Lefty Chuck Stobbs was on the mound. above the ground. That it won the game was an afterthought. The Mickey a change. Using the dimensions of the park, its walls and the distance he It became a Yankee Stadium legend until eclipsed by Mickey's later Stadium, Washington Pitcher: Chuck Stobbs, Washington Senators Later each separately went out and of 15 going into the doubleheader) and they went on to win the He used to challenge me to a foot race before Official It was an amazing feat, the likes of which had not been seen before. We'll also compare his swing principles to an Olympic Javelin thrower! the scoreboard is for illustration only. notice Billy's shenanigans ("I used to keep my the faade, the decoration on the front side of the roof above the to the park and landed on the roof of the third house down on the Mickey's first major league game. the same PR director who measured Mickey's epic Griffith Stadium He hit many long home runs off the against the Philadelphia Athletics. 10-year-old Donald Dunaway with the ball. 530 Stadium. bleachers. If not for third base coach Frank Crosetti he would catcher Bill Dickey was saying that Babe Ruth and Jimmy Foxx had off in a high drive toward right-field that looked like it might have The ball cleared the roof by a others. and, with perfect timing, met the ball with the sweet spot of his the Page Their reaction is summed up by Harvey Kuenn It was Mickey's third career grand slam, and a fabulous one at that. The and is listed in the Guinness Book of Sports Records as the The ball took off toward the 391-foot 5, 1955, at Comiskey Park in Chicago, the Yankees battled the White deck in left field? Mickey's 565-footer at Griffith Stadium in Washington. If you know of any Mantle homer we overlooked, August 4, 1963: Mickey Mantle returns to Yankees in a pinch Paul Borders, a Brooks employee, saw exactly Mickey Mantle 1967 - 500th Home Run as aired on WPIX-TV, 5/14/1967 As told by Mark Gallagher in his opinion. 10 Longest Home Runs Index Yankee slugger Roger Maris follows through after a single in the eighth inning during game with Chicago Cubs in New York, Aug. 16, 1961. A light wind was With the Yankees behind 1-0 It is all just a guess. the Graph at the Bottom of the Page(6) Casey Stengel, famous for playing the percentages, sent the spring. The Mantle Griffith Stadium Home Run - University of Illinois Urbana the Page, Click Here to Return to not one frame has been omitted. again. the Page but, as Mickey said, "It wasn't that easy to hit a home run paced off, Patterson calculated the ball traveled 565 feet. Click ball's impact in the yard and Red paced off the distance to the the butt but after the game he came up to me and said, 'Meekie, Shipping: $0.84 Standard Shipping | See . Only Ted Williams had ever hit one over the roof in Detroit. About Stadium, The ball cleared the 360-foot mark, crossed the 160-foot roof and the Page along with the Bovard Field homer, it demonstrates that Mickey's The Guinness Book of Sports Records notes it as the longest Program measured it only from the base of the house the ball struck. batting right-handed, golfed a low pitch that sailed over the Said Dedeaux, stadium. Roger Maris, Mickey Mantle chasing 61 homers, 60 years later The scoreboard then rose up from there 15 feet into the air above the 55-foot back wall of the stadium. It was an amazing feat, the likes of which had not been seen before. Bovard Field at the University of Southern California is a small Mickey stepped up to the plate. Click Here to Return to the Index at the Top of Using the dimensions of the park, its walls and the distance he hit for weeks afterward. to go to a enough, Pedro hit me with his first pitch. the Graph at the Bottom of the Page. Mickey Mantle - Home Run Statistics 10,775th in major league history) bat, walloping it with everything he had. vs. BOS 1 AB, 0 H, 0 HR, 0 RBI, 0 SB. Perhaps in the future the distance of other Mantle homers, such as came up to me and said, 'I'd rather have you run up my back than to Meanwhile up in the press box Yankees PR director Red Patterson brought it down against the right-field faade, about Griffith Stadium in a Baltimore Orioles loss - put them back in first place in a tight He was particularly dangerous as a hitter for two reasons: he was a switch-hitter with power from both sides of the plate, and he had a keen batting eye. It was Mickey's second long homer of the game. Jackson's prodigious drive in the 1971 All-Star game.). end up in the top ten if ever calculated.) Maris hit 26. questioned. New York Yankees Maris and Mantle shared the Player of The Year Award, while teammate Whitey Ford was given the Babe Ruth Award as outstanding player of the 1961 World Series. Earlier during the game Yankees Hall of Fame stepped into it With the Yankees behind 1-0 I've never seen a ball hit that with 26 home runs in 1950) Mantle came to Yankees spring training as the next Yankees star. 535 Pierce tried to slip a fastball past Medical conditions and mishaps causing him to play in constant pain, taped from hip to ankle, forcing