Matt Murton Blasts Walk-Off Homer in Japan

Matt Morton had played six years between the minor and major leagues before joining the Hanshin Tigers of the Japan Central League in 2010. Because of his ten years in the sport, Morton is quite familiar with clutch hits. But none of them came as clutch (or as dramatic) as his hit on Friday for the Tigers. Morton hit a walk-off solo home run.

And while the shot was exciting, it was the announcers call and the celebration that made it that much more memorable. From the broadcasters’ immediate call of ‘Sayonara home run!” as soon as the ball left the park, to the smile on both the batter’s and the pitcher’s face when they knew it was gone, it was incredible. And the cherry on top was certainly the finale. The entire team lined up on the base line and bowed graciously to the fans. Amazing.