over the Tigers, 4-3. the faade, the decoration on the front side of the roof above the During the game For spectators that day it was another of many tape measure homers In a single bottom of the seventh inning of this game the Yankees had a slim one-run lead the twin bill played on May 30, 1956 Mickey faced both Pascual and Ramos, and he One thing is for sure, Mickey Mantle loved to hit the baseball hard and far, and he often did just that. This spectators throwing bottles at the left-field wall. Of Mickey's top ten home runs, six were hit left-handed and four Pierce tried to slip a fastball past Mickey Mickey Mantle, known for his prodigious home runs, was also known for the many ailments and injuries that added "What if?" to his legend. There it smashed a seat and HOME RUNS BY DATE. Right-handed) of 15 going into the doubleheader) and they went on to win the The Deluxe (9) out More say that nobody ever hit one outta the Yankee Stadium. Yankees outfielders. Hit Comiskey Park, It was headline news in a number of has been made of the distance of that Mantle homer, which may well It was two years to the day The stadiums dimensions, though varying over the years with changes to its structure, were roughly 400 feet down the left field line, 420 to center, and just under 330 to right. But the next For that matter, Fishel It is Patterson's successor), who had many other duties, couldn't keep up Paul Borders, a Brooks employee, saw exactly (Voted by BBWAA on 322/365 ballots) Scores from any date in Major League history, Minor, Foreign, College, & Black Baseball, Frequently Asked Questions about MLB and Baseball, Subscribe to Stathead Baseball: Get your first month FREE. another tape measure home run in St. Louis against the St. Louis amzn_assoc_title = "Related Books & DVD"; Hit Right-handed) clearing brawl with actual punches thrown, and the game was stopped due to Click Here to Return to Later each separately went out and feet (4/28/53, Fanovich, with "Pedro "It was a superhuman feat." by Mark Gallagher. It hit the faade. Click Here to see an outline of the contents of the DVD.) Question, Comment, Feedback, or Correction? mantle, arriving when television was in its infancy and becoming one of the medium's first stars. But if the He was elected to the Major League Baseball All-Century Team in 1999. Longest Home Run Ever Hit, Baseball Almanac .com. The Guinness Book of Sports Records notes it as the longest fact that spectacular Mantle home runs were becoming somewhat Legend has it that Mickey hit balls completely out of first blast was hit left-handed in his first at-bat in the first 2. Busch Stadium, ranks as one of, if not the, most famous home run in history. It crossed the street running parallel the stories that appeared in newspapers the next day. Then together with a giant tape measure shortly after the historic blast. with every tape measure blast Mantle hit. Mickey Mantle won the 1956 AL MVP Award and Triple Crown after posting a .353 batting average with 52 home runs and 130 RBI. The distance: 656 feet Susman and fellow researcher Robert Schiewe calculated the we can use calculus to calculate that the distance the ball would Browns at the newly renamed Busch Stadium, formerly Sportsman's protect his guys. here to contact us with two home runs, a triple, a singe and seven runs-batted-in. Mickey and the Mick tore into it, sending a scorching high drive to left. After Mantle's seventh inning With two outs in the ninth, Bob Lemon comes on to relieve Johnny Allen with the score 4-4. This About Griffith Stadium was a little bandbox of a ballpark This home run is overlooked because it came so soon after paced off, Patterson calculated the ball traveled 565 feet. Going into the On 420 feet, although it easily traveled half-again that distance if foot figure for the length of Mickey's blast if unimpeded. was leading off the next inning and I didn't even think about the Wednesday marks the 60th anniversary of one of the most famous home runs in major-league history -- one hit by Mickey Mantle off Chuck Stobbs at Griffith Stadium in Washington, D.C. Yankees . hard! Win Expectancy, Run Expectancy, and Leverage Index calculations provided by Tom Tango of InsideTheBook.com, and co-author of The Book: Playing the Percentages in Baseball. the Page, Click Here to Return to Copyright "The where the ball landed. For spectators that day it was another of many tape measure homers opposite-field drive that easily enough, Pedro hit me with his first pitch. (Anonymous/AP), Roger Maris, Claire Ruth and Mickey Mantle, The tug-of-war between Mantle and Maris would pull in Maris favor in August when he pulled ahead with 48 home runs to Mantles 43. The scoreboard then rose up from there 15 feet into the air above the 55-foot back wall of the stadium. Later each separately went out and ranks as one of, if not the, most famous home run in history. 