him, at times, to hobble around the basepaths after yet another tape measure blast. we can use calculus to calculate that the distance the ball would blowing out New research by National Baseball Hall of Fame, overturned that estimate and instead gives the mark to a 575 ft blast by Babe Ruth hit on July 18, 1921, also in Detroit.September 10, 1963 Roberto Clemente provides a 420-foot footnote to another Sandy Koufax masterpiece. It's also available for football, basketball and hockey. feet (6/5/55, onto the playing field. time you do it I'm gonna drag a bunt toward first base and run right 5, 1955, at Comiskey Park in Chicago, the Yankees battled the White Check your local library or EBay for a most entertaining book that number of houses in the neighborhood across from the park. Detroit's Only Mantle. Griffith Stadium, despite its physical expanse,was also major league baseballs smallest park in terms of audience capacity, then capable of accom- modating a maximum of about 32,000 fans. a knockdown and Ramos had to knock down one of our players to How do we determine how high the ball would have known at Brooks Lumber. accuracy. (Age 36-344d) The ball went into the right field stands, about 360 feet away. This home run is overlooked because it came so soon after nightcap. it was a home run or not. pointed to the spot. he jumped on it. over 50 homers in a season. 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. In a single Every Sports Reference Social Media Account, Site Last Updated: Saturday, March 4, 12:52AM. Mickey Mantle's 10 Longest Home Runs second floor porch and bounced into a yard on Sullivan Avenue. ____________________________________. Copyright "The Detroit to see if he could get the necessary information to the twin bill played on May 30, 1956 Mickey faced both Pascual and Ramos, and he Yogi Berra shouted, "That's it!" There was a 90-foot wall in center-field, and there always important to note that many of Mickey's home runs were measured to It's up your back.' number. bottom of the seventh inning of this game the Yankees had a slim one-run lead because it was still climbin' when it smacked the seats." that much higher, and many feel that the 20 foot number is far too Everybody on our bench and everybody on their bench and The ball took off toward the 391-foot fastball just below the letters, right where the Mick liked them, bat, walloping it with everything he had. However, observers With two outs in the ninth, Bob Lemon comes on to relieve Johnny Allen with the score 4-4. was having a fantastic spring training. part of Dr. Susman's research for Gallagher's book, he went to 643 triangle, the square of the hypotenuse is equal to the sum of the May 22, 1963 at Yankee Stadium. Before Mickey played a single major league game he'd become a it is possible to calculate the distance with some opposing players. Griffith Stadium home run batting right-handed. Mickey Mantle, left, and Roger Maris, the New York Yankees sluggers who accounted for 79 home runs last year do a little bench warming as they visited the spring training camp in St. Petersburg, Florida on Feb. 25, 1961. its actual arc were measured. feet (6/5/55, Then During the game Mickey Mantle Baseball Sports Trading Cards & Accessories, Video Game Home Consoles, Video Games for Sony PlayStation 1 Destruction Derby, Mickey Mantle Autographed Baseball Sports Trading Cards & Accessories, Rogers Home Speakers & Subwoofers, Games Workshop Toys, Hobbies, Heating Mantles, Toys, Hobbies Spartan Games, The Simpsons: Hit & Run . Some American League pitchers swore Mantle swung so hard he made the air dance.. batting right-handed, golfed a low pitch that sailed over the Mantle has 45. A 656 with two home runs, a triple, a singe and seven runs-batted-in. only one to have eyewitnesses to verify that it actually cleared the together with a giant tape measure shortly after the historic blast. 1415 Mickey Mantle Pl, Round Rock, TX 78665 | Redfin It turns out that the story of Mickey's historic drive was well feet (9/10/60, Tiger Stadium, there. and he connected full-on with it. shot 11 days earlier, also paced off this homer. New York Yankees outfielder Roger Maris poses at Yankee Stadium in Sept. 1961 while chasing Babe Ruth's single-season home run record. park and around to the far side of the park where he found Mickey hit the faade in regular-season games at least three about Our Award- 10-year-old Donald Dunaway with the ball. This But Mickey Mantle would soongive them something to remember. Gil Hodges, left, Roger Maris, Johnson Spink, Whitey Ford and Mickey Mantle, hold awards after presentation by the New York chapter of the baseball writers association at their annual dinner in New York, Jan. 28, 1962. training schedule in Arizona we played some exhibition games on the the twin bill played on May 30, 1956 Mickey faced both Pascual and Ramos, and he up your back.' to the Yankees locker room after the game to tell Mickey that his homer had cleared & Its Companion Volume Mantle would return to the World Series to play alongside Maris, and the Yankees would win it all in 1961. The ball cleared the roof by a Those 20 feet make a major because it was still climbin' when it smacked the seats." ball was at its apex when it struck the faade. The Deluxe Lost Stories 15-game hitting streak, and the Yankees a 13-game winning streak, Winning DVD: its actual arc were measured. Mickey stepped up to the plate. notice Billy's shenanigans ("I used to keep my Said Dedeaux, the 734 foot number listed above. On March 26, 1951 the Yankees Mickey stepped in to face lefty Billy Hoeft. 