Photo: Doug Gray
This week we draw ourselves a little bit closer to the top spot, reaching the number four spot on the longest home run hit by a Cincinnati Reds player in 2022 list. Over the last decade or so we’ve been given the ability to at least *sort of* be able to compare the distances on home runs thanks to ball tracking technologies, making lists like this a lot more fun to look at because there’s not nearly as much guesswork on it as there used to be.
The 4th longest home run of the season in 2022 came on September 7th by Aristides Aquino. The Punisher homered in Chicago and the ball went an estimated 438 feet.
The Video
The Metrics Behind The Blast
Javier Assad was on the mound for the Chicago Cubs and he felt like he could get a slider by Aristides Aquino. The Reds outfielder had different ideas as he unloaded on the 81 MPH pitch and sent it 438 feet into the streets of the Windy City at 113 MPH.
Distance Metrics
Distance: 438 Feet
Reds Ranks: 4th
Major League Baseball Rank: 254th (tie)
Aristides Aquino Rank: 2nd
Other Metrics
Launch Angle: 31°
Exit Velocity: 113.0 MPH
Reds Exit Velocity Rank (home runs only): 1st
MLB Exit Velocity Rank (home runs only): 86th (tie)
The Story Behind The Blast
The Cubs were leading 1-0 in the top of the 3rd inning when Aristides Aquino came to the plate to lead off the inning. On the third pitch of the at-bat rookie Javier Assad hung a slider and Aquino didn’t miss it. The home run marked just the second run in four games that Assad had given up. He would go on to give up four runs on the day in 5.1 innings. Aquino was not finished for the day. In the top of the 9th inning he would pick up his third hit of the day, and his second home run of the day as he crushed his 7th homer of the year.
