White Sox prospect Yermin Mercedes hit a huge HR, threw his bat and went absolutely nuts
This browser does not support the video element.
There are bat flips. There are celebratory bat tosses. And then there is what White Sox prospect Yermin Mercedes did in the Dominican Winter League on Tuesday night: A bat flip and celebration that needs its very own category.
With the Tigres del Licey leading, 2-1, in the top of 10th, Mercedes put the game out of reach with a massive three-run home run. After watching the ball sail over the wall, the slugger used a two-handed release to hurl his bat into the air and then started stomping around like a toddler pretending to be Godzilla. This is a home run celebration that would show up on the Richter scale:
Mercedes made sure to soak up the moment as he took a leisurely 34.8 seconds to round the bases. That would have broken the Statcast HR trot record of 33.8 seconds set by Nelson Cruz when he hit his 300th home run this year.
So, watch this homer and then watch it again. Because it's one celebration you won't see again soon.