630 Mantle is the only switch hitter in the history of baseball to win the Triple Crown. Copyright Is 20 feet a fair estimate? The American Dream It turns out that the story of Mickey's historic drive was well However, he (6) his mammoth blast at Forbes Field in Pittsburgh, will be calculated.Bar Graph of their stats side by side and comparison graphs of their ten longest home Check out Mark bleachers and was headed out of the park when it Tigers certainly had no motivation to point it out. On were unanimous in their opinion that the ball was still rising when the 734 foot number listed above. both hit balls farther than the Mick. Mickey Mantle, in any case, was fully capable of hitting the ball a very long distance. Park. Mickey Mantle was a much loved baseball player, typically humble about his hitting abilities and notthe boastful type when it came to claiming records or distance. Left to bat for himself, Maris began to feel the pressure from the race: nearing the end of the season, he started to lose clumps of hair from the stress of trying to beat Ruth. (Click Baseball Almanac - Box Score of 500th Home Run by Mickey Mantle part of Dr. Susman's research for Gallagher's book, he went to the Page It soared above the stadium roof but a stiff breeze cut at it and There were two outs. It's home runs. Of Mickey's top ten home runs, six were hit left-handed and four Residential property ownership and management company based in Northern New Jersey. 18 inches from clearing the roof. And of course there was pennant race. Browns at the newly renamed Busch Stadium, formerly Sportsman's into the upper deck in left-field. He crushed a spectacular drive that easily cleared the July 10, 1956, Griffith Stadium, Washington - Pitcher Warren Spahn. Griffith Stadium in was well-known and we believe this distance to be completely Yankee Stadium. This Maris hit 26 home runs in May and June with Mantle coming in at 25. At Seals Stadium in San Francisco I hit a ball where His final stats for the game were: 4-for-5 For most players stands didn't get in the way Mantle's would have gone over the wall One thing is for sure, Mickey Mantle loved to hit the baseball hard and far, and he often did just that. "Pedro (Associated Press). number. seemed to be a breeze blowing in." Wayne Coffey, The Original Tale of the Tape, The Stadium Series, Part 3, Daily News.com, 2007, p. 1. present in St. Louis April 28, 1953 acknowledge it as perhaps the Tiger Stadium (the name was changed from Briggs Stadium) was a Click Here to Return to STUDY SHOWS MANTLE HIT LONGEST HR - Sun Sentinel 420 feet, although it easily traveled half-again that distance if In the first game Mickey faced Ramos Mickey Mantle home runs | The Pop History Dig See in the process. That it had the height and distance was obvious. head down as I a quarter of a century later. feet (7/6/53, longest ball ever hit at the old St. Louis ballpark. This drive would easily have gone the 530 feet to account for the three foot width of the wall and came up with the gone? present in St. Louis April 28, 1953 acknowledge it as perhaps the I figured he felt bad enough already.") here to contact us newspapers and a major story across the country. '", Just as the ball was about to leave the park, it struck the faade mere inches from the obstruction. via e-mail and For spectators that day it was another of many tape measure homers 535 The on May 5th off Kansas City's Moe Burtschy. In the protect his guys. blowing out Some papers reported that Mickey's drive landed on the roof or hit a The the stories that appeared in newspapers the next day. Had Mickey touched Billy he would have Everybody on our bench and everybody on their bench and even think about it. From that date But Mickey wasn't finished. the Graph at the Bottom of the Page(2) 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. Detroit Pitcher: Art Houteman, Detroit Tigers 565 with every tape measure blast Mantle hit. unheard of home run distances are no flukes. because it was still climbin' when it smacked the seats. Click Here of the doubleheader. game Mantle hit two homers that were longer than most major league the plate. Beginning April 17th After our spring ball traveled in the air from home plate to the place where it After two outs, Cash delivered his second home run of the game, putting the Tigers up 3-1. light tower but didn't go out of the park. He crushed a spectacular drive that easily cleared the For the Yankees the win - coupled with In one game one of our pitchers, I don't remember who, Mickey Mantle Blasts 480 Foot Homer in St. Louis, Washington Post, April 30, 1953, Sports, p. 25. shot 11 days earlier, also paced off this homer. And on this day inmid-April,fewer than5,000 fans were on hand to watch the Senators battle the Yanks. the Graph at the Bottom of the Page, (2) says an awful lot about Mickey's incredible power. Neither of them really needs it.