, coincidentally, will be taking place in Santana’s home park of Progressive Field.

Remember last season, when Bryce Harper lit up Nationals Park in front of a home crowd to win the Home Run Derby? Major League Baseball should be aiming to do that every single year. This season, with the Derby in Cleveland, there is no better player to ignite the home crowd than Santana.

It’s not often that players want to be in the Home Run Derby. Most seem to fear that the competition will ruin their home run swing for the rest of the season, despite mounting evidence to the contrary.

Santana has no such concerns, and by golly he wants to do the dang thing.

Statistically speaking, Santana makes as much sense as anybody for this year’s Home Run Derby. He ranks 10th in the American League in home runs to date, but Mike Trout never competes, and nobody outside of Minnesota really wants to watch Baron Von Max Kepler hit home runs. So, really, he’s eighth.

He also has 104 balls hit at 95 mph or harder this season — 17th in all of baseball. If you want to talk about a fun Derby experience, get a guy who can consistently mash the ball like Santana can. After all, he’s Carlos Santana — he’s going to wait for his pitch to hit, and he’s going to murder it every time.

Beyond that, Santana participating in the Home Run Derby would be a continuation of one baseball’s best, yet least talked about, stories. Prior to the Indians letting Santana walk two offseasons ago, a contingent of Indians fans couldn’t bring themselves to just enjoy his massive home runs and unchallenged patience at the plate. Santana has always been a very good all-around hitter, but he had unjustly earned the stigma of being “not clutch” by those same ignorant fans.

Through it all, Santana has never stopped loving Cleveland. He never even sold his house in the area when he signed with the Phillies. He went from catcher, to third base, to the outfield, to first base, to designated hitter, and played all up and down the lineup — all without a peep of disapproval. By all means, Santana is a pro’s pro — just don’t play Fortnite in front of him.

Santana was gone from Cleveland for a year, but it’s like he never left. It’s a redemption story ripped straight out of the ‘80s love of baseball movies.

Since his return to the Indians this offseason, it’s hard to find anyone still down on Santana. He’s been one of the few Indians to consistently play well offensively, and currently leads the team in wRC+ (149), home runs (17), runs batted in (47), walk rate (17.1%), doubles (14), and he’s been intentionally walked a team-leading six times.

He’s the kid that’s been with the organization for over a decade, finally back home where he belongs, and where he wants to be.

Do the right thing, MLB. Get Carlos to the Derby.