​Jordan Walker entered Citizens Bank Park surrounded by Philadelphia Phillies colors. The St. Louis Cardinals representative later overheard Kyle Schwarber and Bryce Harper plastered as the proverbial favorites in the 2026 Home Run Derby. Then Walker faced long comeback odds to topple the former.But Walker delivered an epic derby comeback for the ages. Pulling off the stunning upset against the heavy favorite Schwarber by completing the final six swings of the finals.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementWalker’s night started to align his way the moment he beat out Harper for the semifinals spot. He then became all smiles in accepting the two-bats trophy and derby chain.And he hit a mark that franchise legends Mark McGuire and Albert Pujols never hit before.McGuire is known for delivering power hits during his late 1990s Cardinals run. Pujols carried that momentum in his illustrious career during the 2000s.But Walker hits this stunning milestone: He’s the first Cardinals player to ever win the Home Run Derby crown.Even McGuire never won the 1998 derby during his widely-viewed home run duel with Sammy Sosa, when both went after the single-season HR record. Seattle Mariners star Ken Griffey Jr. took the derby championship in that all-star event at Coors Field in Denver.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementPujols participated in the renown event five times: 2003, 2007, 2009, 2015 and his final one of 2022. The ’03 derby emerged as the closest he ever got to winning the event, eventually losing out to Garrett Anderson of the Anaheim Angels.The right-handed batter hit more than franchise history, though.Walker delivered another historic milestone, per OPTAstats after the derby concluded. “Jordan Walker is the first non-rookie to win the Home Run Derby after never having hit at least 20 HR in a season entering the year they won the derby,” the account posted on the social media website X, formerly known as Twitter.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementWhich now shows that even the MLB leader in home runs are no longer guaranteed to be the odds on favorite to win the event. MLB analyst Sarah Langs dropped another history nugget now attached to Walker: fifth-youngest winner.The 1993 victor Juan Gonzalez remains the youngest derby winner ever. Gonzalez claimed his title while with the Texas Rangers.National analysts even outside of baseball took to social media in reacting to the 2026 winner.Longtime ESPN personality Kevin Negandhi praised how calm Walker became.“Impressive performance from Jordan Walker. Perfect example of staying cool the entire time and being in control,” Negandhi said on X.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementEven fellow ESPN personality but renown college football analyst Kirk Herbstreit raved about Walker.Walker even hit a massive payday too. His current Cardinals contract doesn’t pay him in the millions, which sits at $799,400 currently. But he earns $1 million in taking home the the derby trophy.He felt unfaz