Westfield's Fried Wins All-Star Home Run Derby

NASHUA, N.H. 一 With the Futures League Home Run Derby down to a final swing-off on Monday night, Westfield Starfires first baseman Morrie Fried needed little time to seal the deal.

After hitting four home runs during his opening round, the rising Brown University freshman cleared the left-field fences at Historic Holman Stadium on back-to-back swings to start his five-swing tiebreaker round, edging out the Norwich Sea Unicorns' Shaun Flannery (UConn) to win the Derby title. 

Fried topped a seven-man field that included six Futures League competitors and guest challenger Jonny Gomes, a 2004 World Series champion for the Boston Red Sox. 

Fried is the second straight and third all-time Westfield slugger to win the Derby, making the Starfires the only franchise with more than one winner in Futures League history. He joins 2021 Futures League Most Valuable Player Cole Bartels (Penn State) and 2025 winner Griffin Enis (Virginia) as Westfield's champions.

Thanks to Harvard Pilgrim Health Care, every home run hit in the Home Run Derby helped support the host Nashua Silver Knights' Home Runs for Mental Health initiative to benefit the Greater Nashua Mental Health Center. There were 19 total homers hit in the Derby, meaning that $1,900 will be donated.

For the latest news and information on the Futures League all year long, visit thefuturesleague.com and follow the league's Facebook, X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram pages.