Another baseball question for the fans out there: What is the best home run you ever witnessed?

Question

The home run is the most exciting play in baseball, no doubt. Leading up to the start of another baseball season, I pose the above question. For me, it would have to be the game-winning home run I saw 10 years ago in Pittsburgh. I was at the game where Francisco Cordova took a no-hitter to the 9th inning, only to be relieved by Ricardo Rincon in the 10th. Rincon kept the no-hitter alive at the top of the inning with a stout pitching effort. In the bottom of the inning, the Pirates and Astros were still in a scoreless tie. Two baserunners later, Mark Smith stepped to the plate. In a scene that could have come from a movie, Smith slams a tree-run bomb, sealing the no-hitter and at that point, sending the Pirates into a first place tie with the Astros for the NL Central lead. That night was a great night to be a Pirates fan.

Answer 1

Kirby Puckett in the 11th inning, game 6 of the 1991 world series, and we will see you tomorrow night!

Answer 2

In person, it would be Mother's Day, 1993 at the Vet. Phillies trailed the Cardinals, 5-2, in the bottom of the 8th. Mariano Duncan hit a grand slam off Lee Smith to put the Phils up, 6-5, and they would win by that score.

Another great one was in 2001 at Camden Yards. In the ninth inning, the Phillies trailed, 4-2, with two outs and two strikes on Travis Lee. It looked like a long trip back to Philly was in store, but Lee hit a 3-run homer to put the Phils up, 5-4, and they won by the same score.

Johnny Estrada's walkoff homer against the Marlins late in the '01 season to pull the Phillies into a first-place tie with the Braves, Ryan Howard's 58th of last season, and Steve Jeltz hitting one in '89 after going nearly five years without doing so would probably round out the top five that I've seen in person.

Answer 3

Longest Home Run
I rode the train for 10 hours to DC in the 2005 year to watch my Cubs play, the Sunday game had Maddux pitching and I was so looking forward to watching this game and in the middle of the game Nick Johnson got hold of this ball and shot it out to the center field. This was the longest home run I have seen I person. A side note Chicago lost both that Saturday and Sunday, o-well this is the Cubs year.

First Home Run
My Grandfather had taken me to a Cubs game against the Cardinals sometime in the 80's, and there was this popular catcher names Jody Davis hit a home run, and I became a Jody fan from that day on.

Answer 4

Sorry, but the single most exciting play in baseball is the INSIDE THE PARK HOME RUN.

I was watching at home when Bobby Higginson homered off Roy Halladay with 2 out in the ninth, to break of Halladay's no-hit bid in Halladays second major league start.

I was in the part to see John Olerud's first walk-off home run, and actually saw him SMILE!

I saw George Bell hit one in the bottom of the 10th to close down Exhibition Stadium.

But the best was the one that the late Tom Cheek described in this manner - "Touch 'em all, Joe, You'll never hit a bigger home run in your life!" Game 6, '93 WS.

And yes, I have seen an inside-the-part HR, live and in person. I saw Jim Sundberg hit one in 1988.

Answer 5

As a Red Sox fan I would claim it was Big Papi's 2004 ALCS 12th inning walk off home run against the Yankees. However as a baseball fan in general the greatest home run without a shadow of a doubt was Joe Carters 9th inning 2 out, World Series winning homerun in 1993. Every single little kid has run that scenario through their head when they were out in the backyard playing ball, and he actually did it. It was truely unbelievable.

Answer 6

This is probably not in the spirit that you asked, however the best homerun I ever saw was the one that my son, nicknamed Jumbo, hit over the towering right field wall at Grand Canyon University (this is the school that Tim Salmon, Angels graduated from). It was my son's junior year of high school, they were playing in the Phoenix City Championship and they were down by one. With one runner on base, my son stepped up and SMASHED the ball over the right field fence. His team went on to win the championship. I have never seen a more important or exciting homerun since then. I am proud to be Jumbo's Mom.

Answer 7

I was confused by the question i thought you meant best home run ever seen in person...That for me would have to be when i had field level seats at Yankee Stadium and as a Sox fan i saw Manny hit a 1st inning HR off Shawn Chacon that Hit the 1st row of the left field bleachers, over the bullpen...Looked great from my seats near the LF foul pole..

Answer 8

Joe Carter's 9th inning Game winning homerun in the 93 World Series. If he makes and out it's game over Phillies win, if he gets on base the Phillies can still win. Imagine your Team is down in the bottom of the 9th 2 outs and your up with men on base and you hit the game winning world series clinching homerun every boys dream is that single swing of the bat. (sorry but Kirk Gibson home run won game one not the series clinching game)

Answer 9

I disagree with your basic premise.
I think that triples are more exiting than home runs. Inside the park home runs are more exciting than going , going, gone.
Successful suicide squeezes, delayed double steals, stealing home and a right fielder nailing a runner at the plate. All of them are more exciting than home runs
Only in very special circumstances is a homer run exciting. A solo shot with your team ahead or behind by 5 runs late in a game is a reason to yawn.
I saw Keith Hernandez start a 325 that to this day is the most exciting play I've ever seen including the Jeter flip.

Answer 10

Tino Martinez comes back to Yankee Stadium as a Cardinal. First pitch off Andy Pettite, he drills into the right field bleachers. The entire stadium errupted and went nuts, just like when he was a Yankee. A few at bats later, he does it again, and the stadium blew up!