Nick Swisher is a ball of energy..
And Swisher is bringing that enthusiasm to Saturday night’s MLB Home Run Derby X event at Chickasaw Bricktown Ballpark.
Swisher, one of three former Major League Baseball stars participating in the event, is most excited about the other competitors in the event — nine softball stars including a large group of current and former OU standouts.
“We are in the presence of champions, legends, icons and for myself as well as Adrian Gonzales and Lo Cain, we’re just along for the ride,” Swisher said. “This is not our event, this is Home Run Derby X Queens event. This is going to be one of the best events we put on all summer long.”
Saturday’s event, which begins at 7:30 p.m., features four teams battling in three rounds — two semifinals and the final round.
The winner will advance to the Home Run Derby X championship Sept. 19-20 in Salt Lake City.
HRDX is a team-based event with nine-inning competitions between two teams in a 30-minute format.
While one team bats — going through 2 ½-minute at-bats for each team member — the opposing team is in the outfield. Players earn offensive points for home runs and defensive points for making catches.
The defensive element appeals to former Sooners star centerfielder Jayda Coleman, who will compete for the Dodgers with Gonzalez and Sydney Romero.
“That is the plan is to try to rob home runs,” Coleman said. “That is my forte. I think I will focus more on defense but I am going to try to get us a little bit of home runs.”
Swisher will be competing on the Yankees alongside a pair of current Sooners — Ella Parker and Kasidi Pickering.
Parker’s placement on the Yankees is a bit different for her.
The OU slugger is the niece of Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts.
“I’m not going to lie, I do like a good pinstripe,” Parker said. “I didn’t personally say that to my uncle, but I took a photo in them for my family group chat and I got a lot of backlash, not the best response, but I sent another picture today and they gave a little bit better feedback, so hopefully they’ll be (Yankees) fans for one day.”
The Royals squad will feature Lorenzo Cain, who lives in Norman after spending his 13-year big-league career with the Brewers and Royals.
He’ll be paired with Texas catcher Reese Atwood, who helped the Longhorns win the Women’s College World Series title this year, and former Florida star Amanda Lorenz.
“These girls have a lot of good swings,” Cain said. “They’re definitely fun to watch. I have two nieces that play softball.”
Cain will have plenty of fans in the stands. The youth team he coaches will be there for the event.
“No pressure, but I need to go out there and play well.” Cain said.
Then there’s the stars of the event — the first-ever all-women’s team to compete in HRDX.
The Sooners team will be headlined by NCAA all-time home run leader Jocelyn Alo with a pair of other former OU stars — Kinzie Hansen and Tiare Jennings.
Alo has competed in Home Run Derby for several years.
“It’s been a super great experience and now to bring that experience to my city, to the Sooner State, I’m just really excited to see how the fans are going to come out,” Alo said. “It’s going to be electric tomorrow.”
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: OU softball stars take center stage at OKC’s Home Run Derby X event