I was at the Brewers/Dodgers game last night, watching from above as Don Mattingly brought in a fifth infielder to try and prevent a second consecutive walk-off win for Milwaukee. Sure, Nyjer Morgan really should have been called out at the plate (a terrible slide and a terrible tag add up to some umpire confusion, I suppose), but it was an incredibly exciting game. I was glad to be there.
Now let's get to the trots!
Home Run of the Day: Kevin Youkilis, Boston Red Sox – 19.13 seconds [video]
The second-quickest trot of the night, beating out Ben Zobrist, Derek Jeter, and even Ichiro. That goes to show just how much he isn't physically or mentally into the game as he has been in the past. No one wants to get back to the dugout that quickly.
Slowest Trot: Hanley Ramirez, Miami Marlins- 27.67 seconds [video]
Three consecutive games with a home run for the Marlins' third baseman, and three consecutive games in a row with the slowest trot of the night. Wednesday's trot also happens to be the single slowest trot of the season for anyone, besting Bryan LaHair's April 13 trot by more than a half-second. It also means that, in his four home runs on the season, Ramirez has four of the six slowest trots in baseball. Sadly, this home run only managed to reach 401 feet.
Quickest Trot: Alejandro De Aza, Chicago White Sox – 18.47 seconds [video]
De Aza hit four home runs in 54 games as a member of the White Sox last season. In 11 games, he already has three this year. Other notable home runs from Wednesday came from unlikely sluggers Chone Figgins, Ichiro, and Alcides Escobar.
All of Today's Trots Hanley Ramirez....27.67 Robinson Cano.....20.95 Luke Scott........24.63 Pedro Alvarez.....20.83 Aramis Ramirez....24.23 Chase Headley #2..20.79 Mike Napoli.......23.43 Ichiro............20.77 Yoenis Cespedes...23.38 Ike Davis.........20.5 Michael Cuddyer...23.25 Jeff Mathis.......20.42 Justin Morneau #2.23.07 Chase Headley #1..20.35 Matt Joyce........22.91 Sean Rodriguez....20.18 AJ Pierzynski.....22.44 Tyler Greene......20.09 Justin Morneau #1.22.32* Alcides Escobar...19.8 Dan Uggla.........22.28 Derek Jeter.......19.53 Juan Francisco....21.9 Chone Figgins.....19.5 Freddie Freeman...21.63 Ben Zobrist.......19.44 Jonny Gomes.......21.53 Jonathan Herrera..19.44 Carlos Beltran....21.53 Kevin Youkilis....19.13 Donnie Murphy.....21.11 Alejandro De Aza..18.47
Click here for the ongoing 2012 Tater Trot Tracker Leaderboard. You can also follow @TaterTrotTrkr on Twitter for more up-to-the-minute trot times.
Thank you for reading
This is a free article. If you enjoyed it, consider subscribing to Baseball Prospectus. Subscriptions support ongoing public baseball research and analysis in an increasingly proprietary environment.
Subscribe now