Home run

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This article is about the baseball concept. For the Singaporean film, see Homerun (film). For other uses, see Home run (disambiguation).
Mark McGwire swinging for the fences.
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Mark McGwire swinging for the fences.

In baseball, a home run is a base hit in which the batter is able to circle all the bases, ending at home plate and scoring a run himself (along with a run scored by each runner who was already on base), with no errors by the defensive team on the play which result in the batter advancing for extra bases. Today, the feat is typically achieved by hitting the ball over the outfield fence, resulting in an automatic home run.

Home runs are among the most popular aspects of baseball, and the biggest (and best-paid) stars are often the players who hit the most of them. It was once said that "Singles hitters drive Fords, and home run hitters drive Cadillacs."

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[edit] Types of home runs

In addition to the general term "home run," certain plays in baseball have been given names to denote that they are a special type of home run. These home runs are generally considered to be special because of their rarity, but also because of the kind of excitement, specific to the game situation, that they can create.

[edit] Inside-the-park home run

In almost all cases nowadays, a home run involves hitting the ball over the outfield fence in fair territory. Very rarely, a batter can hit the ball in play and circle all the bases before the fielders can throw him out; this is called an inside-the-park home run, and typically requires that the batter be a quick runner, and that either the fielder misplay the ball in some way or that the ball is made difficult to play by caroming in unexpected ways, or by becoming difficult for a fielder to reach due to structural variances and peculiarities of different ballparks. If the misplay is labeled an error by the official scorer, however, the batter is not credited with a home run.

[edit] Grand slam

A grand slam occurs when the bases are "loaded" (that is, there are base runners standing at first, second, and third base) and the batter hits a home run. An inside-the-park grand slam is a grand slam without the ball leaving the field, and it is very rare. The last major league inside-the-park grand slam was hit by Randy Winn of the Tampa Bay Devil Rays on October 3, 1999.

[edit] Walk-off home run

A walk-off home run is a term coined by famous relief pitcher Dennis Eckersley to signify a home run that immediately ends the game, so named because after the run is scored, the players can "walk off" the field. In order for this to happen, a member of the home team must hit a home run in the bottom of the last inning to either come from behind or break a tie. This type of home run is also called "sayonara home run", originally a Japanese baseball term, sayonara meaning "good-bye" in Japanese.

Two World Series have ended via the "walk-off" home run. The first was the 1960 World Series when Bill Mazeroski of the Pittsburgh Pirates hit a 9th inning solo home run in the 7th game of the series off New York Yankees pitcher Ralph Terry to give the Pirates the World Championship. The second and most recent time was the 1993 World Series when Joe Carter of the Toronto Blue Jays hit a 9th inning 3-run home run off Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Mitch Williams in Game 6 of the series.

On July 25, 1956, Roberto Clemente hit a walk-off inside-the-park grand slam in the ninth inning to defeat the Cubs, 9-8, at Forbes Field.

On October 14, 2006, Magglio Ordonez hit a walk-off home run in the last inning of the American League Championship Series Game 4, breaking a 3-3 tie against the Oakland Athletics and securing the Detroit Tigers World Series berth with a 6-3 win.

[edit] Hitting for the cycle

A batter hits for the cycle when he collects a single, double, triple and home run all in the same game. As home runs usually demonstrate batting power and triples indicate speed, hitting for the cycle is highly regarded for the way it indicates a player's varied abilities. Collecting the hits in the order above is called a "natural cycle." A "home run cycle" is one in which a player hits a 1-run, 2-run, 3-run, and a grand slam all in one game. The first and only home run cycle in a professional baseball game belongs to Tyrone Horne, who stroked four long balls for the Double-A Arkansas Travelers in a game against the San Antonio Missions on July 27, 1998.[1] While no other professional player has accomplished the feat, there have been multiple instances in college level play.[2][3]

[edit] History of the home run

In the early days of the game, when the ball was less lively and the ballparks generally had very large outfields, most home runs were of the inside-the-park variety. The home "run" was literally descriptive. Home runs over the fence were rare, and only in ballparks where a fence was fairly close.

The home run's place in baseball changed dramatically when the Live Ball Era began after World War I. Batters such as Babe Ruth and Rogers Hornsby took full advantage of the rules changes (particularly prohibition of the spitball and the requirement that balls be replaced when worn or dirty) during the 1920s, especially as the game's popularity boomed and more outfield seating was built, shrinking the size of the outfield. The teams with the sluggers, especially the New York Yankees, became the championship teams, and other teams had to change their focus from the "inside game" to the "power game" in order to keep up.