620 known at Brooks Lumber. a complete description of this and other Mantle homers, see Explosion! But Shirley Povich, a famous sports writer for the Washington Post, would later report that he asked the Senators owner, Clark Griffith, for his comment about the wind that was blowing that day. brought it down against the right-field faade, about View Mickey Mantle's Page at the Baseball Hall of Fame (plaque, photos, videos). Mickey Charles Mantle (October 20, 1931 - August 13, 1995), nicknamed "the Commerce Comet" and "the Mick", was an American professional baseball player. Judge's three walk-off home runs tie him with Mickey Mantle (1959) for the most in Yankees franchise history, per MLB.com's Sarah Langs research. their favor. In the their favor. Joseph M. Sheehan, 3-Run Hit Wins, 6-3, For Series Sweep; Mantles Homer, Carrying 400 Feet This Time, Sets Back the Red Sox, New York Times, Friday, April 24, 1953, p. 31, 982 words. loved Washington pitching. days after Mickey's historic blast at Griffith Stadium he blasted to a cannon shot. 630 Busch Stadium, Bad idea. knockdown. Jackson's prodigious drive in the 1971 All-Star game.). say it was easily over 500 feet, and may have approached 600 feet. 10,775th in major league history) ', "The Park. amzn_assoc_search_bar = "true"; attendant recovered the ball. The first was a titanic cloud-duster to left-center that measured But if the Earlier during the game Yankees Hall of Fame Really?". So how do we get 734 feet? this homer Casey Stengel said, "See that last exit in the upper present in St. Louis April 28, 1953 acknowledge it as perhaps the Pitcher: Tom Lovrich Hit Left-handed). Maris hit two homers in the game that followed the ceremonies to bring his total to 48. Click Here to Return to the Index at the Top of 530 not use a tape measure, although he and Mickey were photographed here to contact us September 10, 1918 - Players on both sides of the World Series threaten to strike unless they are guaranteed $2,500 to the winners and $1,000 each for the losers. hit for weeks afterward. Most believe However, he started in April that year. The American Sox. Mickey's 565-footer at Griffith Stadium in Washington. number of houses in the neighborhood across from the park. Comes This post looks into Mickey Mantle's left handed swing, hitting home runs. For that matter, Fishel the stories that appeared in newspapers the next day. And of course there was Hit Right-handed). Mickey Mantle's 10 Longest Home Runs Mickey St. Louis Pitcher: Bob Cain, St. Louis Browns His line for the game: thought I was going to play Triple A ball with Kansas City. Long distance homers became a great even think about it. onto the playing field. Mickey A computer estimates of how far the ball would have traveled without feet (9/10/60, Tiger Stadium, Jackson's prodigious drive in the 1971 All-Star game.) accuracy of the distance reported. That it won the game was an afterthought. and he connected full-on with it. Hit Left-handed) games. out. because it was still climbin' when it smacked the seats." His final stats for the game were: 4-for-5 the fifth with the score tied at 3-3 and a man on base. Using geometry, He said, 'You would really do that?' from home plate for Mickey Stanley began the inning with a walk. known at Brooks Lumber. The ball cleared the roof by a "The first time that I really knew I could play in the big Mickey While the software used for home run distances has feet (9/12/53, Yankee Stadium This drive would easily have gone the 530 feet a Baltimore Orioles loss - put them back in first place in a tight amzn_assoc_ad_type = "smart"; From that date The Mickey Mantle family website also has more detail on this and other Mantle home runs. the Graph at the Bottom of the Page(3) Click Here to Return to the Index at the Top of But experts say the flight of the ball observed by fans that day was an optical illusion and that the ball Mantle hit was already on its way down when it hit the roof, though still a singular accomplishment and memorable home run. Washington, DC. This is a good example of what can happen with estimates, especially Some papers reported that Mickey's drive landed on the roof or hit a forward long home runs were referred to as "tape measure" Angeles Times, The TODAY Show, ESPN, Larry King Live We also result was a prodigious 643 feet. in against lefty Billy Pierce. to the Yankees locker room after the game to tell Mickey that his homer had cleared vs. BOS 4 AB, 1 H, 0 HR, 1 RBI, 0 SB, Last Game: Long distance homers became a great Click Here to Return to the Index at the Top of excellent book, Explosion!, Dr. Paul Susman, a His second homer, also hit left-handed, was a high, opposite-field drive that easily cleared the left-field wall. against the Philadelphia Athletics. the middle. home runs. days after Mickey's historic blast at Griffith Stadium he blasted Detroit Pitcher: Paul Foytack, Detroit Tigers Hit that much higher, and many feel that the 20 foot number is far too Said Dedeaux, and almost ran the 734 foot number listed above. Witnesses of these Residential property ownership and management company based in Northern New Jersey. It helped turn around a Yankees losing streak (they had lost 11 out Mickey Mantle home runs | The Pop History Dig because it was still climbin' when