Two posts below are combined to highlight that 3 of the 42 Home Runs hit in 1958 by Mickey Mantle to lead the American League (AL) were Inside Park Home Runs (IPHR), and that he hit them in 27 days. Six of Mantle's 536 career Home Runs were IPHR.
For some additional perspective, here are the IPHR totals for two fast powerful contemporaries:
Willie Mays: 6 of 660 career Home Runs were IPHR:
1954-06-25 NYG CHC Bob Rush
1955-05-29 NYG BRO Johnny Podres
1957-05-30 (2) NYG PHI Don Cardwell
1960-08-25 SFG CIN Claude Osteen
1960-10-02 SFG STL Mel Nelson
1963-07-16 (1) SFG @ PIT Don Cardwell
Hank Aaron: only one of 755 career Home Runs was IPHR:
1967-05-10 (1) ATL @ PHI Jim Bunning
This link is the one mentioned in the post below. I encourage you to look at the entire list. It contains the season leaders in Home Runs for the American League and National League 1903-2024. It shows the number of Home Runs hit over the fence by the leader and the most hit over the fence if a non leader. The most recent leaders with IPHR:
Most recent leader with more than one IPHR:
Going back in time with at least 3 IPHR is Mantle:
Obviously, Colavito hit the most Home Runs over the fence in 1958 in the AL.
Most recent four IPHR for a Home Run leader:
In seasons 2015-2014 there have been 114 IPHR. 2024 Home Run leaders Aaron Judge (58) and Shohei Ohtani (54) have never hit IPHR in the MLB careers.
Most Home Runs per season over fences. Friday, June 24, 2011
See the data. (updated through 2024)
Until 1931 a ball that bounced over a fence was a home run. I looked for both Bounced HR and IPHR (inside the park home runs). Some quick comments:
In 1909 Ty Cobb won the triple crown, leading AL in BA, RBI, HR. All 9 of Cobb's HR were IPHR...
The only one (for a player leading in HR) between 1980 and 1952: Mickey Mantle 1958 AL. Some digression for the Mick.
In his career Mickey Mantle hit 6 IPHR:
1958-05-09 NYY WSH Pedro Ramos Yankees 9, Senators 5
1958-05-20 NYY @ CHW Dick Donovan Yankees 5, White Sox 1
1958-06-05 (1) NYY CHW Early Wynn Yankees 12, White Sox 5
1959-05-12 NYY CLE Cal McLish Indians 7, Yankees 6
1961-06-30 NYY WSA Dick Donovan Yankees 5, (new) Senators 1
...
The three in 1958 provided Mick with his margin of victory over Cleveland slugger Rocky Colavito: 42-41 in that season's HR race, a prelude to Mantle's HR battles against new Yankee teammate Roger Maris in 1960 and 1961.
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1958 AL Home Run race. Who "led the league in hitting" ... home runs? Thursday, March 31, 2016
Rocky Colavito (Cleveland Indians) was second with 41.
In their careers Colavito and Cerv never hit an inside the park HR (IPHR). Sievers hit one: June 28, 1955 in Washington. Mantle hit six, three in 1958 in 27 days batting lefty:
- Senators: May 9 off Pedro Ramos in Yankee Stadium
- White Sox: May 20 off Dick Donovan and June 5 off Early Wynn, first in Chicago then in Yankee Stadium...
... then why wasn't Rocky Colavito the Home Run King in 1958, instead of Mickey Mantle. The old phrase "led the league in hitting" has faded but not completely. But looking at HR rate has never taken hold. We still deal with HR as totals.
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Stop staring at Batting Average and Home Runs. Look at their percentage above the league. Sunday, January 30, 2022
We baseball fans are simple. That's a euphemism for stupid. We stare at numbers and marvel at them even when they are completely lacking context. The two traditional stats stared at the most are:
Batting Average: Hits divided by At Bats (AB).
Home Runs: uh, that's it. Just a total. Not even a simple average or rate like AB divided by HR to get the common sense stat of the average number of AB to hit a homer.
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