When the ball left Oneil Cruz's bat in the first inning of the Pirates' 4-3 win over the Rays Saturday at PNC Park, he instantly knew he was about to jog around the bases in celebration of a solo home run against Tampa Bay starter Zach Eflin.
What he didn't know was where the ball eventually landed.
It didn't drop into the seats located atop the Clemente Wall and it didn't bounce off the riverwalk beyond those right-field seats. No, it ended up traveling a total of 445 feet before ultimately landing in the Allegheny River on the fly:
"That was the farthest ball I've ever seen hit," Jared Jones said. "He's a freak player and it's a big pleasure to watch him play baseball every day."
In the 23-year history of PNC Park, only 75 home runs have reached the river, according to MLB.com, with 49 different players contributing river homers, which include balls that have bounced before hitting the water.
In making a splash with his 10th home run of the season, Cruz joined an exclusive club of players to hit a ball into the river on the fly. He's just the fifth player in PNC Park history to accomplish the feat, joining Daryle Ward (2002), Garrett Jones (2013), Pedro Alvarez (2015) and Josh Bell (twice in 2019). It was the second-longest home run Cruz has hit in his career, only trailing a 462-foot shot he belted off of Dodgers reliever Evan Phillips on June 6.
"I think any time you see balls hit that far, and what'd they announce? It landed in the water on the fly? There's only been six of those, so there's not a lot of guys who can do that. He continues to do really special things," Derek Shelton said. "Once it goes over the fence, I don't care where it lands. It really doesn't matter. As long as it goes over the yellow barrier, it can land in the first row or land in the Allegheny, it don't matter to me. It counts the same."
The shortest distance between home plate and the Allegheny River is 456 feet straight down the right-field line. Cruz admits he's hit balls farther during batting practice, but he'll always have more appreciation for the ones that actually count.
"The ones that count are the ones you hit in the game," Cruz said via interpreter and major-league coach Stephen Morales. "Today, I definitely hit it pretty good."
Still, the ones during BP are a sight to see, according to those who get the pleasure of doing so on a regular basis.
"I've been watching him hit balls into the river in BP all the time," Jason Delay said. "So, it's fun to watch."
"I don't like to watch because it kind of makes me feel weak," Nick Gonzales said. "When he hits, it's pretty impressive."
Cruz's latest bomb -- his first since June 7 against the Twins -- brought back memories of one he had during his time with Class AA Altoona back in June 2021. in the fifth inning of a game against the Akron Rubber Ducks, Cruz hit a blast that sailed 463 feet with an exit velocity of 120 mph, according to the Curve's broadcast, and hit the roller coaster located beyond the right-field wall at PNG Field:
🚨🚨 @OneilCruz4 demolishes a 3-run bomb to take the lead! 🚨🚨 pic.twitter.com/67biTOi1rM
— Altoona Curve (@AltoonaCurve) June 12, 2021
As the ball he hit Saturday sailed well over the 21-foot high Clemente Wall, Cruz didn't have an idea of where it would end up. All he knew was that he hit a game-tying homer to help even the score in a big game that eventually evened the series with Tampa Bay.
But what about that memorable shot he hit three years ago as a minor leaguer? Yeah, he was fully aware of where that one was heading.
"The one from Altoona," Cruz said with a smile, "I knew right away was going to hit the roller coaster."
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