Prior to 1931, a ball that bounced over an outfield fence during a major league game was considered a home run. The rule was changed to require the ball to clear the fence on the fly, and balls that reached the seats on a bounce became ground-rule doubles in most parks.

Also, until around that time, the ball had to not only go over the fence fair, but to land in the bleachers fair. The rule stipulated "when last seen" by the umpires. Photos from that era in ballparks such as the Polo Grounds show ropes strung from the foul poles to the back of the bleachers, in a straight line with the foul line, as a visual aid for the umpires. Babe Ruth's 60th home run in 1927 was somewhat controversial, because it landed just fair in the stands down the right field line.

Further, the rules once stipulated that an over-the-fence home run in a sudden-victory situation would only count for as many bases as was necessary to "force" the winning run home. For example, if a team trailed by 2 runs with the bases loaded, and the batter hit a fair ball over the fence, it only counted as a triple, because the runner immediately ahead of him had technically already scored the game-winning run. That rule was changed in the 1920s as home runs became increasingly frequent and popular. Babe Ruth's career total of 714 would have been one higher had that rule not been in effect in the early part of his career.

The all-time career record for home runs in a professional career is held by Japan's Sadaharu Oh with 868. In Major League Baseball, the record is 755, held by Hank Aaron since 1974. Only three other major league players have hit as many as 600: Barry Bonds (734), Babe Ruth (714), and Willie Mays (660). The single season record is 73, set by Barry Bonds in 2001. Negro League slugger Josh Gibson's baseball hall of fame plaque says he hit "almost 800" home runs in his career. The Guinness Book of World Records lists Gibson's lifetime home run total at 800 (although his true total is not known).

Other legendary home run hitters include Ted Williams, Mark McGwire, Sammy Sosa, Mickey Mantle (who on September 10, 1960, mythically hit "the longest home run ever" at an estimated distance of 643 feet, although this was measured after the ball stopped rolling [1]), Reggie Jackson, Ernie Banks, Eddie Mathews and the other members of Major League Baseball's 500 home run club.

[edit] Home run slang

Slang terms for home runs include: big-fly, blast, bomb, circuit clout, dinger, four-bagger, gopher ball, homer, jack, round-tripper, shot, moonshot, tape-measure shot, swat, tater, wallop, longball, goner , dong and going "yahtzee". The act of hitting a home run can be called going yard. A game with many home runs in it can be referred to as a slugfest. A player who hits a home run is said to have "dialed 8", from the practice of having to dial 8 from a hotel room telephone to dial long distance. A grand slam is often referred to as a grand salami or simply, a salami.

Player nicknames that describe home run-hitting prowess include:

