Oneil Cruz has one-upped himself in one of the most egregious ways possible.
In the bottom of the third inning in Sunday’s game, Cruz launched his 11th home run of the season and got the Pittsburgh Pirates on the board.
The homer by Cruz had an exit velocity of 122.9 mph off the bat and broke the record for the hardest hit ball in MLB’s Statcast era.
Cruz broke the previous record that was held by himself. Cruz hit a 122.4 mph single against the Atlanta Braves in August 2022, meaning he now holds the top two spots on the list.
Along with now holding the record for the hardest hit home run and single, Cruz also holds the record for the hardest hit double in the Statcast era. A 121.5 mph double against the San Francisco Giants in May 2024 still stands atop the leaderboard.
It is only a matter of time before Cruz takes over the top spot for the hardest hit triple. That record is currently held by Christian Yelich, who hit a 117.2 mph triple in July 2022 against the Colorado Rockies.
