As Major League Baseball fans clamor to hear Chris Berman call the Home Run Derby again, he remembers when they weren’t so fond of his schtick.
Berman called the MLB Home Run Derby for more than three decades. And yet it’s taken the last 10 years of him being removed from the event for fans to really appreciate what Berman offered. Every year that goes by without Berman calling the Derby, fans seem to get louder in sharing how much they miss having him at the center of baseball’s home run hitting spectacle.
Wednesday afternoon, Berman joined The Pat McAfee Show from the site of the ESPYS. During the appearance, McAfee noted the overwhelming sentiment on social media Monday night with baseball fans calling for Berman to return to the Home Run Derby.
People on Monday night were hoping hear one more…
BACK BACK BACK BACK BACK BACK #PMSLive pic.twitter.com/YE2pfKfG4o
— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) July 15, 2026
“You have gotten to the stage now where everything you used to do, people are yearning for you to do it again,” McAfee told Berman. “People on Monday night were just hoping they could hear one, ‘back, back, back, back, back…’ You should know that.”
This season was the first in more than three decades where ESPN didn’t air the Home Run Derby, with Netflix assuming exclusive broadcast rights to the event. Matt Vasgersian called the event for Netflix, and he even shared an ode to Berman with a “back, back, back, back” during the broadcast. But it wasn’t enough to stop fans from wanting more.
“I haven’t done it for 10 years,” Berman said before joking, “All of a sudden I got good at it.”
Baseball fans might miss Berman calling the Home Run Derby, but when he was calling the Home Run Derby, many of them didn’t think he was very good at it. As much as social media was dominated by fans calling for Berman to return this year, the groupthink on the internet was mocking him 10 years ago after hearing one too many “back, back, back, back, backs.”
But in the 10 years without Berman, ’90s nostalgia has kicked in, and the idea of having one of the founders of ESPN call the Home Run Derby seems much less insufferable. During an appearance on Pardon My Take last year, Berman even admitted he’d be open to calling the Derby again. If Berman and the fans are in agreement, then MLB should find a way to make it happen. Baseball should relish anyone wanting to be part of the Home Run Derby.
About Brandon Contes
Brandon Contes is a staff writer for Awful Announcing and The Comeback. He previously helped carve the sports vertical for Mediaite and spent more than three years with Barrett Sports Media. Send tips/comments/complaints to bcontes@thecomeback.com