It'll go down in the box score as the second home run of the season for Zach Ehrhard. But look a little closer, and you'll find one of the most exciting plays of the young Minor League season.
The Dodgers' No. 17 prospect didn't just hit any home run on Tuesday -- he hit an inside-the-park grand slam in Triple-A Oklahoma City's 9-6 win over Albuquerque at Isotopes Park.
As with any inside-the-parker, Ehrhard's four-bagger required a little skill, a little luck and a whole lot of hustle.
The left fielder came up to bat against Rockies left-handed prospect Luis Peralta, who had walked the bases loaded and walked in a run in the second inning. The right-handed swinger worked a 1-1 count and then jumped on a fastball over the middle that he pummeled at 102 mph.
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Ehrhard nearly hit the ball out of the park for your standard grand slam, but the ball caromed off the fence in left-center field, and the sharp angle of the wall sent it back into center past the chasing Cole Carrigg (COL No. 6).
Because there were two outs, all the runners were going on contact, which gave Ehrhard plenty of runway on the basepaths. The 23-year-old raced around the diamond and made it home in just 15.40 seconds. To put that in context, only three players in the Major Leagues had a faster home-to-home time last season.
As you might expect, inside-the-park grand slams are quite rare, even with more than 10,000 Minor League games per year. Statcast has been around in the Triple-A Pacific Coast League and Single-A Florida State League since 2021, expanding to all of Triple-A in 2023, and it's only tracked three previous inside-the-park grand slams: Orioles prospect Kyle Stowers for Triple-A Norfolk (Aug. 2, 2023), Pirates prospect Derek Berg for Single-A Bradenton (Aug. 8, 2024) and Twins prospect Emmanuel Rodriguez for Triple-A St. Paul (Sept. 7, 2024).
Ehrhard may not be known as a big-time power hitter, but the 2024 fourth-rounder does a little bit of everything well. Consistent, hard contact. Solid speed with good instincts. The ability to work an at-bat.
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All of that came together in a big way as the leadoff hitter raised his OPS to .931 and plated the decisive runs for the Comets with one swing.