DENVER -- Jeff Samardzija ultimately will savor the mammoth home run he clobbered Friday. For the short term, the Giants right-hander declined to dwell upon his slugging, which contributed to a typical Coors Field night as batted balls flew everywhere in the Colorado Rockies' 10-8 triumph.
Samardzija's contribution to the offensive display at the mile-high ballpark was a two-run homer in the fifth inning off Colorado's Antonio Senzatela. According to Statcast™, the clout traveled a projected 446 feet, making it the longest home run by a pitcher since Statcast™ was introduced in 2015.
Led by Madison Bumgarner, who has 16 career homers, the Giants have hit seven of the 13 longest home runs by pitchers since Statcast™'s inception.
"Maybe down the road a little bit, we'll appreciate it more than tonight," said Samardzija, who focused more on his pitching than on his hitting. He lasted six-plus innings and matched a season high by allowing seven runs, which initially befell him here April 23.
Samardzija eclipsed the 440-foot homer that Cubs right-hander Jacob Arrieta hit on April 10, 2016, at Arizona to set the new Statcast™ standard. He also surpassed the distance mark of 422 feet established by Bumgarner this year on Opening Day, April 2 at Arizona.
Samardzija referred to his homer to place it in perspective against the most telling of the 11 hits he yielded -- Ian Desmond's two-out, three-run homer in the fifth inning. That concluded Colorado's five-run uprising that erased San Francisco's 4-1 lead. Statcast™ projected the distance of Desmond's homer at 373 feet.
"After how mine went, I assume anything up in the air like that -- he hit it down the line enough up in the air here -- is a homer," Samardzija said. "It doesn't matter how far it goes, it just matters that it goes over."
However, Samardzija refused to cite Coors Field's hitter-friendly tendencies as an excuse.
"It's a tough place, but, listen, it's even both ways," he said. "It helps both teams. It's not like it's just helping the Rockies."
This was Samardzija's third career homer, preceded by round-trippers he hit while with the Cubs at Milwaukee on Sept. 23, 2009, and on May 15, 2013, against Colorado at Wrigley Field. According to the Giants' media relations department, Samardzija had gone 191 plate appearances between hitting home runs.
Since the start of the 2014 season, Giants pitchers have hit a Major League-high 20 home runs. The Cubs rank second with eight.