Higgy homers off Schwindel's historically slow pitch

NEW YORK -- Kyle Higashioka called it his “beer league softball homer.” But this one counted in the big leagues, and it was good for a small slice of Statcast history.

Higashioka homered on a 35.1 mph pitch from Cubs first baseman-turned-pitcher Frank Schwindel in the eighth inning of Sunday’s 18-4 Yankees rout at Yankee Stadium, marking the slowest pitch ever tracked by Statcast to be hit for a home run.

“That was pretty funny,” Higashioka said. “Someone once told me, the key to hitting a knuckleball is, 'Stay back, stay back, stay back.' So that’s what I was trying to do there. I saw it come in and was like, ‘Yeah, I can hit that.’”

Higashioka’s homer supplanted the previous record holder for slowest home run pitch -- a 43.9 mph offering from the Rays’ Brett Phillips, which Sheldon Neuse slugged over the wall at Tropicana Field on April 11 of this season.

The blast was Higashioka’s second of the game, coming after he’d received the silent treatment from his Yankees teammates after belting a solo shot in the third inning off reliever Daniel Norris.

It marked Higashioka’s first of the regular season, after he’d slugged seven to lead the Majors during Spring Training.

“I had this thought that whenever I hit a home run, it’s been so long, they’re definitely going to give me the silent treatment,” Higashioka said. “I actually kind of expected that.”

Higashioka credited fellow Yankees catcher Jose Trevino for a piece of advice before the at-bat; Trevino noticed that Higashioka did not appear aggressive with his lower half during his first at-bat of the game.

“I’ve been grinding all year, trying to look for that adjustment to get back to where I know I could be,” Higashioka said. “For some reason, [Trevino’s advice] just clicked everything into place. I’ve got to give credit to my man Trevi.”