Speaking of homeruns

[trosmok]

When a batter really gets a hold of one and knows it is going out, what happens next is the point of this thread. Too often the tendency to stand and admire has become commonplace, thanks to Reggie "swinganamiss" Jackson et.al., and it irks me. The one flap down nonsense was quite maddening, too. It is not as silly as running to first on a walk, but a homerun is just that: a HOMERUN! It isn't a hometrot, homewalk, homejog, homecanter, homeskip, homestumble; why don't more players run at a reasonable pace, out of respect for the game, and the opposing pitcher? Case in point, Sunday night the Mets SS Jose Reyes was looking dead red for a pitch to drive with the bases loaded and a 2-0 count, and that's exactly what he got. The minute he made contact, that ball was headed for Nassau County, and he hustled to first with a big cheshire cat grin broadening on his face, made the turn to second without breaking stride. It seemed his feet barely touched ground until he landed at home, and while it wasn't at breakneck speed, it was the best Grand Slam circuit I've seen in quite a while. A quick tip o' the cap, and the Shea crowd thundered their approval. I'm no real fan of the Mets, nor Reyes, but it was a welcome sight to see a player smash one to nearly put the game out of reach, and then respond with the dignity and class befitting the moment.:clapping Kudos to Reyes, the Mets, and the crowd in Queens for that one.

[rockin500]

if its an absolute bomb than i dont mind a little pimping. i mean, if you are hitting it 450 feet, the pitcher has lost all right to complain.

[Outta Here]

I love Ryan Howard's little strut after he hits 1 :laugh
Andruw Jones looks like he's sitting down after he hits a HR most of the time!
Also the Sammy Hop when he popped out to 2nd base :laugh

[PhilWings24]

if its an absolute bomb than i dont mind a little pimping. i mean, if you are hitting it 450 feet, the pitcher has lost all right to complain.

i basically agree, but for a lil bit of a different reason. to me, if you absolutely kill one, you can't help but admire. when you hit the longest homerun of your life, you are (or should be) just as awe-struck as everyone else in the building.

i actually don't mind the admiration bit a whole lot, but similar hustle-deficiencies bother me a ton.

as long as the admiration isn't way, way out of line, it actually DOES get out, and the hitter doesn't do any sort of taunting (though some would consider the admiration in and of itself taunting), i don't mind it. and when its a truly top of the line blast, i don't think there's any way you can blame the guy at all

[Whitesoxnut]

Ive seen a disturbing trend in recent years of players who hit a long ball, walk or trot to first admireing it, and then get a single off a ball that bounces off the wall, or a dbl that should have been a triple.

[Yankees]

I actually saw Ryan Howard do that while in AAA; he hit a ball to dead center, and after a brief run, slowed to a jog thinking it was a homerun. It hit the top of the wall and fell straight down (oufielders thought it would bounce back, giving him extra time), and turned a triple into a double+thrown out at third base:D

[Astro]

dont like it? dont give up the homerun

[flash143817]

I can see it both ways on this issue. Most people would agree that the point of playing the game (at least for me) is to have fun. If you really get into one and crush it, what's wrong with enjoying the moment? I don't see why the batter should have to act like he's in a fire drill and take all the fun out of his moment by making him run head down without smiling or anything. That's not fun.


That being said, if you do slow down and enjoy, you better be damn sure that the ball is going out, because nothing looks dumber than a 400 foot single.

[KCGHOST]

Most of the time Iprefer that just run the bases without fanfare. Act like you have hit an HR before. Sometimes I do like a little emotion. A walkoff dinger is a time for a little fist pump or somesuch.

[VTSoxFan]

I agree with you, Tros. I want to yell, "Run, dammit!" when anyone -- yes, even my guys Manny and Papi -- stop to look when they've hit one out. Last night Wily Mo Pena hit a 451-footer into the concession stands at Kauffman Satdium, and he ambled to first as it flew, but that's because it was close to being a foul.

I love the way Jason Varitek runs after hitting one out -- maybe one step slower than his sprint, circling the bases quickly so as to get back to the dugout and to what he considers most important -- catching.

[Fry]

I kinda watched the ball I hit this year. I ripped a ball high and deep down the left field line. I stood at home for a split second and starting jogging to first only to have the ball be foul. The next pitch I popped out to second.

I only watched the because I knew it was foul. I'm not a big power hitter so when I got back to the bench everybody was surprised at how far I hit the ball.

[FatAngel]

I can see it both ways on this issue. Most people would agree that the point of playing the game (at least for me) is to have fun. If you really get into one and crush it, what's wrong with enjoying the moment? I don't see why the batter should have to act like he's in a fire drill and take all the fun out of his moment by making him run head down without smiling or anything. That's not fun.


Being respectful to the (at least inwardly) embarrassed pitcher who just failed to do his job at all is simply good baseball education.

[Rounding Home]

If it's close at all you'd better be on your horse. Costing your team an extra base hit and an out due to admiring an almost home run is inexcusable. Besides, these guys who sit back and admire them routinely hit homers so there will be plenty of oppurtunities other times.

That being said, I don't mind some enthusiasm after a sure home run as long as it's enthusiasm and not meant to show up the pitcher.

[sturg1dj]

the last time the Tigers played the White Sox, Joel Zumaya got a big strike out against Joe Crede to end an inning. Joel was pumped and pumped his fist, and it looked like it pissed off Crede. My point is if you can dish it out, hopefully you can take it. I'm not saying Crede or any White Sox are guilty of showing up pitchers, but I am saying that hitters who watch homeruns and do special trots should also have no problem when a pitcher rubs it in their face when he strikes them out (and most watchers strikeout a lot).

[flash143817]

the last time the Tigers played the White Sox, Joel Zumaya got a big strike out against Joe Crede to end an inning. Joel was pumped and pumped his fist, and it looked like it pissed off Crede. My point is if you can dish it out, hopefully you can take it. I'm not saying Crede or any White Sox are guilty of showing up pitchers, but I am saying that hitters who watch homeruns and do special trots should also have no problem when a pitcher rubs it in their face when he strikes them out (and most watchers strikeout a lot).

Absolutely. The pitchers have the same right to celebration as the hitters do. I like seeing a little emotion out of pitchers when they get a big out. Living in LA I see a lot of both the Dodgers and Angels, and both of their closers (Gagne and Rodriguez) would punctuate their saves with a fist pump. I see Saito do the same thing now for the Dodgers. I like it because it shows outwardly that they really care about what they are doing.