SI

It’s Impossible to Tell How Far Home Runs Are Flying Now

In Thursday’s Hot Clicks: Juan Soto hits a ball ... somewhere, a wild stick save from Carey Price and more.

Dan Gartland

It is high. It is far. It is ... where, exactly?

Thank god for MLB’s Statcast system, otherwise we’d have no way of knowing that Juan Soto hit the longest home run of his career last night at Citi Field.

MLB’s sophisticated radar system tells us the ball left the bat at 112.9 mph (also making it Soto’s hardest-hit homer) and traveled 466 feet, but see whether you can tell from the video where the ball landed. 

Content is unavailable

Nationals broadcaster Bob Carpenter, calling the game off a monitor back in Washington, had no idea what happened to the ball. “High and deep and, evidently, way out of here,” he said. 

I kind of forgot what watching baseball under normal circumstances was like so I may be totally wrong, but I feel like there have been so many more home runs this season that I’ve been totally unable to track. 

Remember the blast Fernando Tatís Jr. hit last week? I know it went a mile because he celebrated like it did, but the video makes it impossible to tell where it landed. 

Content is unavailable

Same goes for this one by Tatís’s teammate, Wil Myers.

Here’s one Miguel Sanó hit Wednesday night where Twins announcer Dick Bremer said, “I have no idea where that landed.”

Content is unavailable

So what’s going on here? I think it’s a few things. First of all, the presence of a crowd makes it a lot easier to tell where a ball lands. Fans create a mosaic of different colors in the stands that make for a nice contrasted background as the ball is flying, and people in the area where the ball is hit will jump up to try to grab it. That makes it easier for the viewer at home to see where a ball went, but I also bet it helps the camera operator follow the path of the ball.

When the ball does land, it helps to have a dark-colored background to see it bouncing. Soto’s 463-foot shot to dead center on Monday night landed in the black batter’s eye, so you don’t have to have 20/20 vision to see it bounce and know he crushed it. Aaron Judge’s 468-foot homer against the Red Sox earlier this month landed in the bleachers of Yankee Stadium, an area full of gray concrete and silver metal. If you look really, really closely, you can see the ball bounce about halfway up the bleachers. 

It’s been clear for years now that the ball itself is juiced, so we’re seeing tons of home runs, and ones that are flying farther than ever. As a Yankees fan, I just want to be able to watch Judge and Giancarlo Stanton punish some baseballs. I feel like that’s been harder to actually observe this season. 

The best of SI

The problem with Donald Trump’s insults about the NBA. ... Washington receiver Terry McLaurin has spent a ton of time this offseason learning how to fish, and he thinks it might improve his game. ... MLB’s season already looks nothing like the league intended in July, so how will things be in October? ... The decision by some conferences to cancel fall sports had college football totally divided.

Around the sports world

An NCAA executive guaranteed there will be March Madness in 2021. ... A day after the Big Ten and Pac-12 canceled their seasons, the Big 12 announced its schedule for the 2020 season—complete with a Texas-Oklahoma game at the Cotton Bowl. ... Los Angeles Times sports columnist Bill Plaschke wrote a great column about coming down with COVID-19. ... The rebooted Tony Hawk video game will rename the “mute” grab in honor of its creator.

All you need is a piece

Content is unavailable

Another multi-overtime game!

Two ways of getting the same result

I’m going to ignore the small sample size and conclude this is 100% cause and effect

Outstanding quote

Content is unavailable

D.J. LeMahieu is batting .431

You hate to see it

Content is unavailable

That wasn’t anywhere near the goal

Not sports

Dr. Pepper is experiencing a nationwide shortage. ... Comedian Sarah Cooper, who blew up on TikTok, has landed her own Netflix special. ... Musician Phoebe Bridgers told a story about taking the stage while battling food poisoning and crapping herself. ... Police in the Netherlands found the country’s largest cocaine lab inside a former riding school.

I’m truly mesmerized

This honestly looks great

Content is unavailable

A good song

Email dan.gartland@si.com with any feedback or follow me on Twitter for approximately one half-decent baseball joke per week. Bookmark this page to see previous editions of Hot Clicks and find the newest edition every day. By popular request I’ve made a Spotify playlist of the music featured here. Visit our Extra Mustard page throughout each day for more offbeat sports stories.

Published
Dan Gartland
DAN GARTLAND

Dan Gartland is the writer and editor of Sports Illustrated’s flagship daily newsletter, SI:AM, covering everything an educated sports fan needs to know. He joined the SI staff in 2014, having previously been published on Deadspin and Slate. Gartland, a graduate of Fordham University, is a former Sports Jeopardy! champion (Season 1, Episode 5).

Home/Extra Mustard