2026 Home Run Derby Caps, Ranked and Graded: From the Yankees' C to Bryce Harper's A-

The host: Philadelphia's 2026 All-Star Workout cap, the one Bryce Harper and Kyle Schwarber wear in the Derby. Image: New Era.

The Home Run Derby came to Citizens Bank Park last night, and for the first time it lived on Netflix instead of cable. Eight of the game's biggest bats took their swings in prime time, and when it was over, St. Louis rookie Jordan Walker had stunned hometown hero Kyle Schwarber 12-11 in the final to become the first Cardinal ever to win the event. Because this was Philadelphia in the summer of America's 250th birthday, the wardrobe did as much talking as the baseballs flying into the seats. So the fun question for us: did the winner also wear the best cap? Not quite. Read on.

Here is the thing about a Derby: nobody wears a jersey you have not seen before. The special uniform era ended in 2023, when MLB went back to letting All-Stars wear their own team looks. What is actually new is on their heads. So we ranked and graded the eight Derby looks the only honest way we know how, by how the cap and the uniform play together under the lights, and by the moment each guy walked into. Every cap gets a ColorWay Sports letter grade, and we count it down from eighth to first.

8. Ben Rice, Yankees

Image: New Era.

The interlocking "NY" is the most famous mark in sports, and in soft white chenille on classic navy it looks expensive. It is also the safest cap in the entire field. Navy on navy is restraint taken to the extreme, and on a night where almost everyone else brought a brighter, bolder crown, the Yankees look plays it so cool it nearly disappears. Beautiful up close, but last on a stage built for pop.

7. Junior Caminero, Rays

Image: New Era.

Tampa Bay's navy crown with the columbia-blue and white "TB" is a handsome cap, but it lands near the bottom for the same reason as the Yankees: it reads dark from a distance. The columbia trim gives it a touch more life than New York's, which is the difference between seventh and eighth, but the monogram still loses a little of its punch in chenille.

6. Jordan Walker, Cardinals

Image: New Era.

The interlocking "STL" is one of the prettiest logos in the sport, and the Cardinals red crown always carries. The catch is that a tightly drawn monogram gets a touch muddy when it is rendered as a fuzzy chenille patch. Gorgeous from the couch, slightly busy up close, and right in the middle of the pack. And yet: this is the cap that took home the trophy. Jordan Walker outlasted the field and beat Schwarber 12-11 in the final, proof that the Derby rewards the swing, not the sixth-best hat. First Cardinal ever to win it.

5. Willson Contreras, Red Sox

Image: New Era.

Here is where the caps start to pop. Boston pairs a navy crown with a red chenille "B" wrapped in a white outline, and that extra contrast gives it far more life than the plain navy caps below it. Classic Red Sox, but with just enough color separation to jump on the broadcast.

4. Jac Caglianone, Royals

Image: New Era.

This is where brightness pays off. Kansas City's vivid royal-blue crown with a crisp white "KC" is one of the cleanest, most legible caps in the entire set, and the chenille lettering practically glows against that blue. Caglianone was a long shot on the leaderboard, but his cap is a genuine winner.

3. Munetaka Murakami, White Sox

Image: New Era.

The sleekest, highest-contrast look of the eight. Black crown, white chenille "Sox," nothing wasted. Monochrome black and white never goes out of style, and the plush chenille gives the old-English lettering real texture up close. The rookie who came over from Japan is wearing the coolest cap in the field that does not belong to a Phillie.

2. Kyle Schwarber, Phillies

The major league home run leader, hitting in his own ballpark, in the boldest cap of the entire set. Philadelphia's workout look goes red crown with a green chenille "P," a genuinely daring choice that split the room. Some loved the jolt of color, some missed the classic red on red. Either way it was the most talked-about cap on the field, and the loudest bat in the sport wore it at home. Schwarber carried that cap all the way to the final before Walker edged him 12-11. The only reason he is not first here is the guy hitting after him.

1. Bryce Harper, Phillies

Image: New Era.

Same daring red-and-green host cap, Philadelphia home whites, the uniform built for this exact city in this exact summer. Harper won a Derby in his home park once before, back in Washington in 2018, and got to chase it again in the town that adopted him. The cap is polarizing and the jersey is ordinary. The moment was anything but. Nobody in this field wore more than Harper did, even if the trophy went home to St. Louis.

The Bottom Line on the 2026 Home Run Derby Looks

The uniforms are a wash on purpose, so the New Era 2026 All-Star Workout cap and the setting do the heavy lifting. The crispest caps of the bunch belong to the White Sox and Royals, where the chenille logos pop hardest against the crown. But on look and moment, the style win goes to the man wearing the biggest story: Bryce Harper, home in Philadelphia, in the headwear made for America's 250th. The trophy, though, went to a cap we had square in the middle of the pack, Jordan Walker's Cardinals red, a reminder that the Derby grades the swing and we grade the hat. Here is the full grade board, best to worst: Phillies A-, White Sox B+, Royals B+, Red Sox B, Cardinals B-, Rays C+, Yankees C.

Frequently Asked Questions

What do players wear in the 2026 Home Run Derby? Their own team uniforms paired with the New Era 2026 All-Star Workout cap, a performance cap with a raised chenille team logo, diamond-mesh side panels, and a green Philadelphia All-Star bell-and-star patch. There are no special Derby jerseys.

Who is in the 2026 Home Run Derby? Kyle Schwarber and Bryce Harper of the host Phillies, Ben Rice of the Yankees, Junior Caminero of the Rays, Jordan Walker of the Cardinals, Munetaka Murakami of the White Sox, Willson Contreras of the Red Sox, and Jac Caglianone of the Royals.

Who won the 2026 Home Run Derby? Jordan Walker of the St. Louis Cardinals won the 2026 Home Run Derby, beating the Phillies' Kyle Schwarber 12-11 in the final round at Citizens Bank Park. He is the first Cardinal ever to win the event.

Where and when was the 2026 Home Run Derby? Monday, July 13, 2026 at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia, with coverage starting at 7 p.m. ET and the Derby at 8 p.m. ET, streaming on Netflix for the first time.

Why don't All-Star players wear special jerseys anymore? MLB went back to letting players wear their own team uniforms in 2023, after the one-off league-branded All-Star jerseys were widely disliked. The special design now lives in the caps.

What is the theme of the 2026 All-Star caps? America's 250th anniversary, the Semiquincentennial. New Era's collection leans on Philadelphia landmarks and Revolutionary imagery, including the Liberty Bell in the event logo, 13 stars for the original colonies on the on-field cap, and a "United We Stand" lining.

What grade did each 2026 Home Run Derby cap get? Our ColorWay Sports grades, best to worst: Phillies A-, White Sox B+, Royals B+, Red Sox B, Cardinals B-, Rays C+, Yankees C. Bryce Harper and Kyle Schwarber share the Phillies cap and its A- grade, the highest in the field, while the Yankees' navy-on-navy look grades out the lowest at a C.