Legend has it that Bonds promised Bobby Bonilla before the game that hed hit the ball out of the stadium if Yankees pitcher Ted Lilly challenged him inside. Tiger Stadium was famous for its low roof and a few players have hit balls completely out of the ballpark, but Jackson's 532-foot home run stands as one of the longest on record. Again, the vast talents of Herculean Mickey Mantle have been comprised by individuals who have unwittingly perpetrated a hoax. Its immortalized with a Florida Historical Markertitled Babes Longest Homer.. In 1921 alone, which was Ruth's best tape measure season, he hit at least one 500 foot home run in all eight American League cities. On June 14, 1983, Gibson belted a blast over the right field roof against the Red Sox. When you consider that the other baseball towns average about five comparable publications, it is clear that we can draw upon approximately 15 descriptions of most of the hundreds of four-base blows struck during his career. Advertisement That puts it up there with legendary home runs from the likes of Babe Ruth and Mickey Mantle. The homer was Gallos 23rd of the season. And while were unable to go back and superimpose exit velocities and projected distances on homers from the past, we can certainly gawk at them and wonder, "What if they were tracked?" And then, wouldnt you know it, big Cecil did just that. This was Piazzas 38th home run of the season. Also I remember that it was thought to be a greater fete to hit one over the left field roof than in right field. And Zoilo (Versalles) hit some long balls, too. Respect to the camera crew for not flinching and focusing on their work. On July 6, 1974, he powered a torrid drive that crashed against the roof facade in deep left-center field at Tiger Stadium. This was just one of 10 home runs that Marlins ace Kevin Brown allowed all season, and heres guessing he still remembers it pretty vividly. Cecil Fielder of the Detroit Tigers is credited with powering a ball 502 feet in the air over the left-field bleachers at Milwaukee's County Stadium on September 14, 1991. If he had the power to clear the roof by over 100 feet, he surely would have cleared it marginally on many occasions. Long gone! The longest home run ever hit at Comerica Park came off the bat of J.D. You didnt even have to see it; the crack of the bat said it all. But that massive outfield makes it all the more majestic when sluggers crush tape-measure homers, making this ballpark somehow look small. Glenallen Hill at Wrigley Field (May 11, 2000)When the wind is blowing out at Wrigley, everything seems possible for a slugger -- including the rooftops across Waveland Avenue. Negro Leagues star Josh Gibson is said to have actually cleared that old park in the Bronx. A short while later I left with a new cap and a custom Fidrych T-shirt. It was hit into the second level of the. 1969 i attended my first game at Tiger Stadium the next day, Self correction. 3. Before he retired after the 1973 season, he had performed even more extraordinary feats of long-distance hitting in the junior circuit. If Mantle had provided the same power or velocity, but had launched the ball at a higher and more efficient angle, it would have passed out of Yankee Stadium at a height of over 200 feet! J.D. Here is the full top 8 . He had 107 home runs in his four-season career. He holds the record for longest home run in Cleveland Indians history at 511 feet, which he hit against the Kansas City Royals in 1999. All Rights Reserved by Baseball Almanac, Inc.Hosted by Hosting 4 Less. Top 10 Tigers homers of the decade. It was one of the longest home runs anybody has ever seen, reportedly up to 539 feet from home plate. In the case of Nicholson, who was a powerful man, as was Kingman, the figure of 573 feet was provided by "White Sox mathematicians." They represent a fraction of those who have applied their ability to the act of hitting a baseball. The homer had an exit velocity of 111.6 and was Healys tenth home run of the season. This memorable blow was knocked down at a linear distance of approximately 415 feet and an altitude of 85 feet. Its remarkable, and comforting, that, despite their conspicuous increase in muscle mass, todays sluggers dont really hit the ball any farther than their predecessors. Wily Mo Pena at GABP (April 17, 2005)This ball was river-bound too, if it wasnt for that pesky upper deck standing in the way. The distance traveled through the air has been obscured with the passage of time and herein lies an interesting aspect of this subject. Estimates on this mammoth shot range anywhere from 500 to 535 feet, but the one thing we do know is that it cleared the 20-foot patch of grass and 32-foot-high batters eye behind the 404-foot center-field marker at Great American Ball Park. On September 15, 2016, Oakland As Ryon Healy hit a 480-foot home run to left-center field off of Kansas City Royals pitcher Edinson Volquez. update=copyright.getFullYear(); Whether it skips across the top of the railing into the first row of bleachers, or completely passes out of the stadium, the batter is award four bases - no more, no less. Regardless, do we really need any excuse to revisit some classic dingers? It is due to his immense popularity and constant involvement in the tape measure process that he is often thrust into the muddle of misrepresentation. As is often the case at Wrigley, Kingmans home run had a strong wind behind it. The home run went to straightaway center field, clearing the stadium and landing into the street. Reportedly, the baseball landed across the intersection of Cherry and Trumbull. That was the start of modern long-distance hitting, and it is a testimony to Ruth's uniqueness that he was able to set objective standards of performance that have never been surpassed. The exact date is unknown. It was the 485th home run of his career. The vast popularity of major league baseball's home run hitting contest before the annual All-Star Game is ample evidence that we remain enamored of the players blessed with unique levels of power. ESPN's Home Run. Why then would anyone care how far they go? The ball struck the facade on the right-field roof approximately 370 feet from home plate and 115 feet above field level. Acunas homer had an exit velocity of 112.9 mph and was his 14th homer of the season. I put the location into google maps off I went. Later in the same game, Cecil Fielder hit a home run over the left field roof to show Canseco who was stronger. Statcast has tracked games at every Major League ballpark for eight seasons now, and with each passing year were getting a better understanding of just how hard and how far a big leaguer can hit a baseball. The new parks are smaller, built for power hitters to entertain todays fans. The home run was the 100th of Howards career in his 325th game. A truly Ruthian tale., Ossining, N.Y. Babe Ruth went to jail. Detroit Ruth crushed a pitch out of Navin Field versus Ty Cobbs Tigers on July 18, 1921. Sign up to receive our daily Morning Lineup to stay in the know about the latest trending topics around Major League Baseball. Simply clearing the first row of shrubs beyond the center-field fence is a big deal. Franmil Reyes, Aug. 14, 2020 (462 feet)Reyes hit four of his nine home runs in 2020 off Tigers pitchers, but this was the memorable one. The greatest confirmed home run distance in Major League Baseball is about 575 feet (175 m), by Babe Ruth, to straightaway center field at Tiger Stadium (then called Navin Field and prior to the double-deck), which landed nearly across the junction of Trumbull and Cherry. Reggie Jackson's 1971 All-Star Game shot at Tiger Stadium would have travelled more than. We could hit the ball as far as they hit today, or farther. In virtually every other field of endeavor in which physical performance can be measured, there are no Ruthian equivalents. In 1967, he hit the longest home run in the history of Metropolitan Stadium in . MSU has posted double-digit runs in two of the seven games (15 runs vs. Michigan on Feb. 17; 13 runs at USC Upstate on Feb. 24), and the Spartans have posted double-digit hits in five of the seven games, with a season-high 18 hits vs. Michigan, along with 15 hits vs. Fresno state on Feb. 19 and 15 hits at Grand Canyon on Feb. 20. That day, Mee called the physics professor who had created the Twins home run chart and had him recalculate to take into consideration how far the ball would have traveled if unimpeded. Detroit Tigers J.D. On September 10, 1960, with two out and two on in the seventh, Mickey worked the count to 2-0. . But baseball has been around way longer than that, obviously. As long as baseball has been played, observers and participants alike have been fascinated with those rare individuals who have been capable of batting balls farther than others of their time. Machados home run had an exit velocity of 114.3 mph. Some Long Home Runs at Kansas City's Municipal Stadium. Sosas home run was hit off Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher David Williams. Yet again, we have an example of a genuinely epic home run that has been grievously overstated. His regular bombardment of the left-field roof at Tiger Stadium has not been approximated in the 60-year history of that structure. Since 2015, Nomar Mazara owns the longest homer distance at 505 feet. Mark McGwires shot off Randy Johnson (June 24, 1997)Big Mac is one of the few players to ever launch a ball completely out of Dodger Stadium, but were highlighting this one instead thanks to the quality of the pitcher. 5. Giancarlo Stanton hit the longest home run ever made in Coors Field to date when he played against the Rockies in 2016. As I approached the area I quickly realized I was in more an industrial & commercial area then retail. Privacy Policy Almost everyone in attendance believed that the ball was still rising when it was interrupted in midflight by the roof structure. In his first season wearing the Old English D, Big Daddy hit 51 homers. The blast was the first of his career. The ball kept carrying as JaCoby Jones ran towards the wall, eventually clearing both rows of shrubs in straightaway center before bouncing back onto the field. A 34-mph wind blew toward the bleachers that day, which is why Mee thinks Killebrews second upper-deck shot may actually have been hit harder. The crowd stood at attention, and at first there was a sense of awe, Kight recounted. The homer, which had an exit velocity of 107.8 mph, was Marisnicks eighth of the season. The founding fathers decided to reward a powerfully hit ball by allowing the batter to circle the bases for an automatic run. Andres Galarraga at Pro Player Stadium (May 31, 1997)A grand slam counts for four runs every time, but boy, this one had to feel even more satisfying than most. Years after the fact, Brouthers was credited with a 500-foot home run on the aforementioned date, but it seems highly unlikely that the ball traveled nearly that far. Jackson told the Associated Press postgame that he wasnt even trying to hit a home run. Imagine if he was! Certainly, this drive was propelled somewhere around 500 feet in the air, which makes it legitimately historic, but proof that it traveled 600 feet cannot be found. Miguel Cabrera later became known for reaching the camera perch above that. When Mickey Mantle cleared the left-center-field bleachers at Clark Griffith Stadium in Washington on April 17, 1953, the entire baseball world was lead to believe the ball had traveled 565 feet from home plate to the point where it landed. As a lifelong Tigers fan, I have been fortunate enough to see two players clear the fence. Part of the Baseball Almanac Family, Long Distance Home Runs by William J. Jenkinson 1996. Giancarlo Stanton, 504 Feet (2016) Since the installment of technology, Giancarlo Stanton's home run is the longest homer ever recorded. His tremendous blow to right-center field in Detroit on June 8, 1926, has often been reported as traveling over 600 feet. J.D. According to former Tiger Stadium groundskeeper Frank Feneckit, it took almost a howitzer to send a ball over the left-field grandstand at The Corner. It would have left Tiger Stadium, like Fielders shot, if not for a transformer perched on top of the right-field roof. The lore has it that Mickey Mantle hit a 565-foot home run against the Washington Senators in 1953. . However, the actual distance in the air was probably about 510 feet. But not so fast. Ruth played during the height of American's newspaper culture, when approximately 10 New York papers gave first hand accounts of each Yankee game. The home run is memorialized with a red seat in the right-field bleachers. In truth, that figure derived from the distance from home plate to the place where a neighborhood child retrieved the ball. No one had hit one that far before. What a great game! The winning pitcher that day for the Blue Jays was Pat Hentgen of Fraser. Reggie Jackson's 1971 All-Star homer off the transformer atop Tiger Stadium's rightfield roof is one of the most famous long shots. Cardinals switch-hitter Rip Collins hit 35 in 1934. Report and free match highlights from the Sky Bet Championship match between Hull City and West Brom at the MKM Stadium. They did not or could not find a way to further reward the batter who hit a ball significantly farther than the established home run distance. Detroit Outfielder Cullenbines Skills Were Ahead of His Time, Jon Warden made the most of his one season with Tigers, The longest home runs hit at Tiger Stadium in Detroit. I swear one of the Angels hit one either on or over the roof in 84 or 85. They have always liked them, and always will. As i pulled in I quickly understood this was a warehouse & office thinking this is a internet retailer. That ball is measured at 634 feet by the Guinness Book of World Records, but few really believe it went that far on the fly. The ball landed. This ball cleared the Hard Rock Cafe and landed well into the fifth deck, and Griffeys classic swing made the feat look effortless. Wilkes-Barre, Pa. Ruth took a train to Wilkes-Barre two days after the 1926 World Series (imagine Kris Bryant playing an exhibition game later this weekfor a couple thousand people) and tattooed a ball 650 feet, according to members ofWilkes-Barre's City Government. document.write(update); In fact, the ball bounced off a seat about eight rows back. It was a rarity. I seem to recall Big Frank Howard (Hondo) of the Washington Senators, blast one over the left field roof sometime between 1966 and 68 (I think). Thompson was my favorite player at the time, so it was an awesome moment, to be sure. The longest home runs hit at Tiger Stadium in Detroit by Dan Holmes on January 24, 2022 I could hit for average, but that's not my job. Before participating in the varsity squad of William Howard Taft Charter High School, he developed his baseball skills in the West Valley Little League. This was his first game since 17 September, when he . The most common cause for overstatement has been the basic misconception about the flight of a batted ball once it has reached its apex. We had five, six guys here on our ballclub who could hit the ball farther than anybody Killebrew, Allison, (Don) Mincher, Jimmie Hall, myself. Dick Allen, too, played in both leagues, thereby providing himself the advantage of leaving his signature on more ballparks than those who only played in one league. Accounts from the time say the ball came to rest on the banks of the Ohio River, meaning Dunn was potentially feet away from hitting a ball to Kentucky. Some fans in attendance swear the ball was still going up before it struck the roof, and a physicist from Montreals McGill University put his local bias aside to estimate that it would have traveled 525 feet, had it not been stopped. Own This Day - https://thebaseballpage.comSeptember 10, 1960 - Mickey Mantle unloads a cannon shot clearing the RF roof in Detroit and landing in Brooks Lumb. The home run had an exit velocity of 114.6 mph to center field. And Giancarlo Stanton has hit the hardest tracked homer at a scorching 121.7 mph. According to Tim Reid of the Committee to Commemorate Babe Ruth, the West Coast Inn home run is believed to be perhaps the longest ever hit off major league pitching. Perhaps the longest of those not previously mentioned was Ralph Kiner, who bombarded all the National League left-field distance plateaus of his times. The big guy came to Detroit in 1990 as a free agent after a season in Japan. Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Alan Foster. The second one was Gibbys blast in 1983, when some friends and I got bleacher tickets, and sat dead center, giving us a great view of the ball as it sailed out of the ballpark. Bonus points for clubbing this off As ace Dave Stewart, when Smoke was near the peak of his powers. Nomar Mazara, who played for the Rangers, held the longest home run . Dozens of players have peppered the left field roof at batting practice, though. He can still hear the ball . Few people like the response given because, unlike other baseball stats, it is the farthest thing from perfect as illustrated by this superb article called Long Distance Home Runs written by William J. Jenkinson. Mike, I was at that game in 1996 when Delgado hit that blast, sitting the Box Seats in the upper deck in right. In 1921 there was no SportsCenter, no 24-hour highlight machine called the Internet. 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Also ranking among the elite during that decade were Greg Luzinski, Dave Kingman, and George Foster. In order to fully understand and appreciate long-distance hitting, a frame of reference should be established. 2. On July 1, 1990, Kansas City Royals outfielder Bo Jackson hit one of the longest home runs in Kauffman Stadium history against Jack Morris and the Detroit Tigers. This years World Series games at Wrigley Field remind us of Babe Ruths legendary home run there, when he allegedly called his shot in Game 3 of the 1932 Fall Classic in Chicago. Brouthers rocketed a rising line drive that cleared the fence in distant right-center field, and reportedly rolled another two blocks. TheNew York Post called it his longest-ever home run.. On April 14, 1976, New York Mets right fielder Dave Kingman hit an estimated 530-foot home run to left-center field off Chicago Cubs pitcher Tom Dettore. The longest home runs hit at Comerica Park January 7th, 2021 Jason Beck @ beckjason Comerica Park is big enough all around that there are no cheap home runs. I saw Frank Howard hit his homer over the left field wall in Tiger stadium. (Photo by Omar Rawlings/Getty Images). Copyright 2023 Sporting News Holdings Limited. In order for the ball to be rising at roof level, it would have to have been traveling at a lower angle than that which produces maximum distance. Home runs that are hit out of the ball park are measured from where the batter stands to where the ball . There should be no doubt about the authentication of these conclusions. For perspective, consider the computerized measuring system implemented by IBM in most major league cities in 1982. This feat was accomplished at a time before home runs were hit with enough frequency to be considered a regular part of the game. 12/9 Tennessee. Jason Thompson. Chicago Cubs right fielder Sammy Sosa hit a 484-foot home run to left-center field on April 12, 2002. The blast still stands over 40 years later as the longest homerun in MLB All-Star game history. Perhaps the mightiest of all the early sluggers was Big Dan Brouthers, who played for several National League teams before the turn of the century. Cleveland Indians first baseman, and future Hall of Famer, Jim Thome hit a 511-foot home run to center field on July 3, 1999, off of Kansas City Royals pitcher Don Wengert. We naturally like to quantify any phenomenon that interest us. The same home runs that had once been described as 500 footers were now being scientifically calculated in the 450-foot range. A former football player, Gibby was sort of like a tight end without the shoulder pads in the outfield for Detroit. It is the longest home run ever hit in a major league game where it was possible to get the exact measurement. The first time, though, was in 1977, when Jason Thompson clubbed one out, literally seconds after my dad told me I think Thompson is gonna crush one out of the stadium.