Seattle Mariners center fielder Julio Rodriguez swings during the All-Star Home Run Derby at T-Mobile Park. Steven Bisig-USA TODAY Sports

Watch: Julio Rodriguez hits record 41 HRs in first round of Derby

By Andrew Kulha | Last updated 7/10/23

Seattle Mariners outfielder Julio Rodriguez put on an absolute clinic in front of his adoring home crowd at the 2023 MLB Home Run Derby.

Round 1 was sensational from Rodriguez. After watching Luis Robert Jr. of the Chicago White Sox put up 28 and Baltimore's Adley Rutschman put up 27 right behind him, Rodriguez exploded for a record-setting 41 home runs in front of an adoring T-Mobile Park.

It looked like this:

JULIO RODRIGUEZ PUT ON A SHOW

41 home runs in the first round pic.twitter.com/JrI4Ajag0p
— ESPN (@espn) July 11, 2023

Rodriguez's 41 dingers in one round put him one ahead of Vladimir Guerrero Jr., who hit 40 in the second round of the 2019 Derby.

Perhaps most impressive was the fact that the 41 home runs knocked off Rodriguez's opponent in the round, Pete Alonso of the New York Mets, who hit 21 homers. Alonso is a two-time Derby champion, but he won't win in 2023 thanks to Rodriguez.

The star performance caught a ton of attention on social media, including a shoutout from the NBA's Kevin Durant: