Before he prepares to seek his third home run derby title next week, Mets slugger Pete Alonso had an impressive power display in Thursday’s win over the Diamondbacks.
A stint on the injured list in mid-June caused Alonso to fall a few steps behind Atlanta’s Matt Olson in the National League home run race, but he hit one of the most remarkable homers of the season in the first inning of Thursday’s game in Arizona. He took a fastball from Ryne Nelson and ripped it into the left field corner, just high enough to get over the fence.
The phrases “laser beam” and “frozen rope” get thrown around a lot when talking about line-drive home runs, but never have they been as applicable as in this case.
PETE ALONSO HITS A LASER OUTTA HERE! pic.twitter.com/af8ImW1dMa
— SNY (@SNYtv) July 7, 2023
Alonso’s homer had a launch angle of just 17 degrees, reached a maximum height of only 39 feet and got out of the park in a mere 3.4 seconds. It was just the ninth home run this season with a launch angle of 17 degrees or lower. The ones he’ll hit at the derby in Seattle will probably be of the more towering variety, but maybe he’ll rip some line drives to show off, too.
