Blue Jays prospect Damiano Palmegiani finishes second in AFL Home Run Derby

The 23-year-old corner infielder was tied for the lead after round one, finishing with 11 home runs. In the second round, he hit six home runs and brought his total to 17, three ahead of four other players. In fact, there was a four-way tie for second place, which means Palmegaini sat for a long tiebreaker.

He took on Rosario, who went first and hit six home runs, in the final. Palmegiani fell just short, racking up five home runs and nearly hit a last-second home run to tie it. Rosario ended up hitting 25 home runs (20 without the tiebreaker), while Palmegiani finished with 23.

It won’t be long before Palmegiani is back in action, as he was one of five Blue Jays prospects to make it to the 2023 Arizona Fall League Fall Stars, along with Dasan Brown, Will Robertson, C.J. Van Eyk, and Ricky Tiedemann. The latter was shut down after his October 20 start, but the Blue Jays still have the most representatives for the Fall Stars.

Palmegiani has had a great Fall League, slashing .260/.366/.521 with four homers in 93 plate appearances. While he didn’t with the Home Run Derby, it definitely increased his already fast-rising stock.