Hays' homer landed ... where at Camden Yards?!

BALTIMORE -- Austin Hays wasn’t quite sure. He first turned around to make sure Cubs catcher Willson Contreras was OK after grazing him on the follow-through of his swing. Hays then took a Sammy Sosa-esque hop out of the batter’s box, needing to confirm that the ball he just walloped would remain fair. That was the only question.

By the time it landed a projected 464 feet away from home plate, there was no sliver of doubt.

That kind of power -- historic power -- was on display when Hays hammered his solo home run in the fifth inning of Tuesday’s homer-happy 9-3 win over the Cubs. Since Statcast began tracking in 2015, only three other balls at Oriole Park at Camden Yards have been hit as far as Hays' shot.

As for the overall history of Oriole Park at Camden Yards -- regardless of Statcast tracking -- it was one of only seven balls hit to left field’s second deck, and just the fourth by an Oriole. Among those blasts, only Edwin Encarnación’s 466-foot shot and Manny Machado’s 465-foot blast -- both hit in 2017 -- beat out Hays’, but only by a matter of mere inches.

“I've never sniffed the second deck before,” Hays said. “I don’t know if there was a gust of wind or what happened on that one, but all the stars aligned for me to get one up there.”

Longest home runs at Camden Yards since 2015

1. Carlos Correa (2019): 474 feet
2. Edwin Encarnación (2017): 466 feet
3. Manny Machado (2017): 465 feet
4. Hays (Tuesday): 464 feet
5. Miguel Cabrera (2016): 462 feet

“I did not know it was going to be headed to the second deck,” said Orioles manager Brandon Hyde. “ ... It was a lot of excitement. It was a gold chain, and guys were extremely happy. Good for Haysie.”

Hays’ blast had plenty of company on Tuesday night. It was one of five homers the Orioles hit to pick up Kyle Bradish’s 4 2/3-inning outing. Two came on the O’s first two at-bats of the game. But none of them -- including the two struck by the Cubs -- were as prodigious as Hays’.

But truthfully, there was one sliver of doubt. Hays wasn’t aware he had reached the second deck until he was alerted in the dugout, long after the home run chain had been draped around his neck. He was just hopeful the ball would remain fair.

In Hays’ career arc, it was the farthest ball he’s hit … by a margin of 43 feet. In the Orioles’ season arc, it was their farthest, besting Trey Mancini’s 438-foot blast on Saturday. And it comes as part of a breakout year, as he's been the O’s most consistent batter and is likely their best hope of a position player entrant for the All-Star Game in July.

Health has long been the Orioles' rationale for why Hays, now 26, is playing at the elite level he’s demonstrating this season. The 2021 season was his first time playing more than three-quarters of the Orioles’ games around hamstring, ankle, rib and various other ailments. This year, no injured list stints have been required, even after having his hand stepped on and stitched up in St. Louis in early May.

And this year, Hays is slashing .292/.359/.467 with an .826 OPS through 52 games -- all on pace to being career bests.

“I think you're seeing what kind of player he can be when he stays healthy and he plays every day,” Hyde said.

But the manner in which Hays has been accomplishing such numbers are all the more impressive. Never a player heavily impacted by splits, he’s absolutely crushing right-handers this season -- far outperforming his numbers against left-handers, albeit in a far larger sample size. Entering Tuesday, his batting average ranked fourth among qualified right-handed-hitters against right-handed pitching and his OPS ranked eighth.

Compared to 2021, the step forward is palpable.

Hays against RHP in 2022: .338/.396/.540 (.936 OPS), 13 BB, 24 K, 16 XBH

Hays against RHP, 2021: .221/.283/.400 (.683 OPS), 18 BB, 74 K, 28 XBH

It stems from last season, Hays says now, when conversations with Cedric Mullins about how he attacks left-handed pitchers bled into Mays' approach. It’s paying off in spades.

“Those adjustments have carried over into this year,” Hays said. “And I think I'm doing an even better job of just hitting the breaking balls that are in the zone. Last year, I was taking those and chasing ones out of the zone. Just being aggressive to the ones that I can drive and staying off the ones that are off the plate.”

So call it a fitting coincidence that Hays’ two hits on Tuesday -- the mammoth blast and the RBI double in the third inning that preceded it -- came off an offspeed and a breaking pitch, respectively, thrown by a righty.