Aaron Judge hit the longest home run of the Major League season, driving a pitch 495 feet into the back of the left field bleachers at Yankee Stadium Sunday.
The blast for the New York Yankees rookie came off of a pitch from Baltimore Orioles' pitcher Logan Verrett in the sixth inning, jumping off his bat at 118.6 miles per hour, noted MLB.com. The Yankees won the game 14-3.
ESPN, which claimed that the Judge's homer traveled 496 feet, said it was the longest home run hit since the sports network began tracking home run distances in 2009. Judge hit another home run in the seventh inning, for an American League-leading 21 round-trippers.
He also leads the American League in runs batted in (47) and batting average (.344), ESPN noted.
Judge has already won praise from one of the Yankees biggest rivals in retired Boston Red Sox slugger David Ortiz. Ortiz praised 6-foot-7 Judge last week during a fundraiser for CC Sabathia's PitCChIn Foundation, which supports urban children in the New York area and Sabathia's native Northern California, the New York Post reported.
"That's scary, man. That's the scariest thing I've ever seen," Ortiz said of Judge. "A guy that big that can hit like that, that's special. To be honest with you, with the strike zone for a guy his size, I believe even though he's so good, he's gonna get better.
"When you’re that tall, the strike zone is bigger. And then you watch him hit, and he doesn't chase bad pitches. That's special. God bless him. He's fun to watch. What a beast," Ortiz continued.
Fans celebrated Judge's accomplishment on social media while trying to put in in perspective.
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