[edit] Progression of the single-season home run record

Four baseball bats that were used in setting single-season home run records. From left to right: bat used by Babe Ruth to hit his 60th home run during the 1927 season, bat used by Roger Maris to hit his 61st home run during the 1961 season, bat used by Mark McGwire to hit his 70th home run during the 1998 season, and the bat used by Sammy Sosa for his 66th home run during the same season.
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Four baseball bats that were used in setting single-season home run records. From left to right: bat used by Babe Ruth to hit his 60th home run during the 1927 season, bat used by Roger Maris to hit his 61st home run during the 1961 season, bat used by Mark McGwire to hit his 70th home run during the 1998 season, and the bat used by Sammy Sosa for his 66th home run during the same season.
5, by George Hall, Philadelphia Athletics (NL), 1876 (70 game schedule)
9, by Charley Jones, Boston Red Stockings (NL), 1879 (84 game schedule)
14, by Harry Stovey, Philadelphia Athletics (AA), 1883 (98 game schedule)
27, by Ned Williamson, Chicago White Stockings (NL), 1884 (112 game schedule)
Williamson benefitted from a very short outfield fence in his home ballpark, Lakeshore Park. During the park's previous years, balls hit over the fence in that park were ground-rule doubles, but in 1884 (its final year) they were credited as home runs. Williamson led the pace, but several of his Chicago teammates also topped the 20 HR mark that season. Of Williamson's total, 25 were hit at home, and only 2 on the road. Noticing the fluke involved, fans of the early 20th century were more impressed with Buck Freeman's total of 25 home runs in 1899 or Gavvy Cravath's 1915 total of 24.
29, by Babe Ruth, Boston Red Sox (AL), 1919 (140 game schedule)
Even with that relatively small quantity, Ruth outslugged 10 of the other 15 major league clubs. The second-highest individual total was 12, by Gavvy Cravath of the Philadelphia Phillies. Ruth homered in every park in the league, the first time anyone had achieved that goal.
54, Babe Ruth, New York Yankees (AL), 1920 (154 game schedule)
Ruth hit just a few more home runs on the road (26) than he had the previous year (20), but he hit far more (29) in the Polo Grounds in New York (where the Yankees played at the time) than he had in Fenway Park (9) in Boston the year before, as he took full advantage of the nearby right field wall. Of the other 15 major league clubs, only the Philadelphia Phillies exceeded Ruth's single-handed total, hitting 64 in their bandbox ballpark Baker Bowl. The second-highest individual total was the St. Louis Browns' George Sisler's 19. Ruth's major-league record slugging percentage (total bases / at bats) of .847 stood for the next 80 years.
59, by Ruth, New York (AL), 1921 (154 game schedule)
Ruth's slugging percentage was just .001 less than his record-setting average the previous year.
60, by Ruth, New York (AL), 1927 (154 game schedule)
Ruth hit more home runs in 1927 than any of the other seven American League teams. His closest rival was his teammate Lou Gehrig, who hit 47 homers that year.
61, by Roger Maris, New York (AL), 1961 (162 game schedule)
Pushing Maris that year was teammate Mickey Mantle; slowed by an injury late in the season, Mantle finished with 54.
70, by Mark McGwire, St. Louis Cardinals (NL), 1998 (162 game schedule)
Pushing McGwire that year was Sammy Sosa of the Chicago Cubs, who finished with 66. When McGwire hit his 62nd home run to break the record, the Cardinals were playing at home (Busch Stadium in St. Louis) against the Cubs. In a tremendous show of sportsmanship, Sosa, who was playing in the outfield, actually ran in to celebrate with McGwire, who in return honored Sosa by saluting him in Sosa's own trademark fashion. McGwire also went to the stands to honor Maris' family, who were in attendance at the game. The following day, newspapers throughout the United States printed commemorative sports pages in honor of the milestone. In later years, McGwire's achievement would be clouded by allegations that steroids and other performance enhancing drugs caused the high home run totals to occur (see below).
73, by Barry Bonds, San Francisco Giants (NL), 2001 (162 game schedule)
Far less press surrounded Bonds' chase for the record than surrounded McGwire's for three main reasons: First, most attention was still focused on the recent 9/11 terrorist attacks. Second, the record at that time had stood for only three years. Third, Bonds' poor relationship with the media and some fans contrasted significantly with that of McGwire and Sosa in 1998. A possible fourth reason was that there wasn't as much of a race that year (although Sosa did finish with 64). Bonds' phenomenal slugging percentage of .863 broke the major league record set by Ruth in 1920. In later years, Bonds' achievement (as well as McGwire's and Sosa's) would be clouded by allegations that steroids and other performance enhancing drugs caused the high home run totals to occur (see below).

Past single-season home run record holders by average home runs per game:
Number of home runs in the season divided by number of games in schedule

0.45 Barry Bonds
0.43 Mark McGwire
0.39 Babe Ruth (4)
0.38 Babe Ruth (3)
0.38 Roger Maris
0.35 Babe Ruth (2)
0.24 Ned Williamson
0.20 Babe Ruth (1)
0.14 Harry Stovey
0.10 Charley Jones
0.07 George Hall

Selected list of pitchers giving up record home runs:

  • 1883 - Jack Neagle, Allegheny Club of Pittsburg (sic) - Harry Stovey's 10th of the season
  • 1919 - Waite Hoyt, New York Yankees - Babe Ruth's 28th of the season
  • 1920 - Dickie Kerr, Chicago White Sox - Babe Ruth's 30th of the season
  • 1921 - Bill Bayne, St. Louis Browns - Babe Ruth's 55th of the season
  • 1927 - Tom Zachary, Washington Nats/Senators - Babe Ruth's 60th of the season
  • 1961 - Tracy Stallard, Boston Red Sox - Roger Maris' 61st of the season
  • 1974 - Al Downing, Los Angeles Dodgers - Hank Aaron's 715th of his career
  • 1998 - Steve Trachsel, Chicago Cubs - Mark McGwire's 62nd of the season
  • 2001 - Chan Ho Park, Los Angeles Dodgers - Barry Bonds' 71st of the season

This includes only the home runs that broke a record set in a previous year, not home runs that extended a record within the same year.

  1. ^ "Horne's 'home run cycle' has yet to be replicated", MiLB.com, August 11, 2006.
  2. ^ "Big-League Oles", St. Olaf Magazine (St. Olaf College), May, 2004.
  3. ^ ""Louisville Slugger's" All-American Baseball Teams", Collegiate Baseball Newspaper, Inc., May 28, 1999.

[edit] See also

[edit] Career achievement list

[edit] Single game or season achievements

[edit] External links

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