Mancini hits 1st HR since inspirational return

Throughout his emotional first week back on the field after beating Stage 3 colon cancer, Trey Mancini privately regretted how, at the plate, he’d struggled to retain his old form. Opening the year 5-for-his-first-28 at-bats without a homer, Mancini acknowledged this week he was pressing amid the pressure “trying to prove I’m the same guy.”

“I know I am,” he said. “But I haven’t gone about these games the right way.”

That appears to be changing. Mancini crossed another milestone in his recovery Saturday, notching his first homer in the O’s eventual 6-4 10-inning loss to the Red Sox at Oriole Park. Taking right-hander Garrett Richards out 427 feet to right-center-field, Mancini’s 111.9 mph first-inning solo shot marked his first regular-season long ball since Sept. 28, 2019. Anthony Santander followed with a 407-foot solo shot of his own, tying the game at 2-2 before the Red Sox rallied to win in extras.

“Our dugout exploded when he hit that homer in the first inning,” manager Brandon Hyde said. “It seemed like there was a lot of relief for Trey, coming into the dugout after that. That’s his strength, getting the ball up in the air to right-center, so that was great to see. Hopefully, that’ll get him going.”

Said center fielder Cedric Mullins: “To see him get one early, I literally think it gave everyone chills. It was an amazing moment.”

Asked about it after the game, starting pitcher Bruce Zimmermann called the moment “electric.” It was certainly cathartic for Mancini, who missed all of 2020 enduring chemotherapy treatment after hitting .291 with 35 homers in 2019. He finished 1-for-5 with two strikeouts on the night, stranding the bases loaded in a one-run game by grounding out in the eighth in his final at bat. Mancini is now 6-for-33 (.182) with 13 strikeouts on the year.