Jesús Sánchez Hits Longest Home Run of the ’22 Season

Jesús Sánchez has gone the distance…

The 24-year-old Dominican professional baseball outfielder for the Miami Marlins obliterated a slider from Colorado Rockies starter Ryan Feltner halfway up the third and upper deck in right field in the second inning.

Jesús Sánchez The ball traveled 496 feet, making it the longest home run ever hit at Coors Field by a left-handed hitter, and the second longest by any hitter, trailing only Giancarlo Stanton’s 504-foot shot in 2016.

Sánchez’s blast is also the longest home run in Major League Baseball this year, passing Mike Trout’s 472-foot one on April 14 in Arlington.

“It’s just monumental,” said Marlins manager Don Mattingly after the Marlins’ 7-1 loss to the Rockies in their series opener at Coors Field on Monday afternoon. “You don’t get that feeling more than a couple times in your lifetime.”

“You’ll hit some more [into the upper deck],” Mattingly said. “But not very many like that one. I’d like to see a picture from where that ball landed. It probably looks like it’s two blocks away.”

Sánchez entered Monday’s game in need of a big hit. Following a strong April, he was hitting just .151/.205/.260 over 78 May plate appearances when he stepped to the plate in the second inning.

What he did in his first plate appearance on Monday certainly fit the category of “big hit.” In fact, it was a clout. He hit it so well, it’s tied for the third-longest homer that Statcast has ever tracked (Aaron Judge hit a 496-foot shot in 2017, and Miguel Sanó also had one in ’19). The only home runs that were longer were the 504-foot shot by Stanton at Coors Field in 2016, and a 505-foot drive by Nomar Mazara at Globe Life Park in ’19.

It wasn’t exactly surprising to Sánchez, who said he hit one 508 feet in the minors. But it was very special, nonetheless.

“It was something incredible,” he said through an interpreter. “I didn’t know it was that big of a magnitude, but it was something great.”

Click here to see the homer.

Miguel Sano Extends Contract with Minnesota Twins for Three Years

Miguel Sano is extending his time in Minnesota…

The 26-year-old Dominican professional baseball third basemanhas agreed to a three-year contract extension agreement with the Minnesota Twins, according to ESPN.

Miguel Sano

The extension includes a club option for the 2023 season and will buy out two years of free agency. It’s valued at $30 million. There is $27 million spread over the first three years and $3 million on a fourth-year option, a source said. If the $14 million option is picked up, the deal maxes out at $41 million over four years. MLB Network was first to report the financial terms of the deal.

Sano slugged 34 home runs and had 79 RBIs for the Twins in 2019. After getting off to a dreadful start, he finished the season with a .247 average.

After June 28, Sano batted .279 with a .994 OPS. During the stretch run, Sano was one of the best hitters in baseball.

Sano made $2.65 million last season in his first year of arbitration eligibility. The sides swapped proposed figures in arbitration as placeholders, the player asking for $6.25 million and the team offering $5.1 million.