Baseballs fly at Coors Field, but few fly as far as the one Adam Duvall hit Thursday night.
His fifth-inning blast landed on the concourse level far beyond left field and was estimated – conservatively, it seems – at 477 feet.
“I think that’s probably the longest ball I’ve hit in my career,” the Braves outfielder said. “I knew I hit it really well, there was no doubt about that, but I didn’t see where it landed. I kind of put my head down and got going. But I was able to see it later (via replay).”
Officially, at 477 feet, the homer tied for the third-longest at Coors Field this season.
The two-run blast off Rockies reliever Yency Almonte gave the Braves a 6-5 lead, which held up as the final score in the opener of a four-game series against the Colorado Rockies, thanks to six scoreless innings by five Atlanta relievers.
The homer was Duvall’s 30th of the season, tied with the Dodgers’ Max Muncy for second-most in the National League, trailing only San Diego’s Fernando Tatis (36). And the two RBIs gave Duvall 90 for the season, second-most in the NL, behind only Miami’s Jesus Aguilar (93).
“He’s putting together a really nice season,” Braves manager Brian Snitker said of Duvall. “He’s got a really good chance to hit that 30 (homers) and 100 (RBIs), which are two unbelievable milestones.”
Duvall had 22 homers and 68 RBIs in 91 games with the Marlins before the Braves wisely reacquired him at the July 30 trade deadline. Since then, he has hit eight homers and driven in 22 runs in 30 games with the Braves.
“One of my strengths is hitting for power and driving in runs, so that’s something that I need to continue to do if I’m going to be the best player that I consider myself to be,” Duvall said. “That’s definitely one of the things that I try to hone in on and focus on and work on.”
Asked if he’s going to be able to catch former teammate Aguilar in the RBI race, Duvall said: “I hope so. I hope I catch everybody.”
Duvall also contributed considerably to Thursday’s win with his glove. Playing only his 11th big-league game in center field, he chased down a long drive by the Rockies’ Connor Joe and made a leaping catch against the wall to end the seventh inning. That play drew applause on the mound from Braves reliever Richard Rodriguez.
“I felt like I got a good jump on it,” Duvall said. “I knew it was hit well, so I put my head down and ran to the wall and turned around. When I actually went up to catch it, I didn’t think I was going to hit the wall. I could hear our bullpen telling me, as I got closer to the wall, some insight on that. … I ended up closer than I thought I was.”
It was an impressive night for Duvall – on both sides of the wall.
