Let's play some Jeopardy.
This rookie center fielder is hitting home runs harder and farther than anyone in baseball.
Who is the Los Angeles Dodgers' Joc Pederson? Correct.
In blasting a 467-foot shot in Tuesday's day game against the Colorado Rockies, Pederson raised his average home run distance to 425 feet on the season. That gives the 6-foot 1-inch, 185-pound, 23-year-old a higher average distance on the long ball than noted Major League Baseball sluggers such as Prince Fielder and Giancarlo Stanton, who is arguably the most-feared hitter in the sport today. Take a closer look.
Joc Pederson already led MLB in average HR distance. Today's 467-ft shot increased that lead.
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) June 2, 2015
Pederson is hitting .257 with 15 home runs and 29 RBI with an on-base percentage of 38.5 this season. The kid also ranks within the Majors' Top 10 in homers this year. Also, here's a crazy stat that will surely drive baseball number crunchers crazy: Pederson failed to hit a homer in his first 43 appearances at the plate against left-handed pitchers to start his career. Since this past Sunday, though, something has seemingly clicked with the kid and he has hit three long balls in his last plate appearances against lefties, including Tuesday's mammoth shot.
Yes, the thin Colorado air had something to do with the distance, but this ball was smoked off the bat. Let's see how long the rookie can keep the hot hitting going. Or better yet, how long he'll be hitting them.
Check out the homer here.
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