Bryce Harper has shown interest in participating in the Home Run Derby, but it would be on one condition. He should be selected to be on the team, which is quite likely for a number of reasons.

He is the best-known player in the National League, having won both Most Valuable Player and Rookie of the Year awards. It’s very likely that the fans will pick him as a starter, despite a bit of a down year so far.

In the rare chance that he doesn’t get the fan vote, Harper will be sure to make the team as a reserve. He’s not only serving talent-wise, but the game is being played at his home stadium in Washington.

Nearly forty years earlier, the last time the nation’s capital hosted the Summer Classic, another popular outfielder was selected to start in front of the home team crowd. If there had been a contest like the Home Run Derby back then, this guy would surely have been one of the contestants.

After all, Frank Howard of the Washington Senators had led the league with 44 home runs the year before, the first of three in which he would reach the forty-homer plateau. To the delight of the home fans, Howard had one out in his first at-bat.

Unfortunately, the Senior Circuit stars had already put in three runs before Howard went under, highlighted by a two-run home run by Cincinnati catcher Johnny Bench in the top half of the second. One inning later, another of the dozen future Hall of Famers who played in that game, San Francisco first baseman Wilie McCovey, hit two runs.

Stretch McCovey wasn’t done yet, as he landed another hit in his next at-bat. Not only was it impressive enough to basically put the game out of reach for him, but more so because McCovey hit it off with reigning Cy Young Award winner Denny McLain of the Detroit Tigers.C

After hitting those two home runs, the obvious choice for game MVP was, in fact, McCovey. He and his fellow National League stars finished with a nine-to-three victory, continuing a streak that saw the Senior Circuit win all but one Midsummer Classic in a seventeen-year span.

Fans in Washington who were disappointed that their team lost back then now expect the American League team to lose this year. The new DC team is in the National League with a different name and a different stadium than 1969 RFK Park.

Two other aspects that are likely to differ in this contest reflect the way the sport has evolved over the last forty years. That last contest in Washington was played at two in the afternoon, and took only two and a half hours to complete.more

Expect the lights to be on for this year’s July 17 contest, and expect them to glow for at least four hours.