Marcell Ozuna had the first three-homer game of his career by hitting the streets three times against the Red Sox on Tuesday at Fenway Park in the Braves’ 10-3 win.
Ozuna became the first National League player to hit three homers at Fenway Park in Major League history and the first away team player to do so since Mark Teixeira did it for the Yankees on May 8, 2008. 2010.
Ozuna’s first hit was on his first at-turn, when he pulled a Ryan Weber pitch over the Green Monster in the first inning, before driving it back over the left-field wall with a solo homer in the seventh inning off. Kyle Hart who traveled a projected distance of 441 well, according to Statcast.
But more impressive than the numbers is the fact that several players and members of the media who have seen more than a handful of games in Boston said they do not recall a player carrying a ball that far through Fenway’s center field.
“Everybody was talking about it,” Braves pitcher Ian Anderson said. “Some of the guys who have played here several times said they had never seen a ball get there. Just from the sound, you knew it was going to go very far. “
Ozuna capped his monstrous display of power with a three-run homer off Hart in the eighth that came off the bat at 110.6 mph and fell 437 feet from home plate across center field.
“He hit the second with more force than the first and with the third I was like saying, ‘Oh my God,'” Braves manager Brian Snitker acknowledged after the game.
And to think that Ozuna came to Fenway Park simply aiming to get the two hits he needed to reach 1,000 in his career. In fact, he told one of the club’s trainers, Mike Frostad, that he was going to hit the milestone on Tuesday.
Perhaps we should have known that Ozuna would do things this way. He has eight home runs in his last 17 games and has hit 11 home runs – a club leader – in his first 35 games. The adjustment to becoming a full-time designated hitter has been very successful thus far.
“You love to see a guy like that start the engines, because he can literally load the team,” added Snitker.
BATTING POWER
This is the power the Braves were looking for when they signed Ozuna to a year and $ 18 million after deciding not to sign Josh Donaldson, whose most recent calf injury has limited him to just seven games since signing with the Twins for four. years and US $ 92 million.
“As good as Josh has been, if you see what Ozuna has done in this time, God, he has been incredible,” Snitker continued. “Imagine the seasonal monstrosity it would have in 162 games.”
It is a very small sample. But since Snitker was the one who brought up the point, Ozuna would be on pace to hit 50 home runs in a 162-game campaign.
Ozuna started the day Tuesday with personal caps on his connections’ average exit speed (92.5 mph) and hard hitting rate (50%). He looks as fearsome as when he hit 37 home runs in 2017 and stronger than last year when he was recovering from shoulder surgery.
“I feel in good shape right now,” Ozuna commented. “I’m just getting ready and coming to the stadium with the mentality that I’m going to play every day and do my best.” (GG) (TAKEN MLB.COM)