I'm really enjoying this new experiment by Major League Baseball to start the season in January and hope that nobody notices. I don't know if the Rockies' employees who have had to shuffle snow off the field twice in the last week are enjoying it as much, but it's still interesting in a performance art kind of way.
Let's get to the trots!
Home Run of the Day: Justin Upton, Atlanta Braves (Game 2) – 22.03 seconds [video]
I kid about the weather in Colorado, but I'm at least glad that they went ahead with the doubleheader yesterday if for no other reason than that it gave us two more home runs from Justin Upton in two games. His second blast, which he enjoyed from the moment it left his bat, was the back end of a back-to-back with B.J. Upton, his brother. It was the first time that major league brothers had hit back-to-back home runs since the Waners did it for Pittsburgh in 1938.
Also of note was the first career home run from Oswaldo Arcia, who crushed a ball over the bleachers at Target Field about a half-second after Bert Blyleven wondered over the air if the rookie would be asked to bunt.
EDIT: One more home run that demands attention is this home run from Manny Ramirez, who is currently playing out in Taiwan. The video made its way around the internet yesterday afternoon.
It was Manny's third home run of the year and by far his most emphatic. Everything about the home run, from the laser shot down the left field line, Manny's incredible reaction out of the box, and the going-crazy announcers makes this one of the most amazing highlights you've ever seen. The official trot time is difficult to gather from this video. The camera angle does not give a clear view of the plate, so it is tough to know exactly when Manny's foot touches home. However, after watching the trot a dozen times, I feel safe in saying that Manny's right foot touches home plate at the 32-second mark in the video. This gives Manny Ramirez an official trot time of 29.83 seconds. It does not quite reach the 30-second mark that some people might have assumed. It only seems a matter of time, however…
Slowest Trot: Kendrys Morales, Seattle Mariners – 25.69 seconds [video]
Another big blast, this time off the bat of Kendrys Morales in Minute Maid Park. Morales is not the quickest of trotters to begin with so, watching him slowly walk out of the box while admiring his shot, there was a real shot at an ultra-slow trot here. In the end, the 25-second trot is pretty respectable, considering all of the factors that went into it.
In Pittsburgh, the video if Gaby Sanchez's tater trot cut off before he neared home plate, leaving his trot impossible to time.
Quickest Trot: Chris Heisey, Cincinnati Reds – 17.12 seconds [video]
Another home run, another 17-second trot from Chris Heisey. Ho hum.
All of Today's Trots Kendrys Morales....25.69 Evan Longoria......21.21 Juan Francisco.....24.15 Cody Ransom........20.79 Nelson Cruz........23.13 Mark Ellis #2......20.74 Seth Smith.........22.92 Paul Goldschmidt...20.59 Brandon Belt.......22.84 Howie Kendrick #1..20.32 Evan Gattis........22.44 Howie Kendrick #2..20.2 Mark Ellis #1......22.42 Marwin Gonzalez....20.12 Edwin Encarnacion..22.04 Justin Upton G1....19.05 Justin Upton G2....22.03 B.J. Upton.........19.04 Dan Uggla..........21.8 Chris Heisey.......17.12 Darwin Barney......21.79 Gaby Sanchez.......N/A Oswaldo Arcia......21.48
Click here for the ongoing 2013 Tater Trot Tracker Leaderboard. You can also follow @TaterTrotTrkr on Twitter for more up-to-the-minute trot times.
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I've included the video and a write up in the article above, but Manny's foot seems to touch home plate at 29.83 seconds. It's oh-so-close to the 30-second trot, but not quite there.