New York Yankees slugger Giancarlo Stanton is back pummeling baseballs, and this time against the Houston Astros, he hit the hardest ball in the 2024 MLB season.
It was the third inning when Stanton caught every single stitch of a 1-2 curveball from Astros rookie starter Spencer Arrighetti, and it sped like a rocket off his bat toward left field. It was not a matter of whether this ball would get out, but rather if it would stay fair.
The ball stayed in fair territory and Stanton started trotting around the bases, as Stanton’s solo homer made it a 5-1 game. Stanton went back-to-back with Aaron Judge, who hit one to right center one at-bat prior, and Juan Soto put one out in the first inning to take an early lead as well.
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After Statcast ran its measurements on Stanton’s blast, the exit velocity measured at 119.9 mph – the fastest hit ball in the league this season.
This comes after Stanton smashed a 447-foot home run off Justin Verlander on Tuesday night, which hit 118.8 mph off his bat in the 10-3 victory.
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Stanton is no stranger to breaking the radar gun when he makes contact with baseballs. In fact, this solo shot is just the third hardest-hit home run he has had in the Statcast era, which began in 2015.
The highest exit velocity on a home run came from Stanton in 2018, when he blasted a 121.7 mph homer against the Texas Rangers. He also has a 121.3 mph home run against the Washington Nationals, which ranks second in July 2020.
The Yankees want nothing more than Stanton to remain healthy throughout the 2024 season because pitchers fear his ability to break open a game with his power.
He has had trouble with injuries in recent seasons, and even when he is playing, fans have complained about his lack of hustle around the bases.
However, Stanton is just trying to remain available so he can do what he did Wednesday night, which is his greatest asset.
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