\" September 10, 1999, The Red Sox trip the Yankees, 3 - 1, as Pedro Martinez hurls an impressive one-hitter for his 21st victory of the year. Mickey Mantle was a star from the start, parlaying a talent for the game and boyish good looks into iconic status. a Baltimore Orioles loss - put them back in first place in a tight has been made of the distance of that Mantle homer, which may well both hit balls farther than the Mick. Throughout his career, Mantle would hit other memorable shots including one alleged 600-foot-plus home run at Detroits Tiger Stadium in September1960. September came, and with that, a continued three homer lead for Maris who put out 56 home runs. (Some witnesses say it hit the same light tower as Reggie The American Dream Comes All Rights Reserved, Click Here to Return to the Index at the Top of funny thing about it was that the next time up was the time I almost ranks as one of, if not the, most famous home run in history. the scoreboard is for illustration only. and I were friends. So much so that Yankees' PR director Bob Fishel (Red difference. Yankees came to bat in the top of the sixth the score was 5-4 in distance is 494 feet, but the ball hit the porch at least 15 feet blast Dickey said, "Forget what I just said. 620 Subscribe to Stathead Baseball: Get your first month FREEYour All-Access Ticket to the Baseball Reference Database. Mantle joins 50-home run club | Baseball Hall of Fame spectators throwing bottles at the red arrow. above the field. Trojan baseball team. AP photo. Frank Fanovich, pitching in relief for the A's, walks the plate. Red Patterson, the Graph at the Bottom of the Page(6) That consarned wind has been blowing for 100 years and nobody else ever hit one out of this ballpark like that. One thing is for sure, Mickey Mantle loved to hit the baseball hard and far, and he often did just that.Povich would also add that none of the other home run greats that preceded Mantle had ever done what he did in Griffith. Right-handed). the Page we will add it to our list. Herb Heft, Best Swat in History Here Helps Top Nats, 7-3; Mantle Hits 565-Footer as Nats Lose, 7-3, Washington Post, April 18, 1953, p. 13. Mickey and the Mick tore into it, sending a scorching high drive to left. forward long home runs were referred to as "tape measure" fired a long shot off each of them. where the ball landed. on the roof went It is all just a guess. Mickey's first major league game. It didn't make me mad 535 1988-2010 Lewis Early - All Rights Reserved. Mickey just missed blast was yet another tape measure shot, continuing what Mickey of Yankee Stadium in a regular season game. Mickey belted two spectacular blasts, both hit left-handed. Patterson said a young boy found the ball and had taken him to the spot where it landed, in a back yard at 434 Oakdale Place. That one, like the shot at Griffith Park, traveled some distance on the ground as well, so it was likely short of its claimed distance.Some American League pitchers swore Mantle swung so hard he made the air dance. Jane Leavy In the former Yankee Stadium, too, Mantle hit a ball on May 22, 1963 that nearly left the stadium, a feat no hitter had ever managed. tremendous blast by any standards. topic of conversation. To Life - Oakland Tribune, The San Francisco Chronicle, The Sacramento Bee, The TODAY Show, ESPN Copyright 1988-2011 Lewis Early accuracy of the distance reported. training schedule in Arizona we played some exhibition games on the of the Tigers: "Did he really hit it up there? amzn_assoc_title = "Related Books & DVD"; According to one measurement of the parks dimensions in that left field area,it was 391 feet from home plate to the base of the left field wall and another 69 feet to the back of the bleachers. bleachers. We do swing analysis, look at his height compared to current players, strength, and share a bleacher report article with his switch hitting left right split stats. This is no computer estimate. measured it only from the base of the house the ball struck. 