If you blinked, you might have missed it.
Andrew Pinckney didn't just clobber a 2-1 fastball from Mets farmhand Xzavion Curry for a home run in the third inning of Triple-A Rochester's 9-8 victory in 11 innings over Syracuse at ESL Ballpark on Friday night. The Nationals' No. 20 prospect matched Pittsburgh's Oneil Cruz for the hardest-hit baseball measured by Statcast at any level this year with a 119 mph exit velocity. (Statcast is currently equipped in all MLB and Triple-A parks; it also tracks data in the Single-A Florida State League.)
If you were looking for some kind of an unofficial tiebreaker, it's worth nothing that Cruz's ball traveled 310 feet and went for a double while Pinckney's knock went screaming off the scoreboard beyond the left-field fence, 402 feet away.
Dating back to 2022, the list of Major League batters to homer at 119 mph or higher is a who's who: Cruz, Shohei Ohtani, Ronald Acuña Jr., Giancarlo Stanton and Elly De La Cruz.
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The next hardest-hit ball this season came off the bat of Twins No. 4 prospect Emmanuel Rodriguez (MLB No. 54) when he launched a 384-foot deep fly at 118.3 mph for Triple-A St. Paul on April 28. No other player aside from this trio has eclipsed hitting a ball at 118 mph or harder in 2026.
There are only five other instances of players reaching at least 117 mph exit velocities this year, and one of those occurred in the Rookie-level Arizona Complex League.
Pinckney also laced a 102.1 mph single that ricocheted off of Syracuse first baseman Christian Arroyo and found grass in right field in the fifth inning.
COMPLETE NATIONALS PROSPECT COVERAGE
The Alabama product is slashing .266/.356/.448 with 13 extra-base hits, 33 RBIs, 26 runs scored and seven stolen bases over 45 games at the Minors' highest level this season.