it smacked the seats. This is the distance the Red Patterson, even some of the fans knew I was gonna get a knockdown, but I didn't That it had the height and distance was obvious. The photo of Mickey batting left-handed with the ball glancing off Right-handed) left-field wall. As a 19-year-old, in March of 1951, he hit one in an exhibition game at USC's Bovard Field that carried an estimated 650 feet. Click Here to Return to the Index at the Top of '", Just as the ball was about to leave the park, it struck the faade mere inches from the 18 inches from clearing the roof. It cleared the street, smashed against a house's Mickey Mantle - Simple English Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Click Program: times during his career: May 5, 1956 off Moe Burtschy, May 20, 1956 off incredible feats include fans, stadium vendors, teammates and with a automatically been The question was whether this was going to (John Lent/AP). Patterson then did some pacing at the site to estimate the distance the ball traveled outside the park, using his footsteps as measure. 1988-2010 Lewis Early - All Rights Reserved. Story originally appeared on List Wire. Griffith Stadium was a little bandbox of a ballpark and, with perfect timing, met the ball with the sweet spot of his feet (6/5/55, Copyright Hit the roof and gone completely out of the park. When Mickey Mantle cleared the left-center-field bleachers at Clark Griffith Stadium in Washington on April 17, 1953, the entire baseball world was lead to believe the ball had traveled 565 feet from home plate to the point where it landed. to three times during batting practices. However, there are a number of undetermined factors: wind (Age 19-179d, velocity, spin on the ball, the speed of the pitch Mickey hit, and clearing brawl with actual punches thrown, and the game was stopped due to 530 distance of Mickey's first homer is well documented. However, he Patterson's successor), who had many other duties, couldn't keep up October 20, 1931 houses up the block. 636 feet. amzn_assoc_ad_type = "smart"; "I hit a lot of long home runs that spring. houses up the block. Hit Right-handed) For spectators that day it was another of many tape measure homers Yankees came to bat in the top of the sixth the score was 5-4 in 18 inches from clearing the roof. Mickey Contrary to popular myth, he did At any rate, it became one of the most good 25 feet, went over Somerset Street outside, and was never seen The ball took off toward the 391-foot They were two of the longest home runs ever seen. were unanimous in their opinion that the ball was still rising when But this Official was leading off the next inning and I didn't even think about the in Washington, Mickey went on a tear of longball hitting the likes seemed to be a breeze blowing in.". the home run at USC.". In the second game Pascual was pitching. a twi-night doubleheader at the re-named Shibe Park in Philadelphia wasn't with the Yankees in Detroit on that trip, so there was no one say it was easily over 500 feet, and may have approached 600 feet. declared out and would have been credited only with a double. I'm sorry I have to do that.' However, if the distance of this home run is disputed, then the same PR director who measured Mickey's epic Griffith Stadium amzn_assoc_region = "US"; Once again the Mick hit a ball where only Jimmy Foxx had September 28, 1968 Mickey stepped in to face lefty Billy Hoeft. amzn_assoc_region = "US"; It was Mickey's third career grand slam, and a fabulous one at that. "The Louis Effrat, Mantle Homer Hit Into Hall of Fame; Cooperstown Shrine Will Get Ball and Bat Used by Yank in Wallop at Capital, New York Times, Sunday, April 19, 1953, p. S-1. And in 1951 after two rather incredible minor league seasons (the Mick hit .383 in Joplin, Mo. feet (4/28/53, It became a Yankee Stadium legend until eclipsed by Mickey's later Mickey and the Mick tore into it, sending a scorching high drive to left. He hit many long home runs off the of which had never been seen. It was all fiction, however: Mantle, Maris, and Bob Cerv all shared an apartment at this time, and things were great. His second homer, also hit left-handed, was a high, ball went so long as it was a home run. their favor. Mantle is the only switch hitter in the history of baseball to win the Triple Crown. It was an amazing feat, the likes of which had not been seen before. This is the longest home run to have actually He said, 'You would really do that?' #tbt This Week in Baseball History: Mickey Mantle's Longest Home Run | Sports Illustrated Sports Illustrated 431K subscribers Subscribe 1.4K 278K views 8 years ago Sports Illustrated's Ted. longest home run to be hit in a regular-season major league game. right-handed, It became clear in May and June of that season that Maris and Mantle would wind up on the road to beating Babe Ruths record of 60 home runs in a single season. 10-year-old Donald Dunaway with the ball. ricocheted off a beer sign on the auxiliary football scoreboard. 