Davidson-Smith To Participate In MLB Home Run Derby X

STARKVILLE – The SEC home run queen is taking her talents to The Show. Mia Davidson-Smith is one of five confirmed softball or women's baseball players participating in MLB's Home Run Derby X this summer.

The four-city tour will visit iconic minor league stadiums this year in August and early September. Home Run Derby X is a twist on the traditional home run derby. Teams compete in groups of three, with each team featuring a former Major League star, a women's baseball or softball player and a yet-to-be-named local ballplayer.

Each batter gets two minutes and thirty seconds in the box, earning a point for each home run and bonus points for hitting a home run through the centerfield target or by calling for a "hot streak," where points are doubled for the next five swings. The three players from the opposing team also play defense, however, and earn points by making catches and robbing homers. If they snag a ball during a hot streak those points are also doubled. Each batter also gets a timeout and -- should they need it -- they can tag in a teammate to help finish the at-bat.

Home Run Derby X is slated to visit For Wayne, Indiana (Aug. 10); Albuquerque, New Mexico (Aug. 23); Nashville, Tennessee (Aug. 31) and Durham, North Carolina (Sept. 7). Additional softball and women's baseball players include former Oklahoma outfielder and NCAA home run record-holder Jocelyn Alo, former UCLA catcher Paige Halstead, former Georgia infielder and current member of the USA Baseball Women's National Team Alex Hugo and FIU junior Ashton Lansdell who is also a member of the USA Baseball Women's National Team.

During her career at Mississippi State, Davidson-Smith shattered the school record for home runs by any MSU baseball or softball player, launching 92. That also stands as the SEC record in softball and ranks third in NCAA history. She was a two-time All-American and was named the NFCA Catcher of the Year in her final season while taking the Bulldogs to their first NCAA Super Regional.

Following her collegiate career, Davidson-Smith was selected in the 2022 Athletes Unlimited College Draft. She's played two championship seasons and one AUX season with the league. Last summer, she finished third on the AUX leaderboard after hitting a league-leading five homers in 10 games. Her 382 stat points and 12 runs were second in AUX history, and her 26 total bases were third. In the 2023 championship season, she reached base safely in all 15 games and at one point climbed as high as second place on the leaderboard.

The former Bulldog catcher has also represented her country internationally, playing with Team USA at the 2022 Pan American Championships and the 2023 WBSC World Cup Group State and Pan American Games. She's won two gold medals with the Eagles and boasts a career 1.156 OPS on the international stage with four homers in the Red, White and Blue.

Davidson-Smith's summer will be busy. She is currently playing professionally with the Denso Bright Pegasus in the Japan Diamond Softball League. That league is put on pause following games on June 9, and Davidson-Smith will travel to Castions di Strada, Italy, for the WBSC World Cup Finals on July 15-21. She returns to the United States to play her third Athletes Unlimited Championship season from July 26-Aug. 25. From there she heads to Nashville, Tennessee for her first MLB Home Run Derby X appearance on Aug. 31. Her play with Denso resumes on Sept. 7, and the postseason in that league begins on Nov. 9.

For more information on the Bulldog softball program, follow on X (formerly Twitter), Facebook and Instagram by searching "HailStateSB."

Mississippi State University Athletics

Davidson-Smith To Participate In MLB Home Run Derby X

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