By entering a local home run derby challenge simply for fun, Braylen Lee now finds himself ready for the same event on a national stage.

Lee, a rising seventh-grader at Warren East Middle School, is one of 40 players in the country who will compete in Major League Baseball’s youth skills competition in Miami.

Lee will compete in the Jr. Home Run Derby National Finals at 7:30 a.m. CDT Saturday at Marlins Park, home of the MLB’s Miami Marlins. Braylen, the son of Bryan and Sarah Lee of Oakland, won his local Home Run Derby Championship at Ephram White Park in May and won the regional derby in Chicago on June 4.

“I just did it for fun,” Lee said. “When I won and went to Chicago, I tried to have fun and see what happens. I was definitely surprised. There were a lot of good kids there and I was surprised when I came out with the win.”

By winning one of the eight regional events, Lee was awarded with an all-expenses paid trip to the MLB All-Star weekend. The winner will be recognized at the MLB Home Run Derby on Monday before Tuesday’s All-Star Game.

The finalists of the Jr. Home Run Derby and the MLB Pitch, Hit and Run National Finals – separated into two age groups of 12U and 14U – will attend various All-Star events throughout the weekend.

Lee, a Cincinnati Reds fan who said his favorite player is Mike Trout of the Los Angeles Angels, will compete against seven other regional winners in the 12U age group. He played first base for the Warren County North Little League All-Stars.

He hit 41 home runs in three rounds with a coach pitching at the local derby to earn a place in the regional at Chicago, where he defeated 41 other participants on a machine pitch in the 12U age group to advance to Miami. At the national finals, Lee will bat against a pitching machine set at 60 mph.

“I’m excited to be able to go to Miami and play on the field, but nervous about meeting some (major league) players,” Lee said. “It will be pretty exciting. I’m looking forward to it a lot, just getting to be in an MLB stadium.”{&end}