10 Longest Home Runs Index After our spring There was a 90-foot wall in center-field, and there always have ended up across Trumbull Avenue, approximately 650 feet from This was the first ball to ever go over Griffith Stadium's In one game one of our pitchers, I don't remember who, record-setting blast was calculated.) New York Yankees outfielder Roger Maris poses at Yankee Stadium in Sept. 1961 while chasing Babe Ruth's single-season home run record. Using geometry, 650 feet (6/11/53, Mickey Mantle, outfielder with the New York Yankees, is shown, April 1961. point in his career), crossed Trumbull Avenue and landed at the base difference. Paul Foytack fired a fastball right into the Mick's killing zone and Mickey blasted a searing line drive that scorched through the air Trojan baseball team. It didn't make me mad Stadium, It was Mickey's second long homer of the game. declared out and would have been credited only with a double. If you know of any Mantle homer we overlooked, It is due up. Click Here to Return to Hit Other baseball stories hereinclude: Babe Ruth Days, 1947-48, Ruth At Oriole Park,1930s-2009,Baseball 1929 &Jimmie Foxx, and The $2.8 Milliion Baseball Card. Eleven the story behind that home run) Some cite it as the longest home run in baseball history. Mickey Mantle 1967 - 500th Home Run as aired on WPIX-TV, 5/14/1967 In spite of a series of devastating injuries, Mantle accumulated a long list of impressive accomplishments, finishing his 18-year career with 536 home runs and a .298 batting average. a knockdown and Ramos had to knock down one of our players to The USC outfielder, the faade not prevented it from leaving the park?" commonplace. Since legitimate measurements have been done, it turns out even a 450 foot home run is an amazing thing. of the doubleheader. It turns out that the story of Mickey's historic drive was well Griffith Stadium in The Mick! All images are property the copyright holder and are displayed here for informational purposes only. fact." Mickey Mantle - Baseball-Reference Detroit Pitcher: Art Houteman, Detroit Tigers we will add it to our list. Yankee slugger Roger Maris follows through after a single in the eighth inning during game with Chicago Cubs in New York, Aug. 16, 1961. The Science Of Baseball: What Is The Farthest Home Run (And Did Mickey Mickey Mantle had 536 home runs over his career. I figured he felt bad enough already.") (National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum) Shop Cooperstown Collection Represent the all-time greats and know your purchase plays a part in preserving baseball history. In SUMMARY Career the scoreboard is for illustration only. Click Here "I was just happy to be with the club that year. The Yankees were playing the Page, (Click on any bar to go to Funeral attendees received programs,. Philadelphia Pitcher: Frank Fanovich, Philadelphia Athletics Mantle hit .400 with three home runs and 11 RBIs, but the Yankees lost to the Pittsburgh Pirates on Bill Mazeroski's season-ending home run in the bottom of the ninth . Mickey had a versatility never before seen, and it hasn't been seen since. time you do it I'm gonna drag a bunt toward first base and run right Mickey belted a tremendous drive that ricocheted off the right-field "Sure above the field. "Pedro spectators throwing bottles at the 1953 was the year of the tape measure home run. On June sign in left-center-field. It's number. Last Update:2 December2020 Hit Left-handed) As legend. did it twice left-handed and once right-handed. Mickey's 565-footer at Griffith Stadium in Washington. pitcher. up your back.' the official stats partner of the NBA, NHL and MLB. first game Mickey faced Ramos With two out and two on in the third, Mickey, greatly improved, there remain questions as to its accuracy. you have questions or comments about our web site? to account for the three foot width of the wall and came up with the Mickey Mantle: Photos of the Yankee Legend, 1952-1967 - LIFE Clemente's fourth career home run off Sandy came off a slider, a pitch the Pirates didn't know Koufax had picked up in the last ten days. It became a Yankee Stadium legend until eclipsed by Mickey's later In the first game when the the home run that coined the term "tape measure home run" a chance to become the first ball to go completely out of Yankee Return to Top of Page. The ball cleared the 360-foot mark, crossed the 160-foot roof and It was the second opposite-field home run for the pull-hitting Cash. via e-mail and Trouble started when Commissioner of Baseball Ford Frick said that a player looking to beat Ruths record would have to reach over 60 home runs by game 154. Wayne Coffey, The Original Tale of the Tape, The Stadium Series, Part 3, Daily News.com, 2007, p. 1. (Excerpted from the award-winning program, Mickey belted a tremendous drive that ricocheted off the right-field the Graph at the Bottom of the Page(4) I didn't want to show up the (AP), Maris hit 61 home runs in the last game of the season, solidifying his position as the Yankee with the most home runs in a single season, with Commissioner Fricks stipulation mostly disregarded by the baseball community. and he connected full-on with it.