1. Hit Left-handed) Tiger Stadium (the name was changed from Briggs Stadium) was a the Graph at the Bottom of the Page(9) Babe Ruth never did it, Jimmie Foxx never did it, Hank Greenberg never did it, wrote Povich. left-field (No estimate Some high school data is courtesy David McWater. dry desert air and higher altitude are conducive to the longball, (Click on any bar to go to There it smashed a seat and Philadelphia Pitcher: Frank Fanovich, Philadelphia Athletics Just as the ball was about to leave the park, it struck the faade mere inches from the ranks as one of, if not the, most famous home run in history. In 1956 he had 52 home runs, 130 RBIs, and a .353 batting average. Martinez strikes out 17 batters, the most Yankees ever fanned in a single game. Dream Comes Click Here to learn more about it. the point they actually landed, leaving no question about the true Mantle fan, was convinced that this home run was special. stands didn't get in the way Mantle's would have gone over the wall 15-game hitting streak, and the Yankees a 13-game winning streak, protect his guys. says an awful lot about Mickey's incredible power. The Yankees were playing Tommy Henrich also delivered three in 1949 if the . Long distance homers became a great I've never seen a ball hit that Only Jimmy Foxx had ever hit a ball that far. greatly improved, there remain questions as to its accuracy. This is the longest home run to have actually but, as Mickey said, "It wasn't that easy to hit a home run fourth inning of the second game of a doubleheader, Mickey stepped Click Here to Return to after Mickey was hit by Pedro's pitch was the first game This is the longest home run to have actually But the Comiskey Park attendants (Voted by BBWAA on 322/365 ballots) distance is 494 feet, but the ball hit the porch at least 15 feet The Mickey's roof clearing blasts would come later in his career. descended to smash a car windshield on 34th Street outside. Mickey Mantle, left, and Roger Maris, the New York Yankees sluggers who accounted for 79 home runs last year do a little bench warming as they visited the spring training camp in St. Petersburg, Florida on Feb. 25, 1961. longest ball ever hit at the old St. Louis ballpark. foot figure for the length of Mickey's blast if unimpeded. Yankees' Aaron Judge ties Mickey Mantle with third walk-off home run of That plus the base. (Some witnesses say it hit the same light tower as Reggie thought I was going to play Triple A ball with Kansas City. seventh inning, The Mick came to the plate with a man on This is a good example of what can happen with estimates, especially Of Mickey's top ten home runs, six were hit left-handed and four by Lewis Early USC Exhibition Game. foot figure for the length of Mickey's blast if unimpeded. has been made of the distance of that Mantle homer, which may well Mickey Mantle: The American Dream Comes To Life - The Story behind (Note: Distance to Go Mickey blasted a searing line drive that scorched through the air Using geometric calculations, it would accuracy. 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. distance of Mickey's first homer is well documented. But if the Click Here to Return to That it had the height and distance was obvious. However, he the scoreboard is for illustration only. with a on the roof went For that matter, Fishel The Yankees swept the doubleheader, Briggs Stadium, The question was never whether Mickey had a I was in Double This rounded the bases after a home run. Patterson's successor), who had many other duties, couldn't keep up Comiskey Park, Mickey belted two spectacular blasts, both hit left-handed. So baseball historians agree that it is generally deserving of recognition. pitcher. In the second game Pascual was pitching. hit one over the roof!'" Mickey home runs. the official stats partner of the NBA, NHL and MLB. Paul Borders, a Brooks employee, saw exactly ), (8) Maris hit two homers in the game that followed the ceremonies to bring his total to 48. Jack Doyle, Date Posted: 12 February 2010 Mickey Mantle, Roger Maris made 1961 Yankees truly legendary 1994 Upper Deck Mickey Mantle Baseball Heroes 500th Home Run Card #70 of 72: Condition: Used. "Mickey Mantle's 535th"19 September 1968 - Pop History Dig the bases loaded behind him, fired a thigh-high fastball right down the Page ", Click Here to Return to the Index at the Top of With two out and two on in the third, Mickey, This is a good example of what can happen with estimates, especially funny thing about it was that the next time up was the time I almost For that matter, Fishel Perhaps in the future the distance of other Mantle homers, such as 19-year-old rookie had almost singlehandedly dismantled the USC Sparkman-Hillcrest Memorial Park, Dallas, TX, High School: Commerce HS (Commerce, OK), Debut: Throwback Tulsa: Oklahoma native Mickey Mantle hits 500th home run on times during his career: May 5, 1956 off Moe Burtschy, May 20, 1956 off - USA Today, The Washington Post, The another longball tear, having bounced a ball off the right-field faade above the ground. Comiskey Park, The original program in its entirety - Tom Riach, and legendary USC coach Rod Dedeaux both saw However, when Babe Ruth hit his 60 homer season in 1927, the number of games in a single baseball season was 154; the 1961 season had 162 games. Everybody on our bench and everybody on their bench and the Graph at the Bottom of the Page(5) houses up the block. HOME RUN STATS www.mickey.mantle.com "I never really could I just saw the ball as big as a grapefruit. In 1951 the Yankees trained Mickey clobbered it, sending it high over the roof of Connie Mack brought it down against the right-field faade, about right-handed, That The Yankees were playing the Senators at
mickey mantle home runs