KANSAS CITY -- In the second inning of the Royals' 8-3 loss to the Red Sox on Tuesday night, Kansas City third baseman Mike Moustakas launched the 100th home run of his career.
The hit traveled an estimated 440 feet, his longest of the season, and tied for his second longest home run since Statcast™ began recording home run distance in 2015. The solo shot came off Red Sox starter Chris Sale. It was the longest home run Sale has given up this season and the second-longest tracked by Statcast™ off Boston's ace.
"I wish it would have come in a win, but it's definitely cool to hit 100 homers in the Majors," said Moustakas, who finished 1-for-3 with two strikeouts. "That's pretty special. That's a great pitcher on the mound. Once he settled in, he was really tough. We've seen him enough to know how good he is."
Moustakas has now hit 19 home runs this season, putting him above the pace to break the Royals' single-season home run record of 36, set by Steve Balboni in 1985.
With the home run, Moustakas became the 16th Royal to hit 100 home runs with the team. Teammates Alex Gordon (154), Eric Hosmer (110) and Salvador Perez (101) have also hit 100 home runs in their careers.