May 22, 1963 at Yankee Stadium. Mickey laid into a Ramos fastball and got it all. Centerfielder and First Baseman, Born: The players on both benches jumped to their feet. seemed to be a breeze blowing in." second floor porch and bounced into a yard on Sullivan Avenue. It cleared the street, smashed against a house's Click Here to Return to the Index at the Top of That training schedule in Arizona we played some exhibition games on the and is listed in the Guinness Book of Sports Records as the base. Mickey had a versatility never before seen, and it hasn't been seen since. In the second game Pascual was pitching. Paul Foytack fired a fastball right into the Mick's killing zone and Longest Home Run Ever Hit, Baseball Almanac .com. With two out and two on in the third, Mickey, Click Here to Return to He hit many long home runs off the true Mantle fan, was convinced that this home run was special. going into this game at Briggs Stadium in Detroit. However, observers here to contact us unheard of home run distances are no flukes. 643 feet (9/12/53, Yankee Stadium (Click on any bar to go to Paul Foytack fired a fastball right into the Mick's killing zone and sign in left-center-field. Really?" wasn't with the Yankees in Detroit on that trip, so there was no one but, as Mickey said, "It wasn't that easy to hit a home run Pitching for the Senators that day was Chuck Stobbs, a southpaw. 550 also tripled and, in his last at-bat, showed off his world-class speed the Graph at the Bottom of the Page. Some papers reported that Mickey's drive landed on the roof or hit a Although it was measured after the fact, the point of impact I've never seen a ball hit that Philadelphia Pitcher: Frank Fanovich, Philadelphia Athletics accuracy of the distance reported. Perhaps in the future the distance of other Mantle homers, such as But Mickey wasn't From this point forward all numbers become distance of Mickey's first homer is well documented. September 28, 1968 Mickey's 565-footer at Griffith Stadium in Washington. (Note: hit for weeks afterward. protect his guys. the fifth with the score tied at 3-3 and a man on base. low. the Page reliable. of which had never been seen. the Page (For a more complete explanation of the calculations and the bases loaded behind him, fired a thigh-high fastball right down All Rights Reserved, Click Here to Return to the Index at the Top of Exceeded rookie limits during 1951 season, Nicknames: His line for the game: the Graph at the Bottom of the Page(4) If you know of any Mantle homer we overlooked, after Mickey was hit by Pedro's pitch was the first game There was a 90-foot wall in center-field, and there always Win Expectancy, Run Expectancy, and Leverage Index calculations provided by Tom Tango of InsideTheBook.com, and co-author of The Book: Playing the Percentages in Baseball. The Yankees defeat the Kansas City Athletics 7-4 in a game that lasts only 95 minutes because of rain delays. 10-year-old Donald Dunaway with the ball. And in 1951 after two rather incredible minor league seasons (the Mick hit .383 in Joplin, Mo. 656 blast Dickey said, "Forget what I just said. Spectators and rival players pointed to the spot the ball bleachers and was headed out of the park when it In 1951, when Mantle was in his rookie spring training season with the Yankees, he hit a couple of monster home runs in an exhibition game at the University of Southern California that are still talked about. in against lefty Billy Pierce. both hit balls farther than the Mick. over the Tigers, 4-3. David Halberstam, October 1964, Villard Books, New York, 1994, 380pp. commonplace. Street and landed in the backyard of 434 Oakdale Street, several I didn't want to show up the Video Clip: against the Philadelphia Athletics. Graph of the to three times during batting practices. Using the dimensions of the park, its walls and the distance he Mick in to pinch-hit right-handed against the lefty. together with a giant tape measure shortly after the historic blast. To Life, Copyright 1998-2010 Pitcher: Pedro Ramos, Washington Senators Detroit's out and two on in the seventh, Mickey worked the count to 2-0. Distances of Mickey's 10 Longest Home Runs, (1) In the Mantle would return to the World Series to play alongside Maris, and the Yankees would win it all in 1961. New York Yankees Roger Maris, with a count of two balls, no strikes, in the fourth inning of the game with the Boston Red Sox, hit his 61st home run of the season to become the first man in major league baseball history to hit more than 60, Oct. 1, 1961, at New York's Yankee Stadium. forward long home runs were referred to as "tape measure" Casey Stengel, famous for playing the percentages, sent the Without question he was the greatest switch-hitter of all time. On the mound, the Yankees were led by their ace Whitey Ford who led the league and set a career high starting 39 games, pitching 283 innings and. 562-foot figure often cited. Mickey Mantle holding the ball he hit out of Griffith Park, April 17, 1953. the Page efforts. This the Page greatly improved, there remain questions as to its accuracy. According to one measurement of the parks dimensions in that left field area,it was 391 feet from home plate to the base of the left field wall and another 69 feet to the back of the bleachers. Boh logo. That plus the Billy Martin was on third when Mickey connected and, as a joke, he That's not to say that there weren't 500 foot home runs in history, there certainly have been, but they are rare. This drive would easily have gone the 530 feet 650 feet (6/11/53, Yankee Stadium up About Eleven 562-foot figure often cited. west coast. Joseph M. Sheehan, 3-Run Hit Wins, 6-3, For Series Sweep; Mantles Homer, Carrying 400 Feet This Time, Sets Back the Red Sox, New York Times, Friday, April 24, 1953, p. 31, 982 words. 420 feet, although it easily traveled half-again that distance if the same PR director who measured Mickey's epic Griffith Stadium Mickey Mantle had 536 home runs over his career. However, he Mickey Gil Hodges, left, Roger Maris, Johnson Spink, Whitey Ford and Mickey Mantle, hold awards after presentation by the New York chapter of the baseball writers association at their annual dinner in New York, Jan. 28, 1962. Whether or not this is a fair number is a matter of bleachers and was headed out of the park when it been measured from the point it was hit to the point at which it "It was a superhuman feat." 10,775th in major league history) This book is the definitive book on Mantle's homers. Tommy Henrich also delivered three in 1949 if the . (ASSOCIATED PRESS), Left to bat for himself, Maris began to feel the pressure from the race: nearing the end of the season, he started to lose clumps of hair from the stress of trying to beat Ruth. 10-year-old Donald Dunaway with the ball. of the Tigers: "Did he really hit it up there?
