Did this homer actually go 527 feet? You be the judge
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Leandro Cedeno did some self-gifting during Double-A Amarillo's Christmas in July game against San Antonio.
After beginning the game with two strikeouts, the D-backs first-base prospect said he came to the plate in his third at-bat with some anger. He took his frustration out on the baseball, hammering a game-tying 527-foot homer to left-center field in the fifth inning on a 3-0 count at a ballpark that is at 3,600 feet.
"Oh my god, that's amazing, I never think I can hit a ball that far," Cedeno said when he heard how far his homer traveled. "I was for sure [it was a] homer. I stepped up to the plate like 'Okay, I got that one,' and I enjoyed the moment."
The blast -- with an estimated velocity of 113 mph -- tied the game, 5-5, en route to the Sod Poodles' 7-6 victory, which was the best Christmas-like present for Cedeno who described the moment as the highlight of his career.
Cedeno has been launching homers all season long, ranking fourth in the Texas League with 18, behind the Cardinals' Moisés Gómez (who launched 23 for Springfield before heading up to Triple-A Memphis), Tulsa's Ryan Ward (22) and Wichita's Matt Wallner (promoted after hitting 21 for that squad). The 23-year-old's latest dinger -- with a spin rate of 2228 revolutions per minute -- pushed his batting average to .303 with 59 RBIs, which is second on the circuit to Wallner's 64.