Stanton crushes mammoth HR -- just watch where it lands!

April 2nd, 2023

NEW YORK -- Seeing and homer in the same game has been a reliable recipe for success for the Yankees, who own a 29-2 record (including postseason) in such contests.

And, boy, did they hit a couple in Sunday's 6-0 win over the Giants.

One batter after Judge launched his second home run of the season, Stanton outdid his teammate with a jaw-dropping two-run drive that cleared both Monument Park and the center-field restaurant, reaching the batter’s eye deck a Statcast-projected 485 feet from home plate.

“We’re always messing around, like, ‘Anyone can hit one,’ stuff like that,” Stanton said. “It’s not a competition; we’re both here to help us win and be the best we can. … I don’t worry about [the distance] too much. It just put us in a good spot to win the game. Everything synced up, timing, and the striking was on point. And I just let it go.”

The blast, which helped to power Jhony Brito’s winning effort in his Major League debut, was Stanton's second-longest homer tracked by Statcast. He hit a 504-foot shot on Aug. 6, 2016, against the Rockies at Coors Field.

Sunday’s no-doubter was also the third-longest homer tracked at Yankee Stadium, behind a pair of Judge drives: a 496-foot shot vs. Toronto on Sept. 30, 2017, and a 495-foot blast against Baltimore on June 11, 2017.

“G is weird,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said. “Every time he comes in after one of those, I just tell him, ‘You’re weird. You’re different.’ I mean, he hits it, and you know it’s going over the batter’s eye. It’s like, ‘Where is this thing going to go?’”

Stanton’s drive, which gave New York a 3-0 lead, was hit on an 87.1 mph Ross Stripling slider and came off the bat at 117.8 mph. Stripling said that it was probably the longest homer he has surrendered.

“I saw that it was like one of the longest ones in Yankee Stadium history; I thought the wind was blowing out a little bit, so maybe [it would be] 460 on a normal day,” Stripling said with a smirk. “I’m just kidding. Probably not. That one was pretty large."

Stanton is believed to be just the second player to clear the batter’s eye since Yankee Stadium opened in 2009, joining Manny Machado, who did it for the Orioles in 2017.

“It’s unbelievable, the things that he and Judgie are able to do,” Isiah Kiner-Falefa said. “We see it every day and almost get spoiled, but not everyone can do it. It’s incredible. It just tells you the kind of players those guys are. It’s cool to be their teammate.” 

Said catcher Kyle Higashioka, who also homered in Sunday’s win: “He’s definitely 1-of-1 in terms of putting the hurt on a baseball. It’s just so much fun to watch him every day.” 

Judge’s homer was his 222nd, tying former captain Don Mattingly for 11th on the club’s all-time list. Only Jorge Posada (275) and Derek Jeter (260) hit more homers among players who were drafted and signed by the Yankees.

It was also Stanton’s second homer in as many games, and his 113rd as a Yankee, tying Thurman Munson on the franchise list. 

“Like I said, as long as it goes over the fence, that’s cool with me,” Stanton said.