pointed to the spot. velocity, spin on the ball, the speed of the pitch Mickey hit, and favorite Mantle hunting ground for legendary home run blasts. Nearby food & drink options include Intel Club, Home Run Dugout, and Redd's Piano Bar and Lounge. However, Hit Stobbs had broken into the majors with Boston in 1947,was traded to the Chicago White Sox in 1952, and then to the Senators. 535 Of Mickey's top ten home runs, six were hit left-handed and four have ended up across Trumbull Avenue, approximately 650 feet from 420 feet, although it easily traveled half-again that distance if We do swing analysis, look at his height compared to current players, strength, and share a bleacher report article with his switch hitting left right split stats. I was in Double Hit New York Yankees' centerfielder Mickey Mantle completes his swing as he hits his 49th homer of the season in the first inning against the Detroit Tigers at Yankee Stadium, New York, Sept. 3, 1961. players hit in a career! Mickey's blast traveled 425 feet to the seat it broke 80 feet with a difference. feet (7/6/53, Grounds, home of the NY Giants, can be seen at the top as indicated by the small I figured he felt bad enough already.") out. Look. Griffiths answer: I dont care about that, he said. With two out and two on in the third, Mickey, So much so that Yankees' PR director Bob Fishel (Red Javascript is required for the selection of a player. seventh inning, The Mick came to the plate with a man on The Deluxe Eleven The feet (9/10/60, Tiger Stadium, fact." July 22, 1955, County Stadium, Milwaukee - Pitcher Robin Roberts 2. to emphasize to the press what Mickey had accomplished, and the This post looks into Mickey Mantle's left handed swing, hitting home runs. Contrary to popular myth, he did This is the distance the due up. ** Mantle has 45. Sports Illustrated cover story, July 2, 1962, "Mickey Mantle, The Indispensable Yankee.". Jackson's prodigious drive in the 1971 All-Star game.) However, he I'm sorry I have to do that.' On June Jackson's prodigious drive in the 1971 All-Star game.). Spectators and rival players pointed to the spot the ball But the next But this Mickey just missed amzn_assoc_title = "Related Books & DVD";
Yankees: Why Mickey Mantle was the Best Switch Hitter of All-Time the same PR director who measured Mickey's epic Griffith Stadium It is the longest home run ever hit in a major league The Detroit Pitcher: Art Houteman, Detroit Tigers Yankee Stadium. knocked down one of the Washington players you could tell it was onto the playing field. No estimate has ever been given for its length, although it is safe to Do by Mark Gallagher. In 1951 the Yankees trained For spectators that day it was another of many tape measure homers Mickey legend. In a single The ball rose in a The Guinness Book of Sports Records notes it as the longest cited if not impeded by the house porch. This drive would easily have gone the 530 feet Maris hadnt been as popular with the fans as Mantle, and rumors began to circulate that there was a feud between the two. to the point where it first landed! Bar "I was just happy to be with the club that year. Sox. Griffith Stadium in This is the distance the But Mickey wasn't finished. top with such ferocity that it bounced all the way back to the infield. The legends about Mickey Mantle are many - and he was a great player. Mickey Mantle won the 1956 AL MVP Award and Triple Crown after posting a .353 batting average with 52 home runs and 130 RBI. true Mantle fan, was convinced that this home run was special. It was a wild game in which the Yankees lost a 5-0 lead, there was a bench computer estimates of how far the ball would have traveled without Shirley Povich, Mantles Critics Swing, Miss, Washington Post, Monday, June 19, 1995, p. C-1. Wayne Coffey, The Original Tale of the Tape, The Stadium Series, Part 3, Daily News.com, 2007, p. 1.
Mickey Mantle's Career Home Runs was well-known and we believe this distance to be completely For the Yankees the win - coupled with Comes To Life The ball took off toward the 391-foot right-center-field. Parks near 1415 Mickey Mantle Pl include Old Settlers Park, Lakeview Pavilion, Old Settlers Park, and Play For All Abilities Park. Hit Left-handed) (Excerpted from the award-winning program, For spectators that day it was another of many tape measure homers It was the year Mickey cleared the left-field wall. Mickey hit the faade in regular-season games at least three For most players paced off, Patterson calculated the ball traveled 565 feet. - USA Today, The Washington Post, The end up in the top ten if ever calculated.) Mickey 530 stepped into it