Bengals TE Beats Elite Softball Player To Win HR Derby at Logan Wilson Event

DAYTON – It wasn’t quite Todd Frazier-level drama, but Cincinnati Bengals tight end Tanner Hudson won the Logan Wilson Celebrity Softball Home Run Derby in walkoff fashion Wednesday night at Day Air Park.

Hudson finished in a three-way tie in the second round to make it a four-man final, and he hit nine home runs as the final hitter in the round to top John Radich, a local businessman and ASSA softball player who bought his way into the even by winning a charity auction.

Radich had seven homers in the 40-second final.

Tight end Cam Grady took third with six, and Cal Adomitis, the defending champion who showed up midway through the first round and getting stuck in traffic, finished fourth with five.

“I played baseball in high school and travel ball growing up,” Hudson said. “I played a little slow pitch, too, when I was in high school and in college."

“Once I started making good contact, it felt good,” Hudson added.

Hudson, who played quarterback in college before switching to tight end and entering the NFL as an undrafted free agent, also homered in the game, drilling a two-run shot in the thrid inning.

The Home Run Derby field included Josh Harrison, a Cincinnati native and MLB native of 13 seasons and the brother of Dayton Dragons coach Vince Harrison.

But Harrison only hit two homers and didn’t advance out of the first round.

“That’s completely different from what I did,” Harrison said. “They were throwing 100.”

Wilson, the host of the event and the captain of the home team, received some advice from former Bengals running back Gio Bernard, the captain of the visiting team, as he was struggling through his 60-second at bat in the opening round:

“Don’t get a goose egg,” Bernard shouted.

Wilson did, in fact, get a goose egg.

There was one scary moment that interrupted the fun. Adomitis hit a line drive down the right-field line that bounced one and hit a young fan in the head, knocking her to the ground.

Officials halted the derby so medics could attend to the girl, but she walked off holding an ice pack against her head while the crowd applauded and most of the Bengals players ran over to greet her.

Also failing to advance out of the first round were Black Sheep owner and former University of Cincinnati football player Patrick Coyne, who has trained more than 90 Bengals players, including Joe Burrow and Sam Hubbard, since opening his gym.

Coyne hit three homers.

The others who failed to advance were Bernard (four), kicker Evan McPherson (three), cornerback Nate Brooks (two) and linebacker Maema Njongmeta (two).

Bernard redeemed himself by leading off the game with a home run, and Brooks hit a three-run homer in the second inning.

The second-round results of the Home Run Derby were:

John Radich 9

Cam Grandy 6

Tanner Hudson 6

Cal Adomitis 6

Barrett Carter 5

Shaka Heyward 1