1 of 5 | Toronto Blue Jays first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (L) congratulates outfielder George Springer after he hit a home run off Tampa Bay Rays starter Zach Eflin during the fourth inning Thursday at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Fla. Photo by Steve Nesius/UPI |
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MIAMI, March 29 (UPI) -- Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Mike Trout and Nick Martini were among more than two dozen players to hit home runs on MLB's league-wide opening day. Martini was the only player to homer multiple times.
Trout hit the first of 28 homers Thursday, smacking a a 402-foot solo shot in his first at-bat of the season in the top of the first inning of the Los Angeles Angels' 11-3 loss to the Baltimore Orioles in Baltimore.
The All-Star outfielder's blast was among the 16 home runs that traveled at least 400 feet. Orioles right fielder Anthony Santander then smacked a 431-foot, two-run homer in the bottom of the fourth.
That shot was the second-longest of the day. Orioles center fielder Cedric Mullins also hit a 403-foot, three-run homer in the seventh inning.
Guerrero was responsible for Thursday's biggest bomb. The Toronto Blue Jays first baseman hit a fastball to center for a 450-foot solo home runt in the top of the sixth inning in an 8-2 win over the Tampa Bay Rays. That ball traveled 111.8 mph off his bat.
Blue Jays right fielder George Springer (392 feet) and second baseman Cavan Biggio (366) also homered. First baseman Yandy Diaz hit a 355-foot solo homer in the Rays' first at-bat of the season.
Minnesota Twins third baseman Royce Lewis hit the third-longest round-tripper of the day. That 423-foot blast came in the third at-bat of the Twins' 4-1 win over the Kansas City Royals. Third baseman Maikel Garcia hit a 398-foot solo shot in the Royals' first at-bat of the season.
San Francisco Giants left fielder Michael Conforto smacked the fourth-longest long ball. That 420-foot solo homer came in the top of the ninth inning of a 6-4 loss to the San Diego Padres.
Houston Astros center fielder Jake Meyers was responsible for the fifth-longest homer. That 415-foot solo homer came in the second inning of a 5-4 loss to the New York Yankees.
Third baseman Oswaldo Cabrera hit a 381 solo homer in the top of the sixth for the Yankees.
Martini hit nearly 800 feet worth of home runs in the Cincinnati Reds' 8-2 win over the Washington Nationals. The Reds designated hitter smacked a 405-foot, two-run shot in the second inning. He followed with a 389-foot, three-run homer in the third.
Nationals center fielder Eddie Rosario hit a 389-foot, two-run shot in the seventh.
The Pittsburgh Pirates matched the Blue Jays with three homers -- the most of the day. Outfielder Bryan Reynolds, shortstop ONeil Cruz and pinch hitter Edward Olivares all went deep for the Pirates, who beat the Miami Marlins 6-5 in 12 innings.
Reynolds hit a 406-foot, two-run shot in the third. Olivares smacked a 413-foot solo shot in the seventh. Cruz cracked a 384-foot solo homer in the eighth.
All-Star teammates Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman each homered in the Los Angeles Dodgers' 7-1 rout of the St. Louis Cardinals.
Betts hit a 406-foot solo homer in the third. Freeman hit a 406-foot solo shot two at-bats later. Betts, who hit the first home run of the MLB campaign in a 15-11 loss to the Padres on March 21 in Seoul, is now tied with Martini for the most home runs this season (2).
Cardinals first baseman Paul Goldschmidt hit a 401-foot solo homer in the fourth inning of the loss.
The Texas Rangers, who unveiled their World Series title banner before a 4-3 win over the Chicago Cubs, homered twice. Right fielder Adolis Garcia raked a 407-foot solo shot in the sixth inning for the Rangers' first home run of the season.
Pinch hitter Travis Jankowski hit a 396-foot solo homer in the bottom of the ninth. That blast tied the score 3-3. Catcher Jonah Heim went on to hit a walk-off single in the bottom of the 10th.
The Boston Red Sox-Seattle Mariners game featured four home runs. Red Sox third baseman Rafael Devers hit a 400-foot, two-run homer in the third inning of the 6-4 win. Right fielder Tyler O'Neill hit a 394-foot solo homer in the eighth.
Mariners pinch hitter Dylan Moore hit a 409-foot, two-run homer in the seventh. Right fielder Mitch Haniger hit a 372-foot, two-run shot in the fourth inning of the loss.
Arizona Diamondbacks left fielder Lourdes Gurriel Jr., who hit a career-high 24 homers last season, started his 2024 campaign with a 398-foot blast in the first inning of a 16-1 triumph over the Colorado Rockies.
He went 3 for 5 with five RBIs in the blowout. Gurriel went 2 for 2 with three RBIs in the Diamondbacks' 14-run third-inning.
The New York Mets will play the Milwaukee Brewers in the first MLB game of Friday's slate. That 1:40 p.m. EDT matchup in Queens will be the season opener for both teams, who were scheduled to meet Thursday before the game was postponed because of rain.
The Philadelphia Phillies and Atlanta Braves -- who also had their Thursday meeting rained out -- will start their seasons with a 3:05 p.m. matchup Friday in Philadelphia.
The Baltimore Orioles' Cedric Mullins hits a three-run home run against the Los Angeles Angels in the seventh inning of the season home opener at Camden Yards in Baltimore on March 28, 2024. The Orioles defeated the Angels 11-3. Photo by David Tulis/UPI |
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