Mickey Mantle was a switch hitter. He batted righty against lefty pitchers and he batted lefty against righty pitchers. Most home runs are pulled. For Mantle batting righty that would mean his pull fields were left and left center.
Mickey Mantle hit 18% of his home runs to the opposite field. 33% in World Series. Sunday, March 6, 2022
Mickey Mantle 1966: lightning back in his bat ... for 11 days. Thursday, July 7, 2011
I stumbled onto something that I long recalled: the Mick getting his old power back after he had declined.
In 1966 from June 28 through July 8, the Mick hit 11 home runs in 11 days, 14 games, raising his total to 18...
Direction is known for 514 of Mantle's 536 home runs: 95.9%.
Mantle went opposite field in 92 of the 514 home runs for which direction is known: 17.87%. He hit those 92 home runs against 73 pitchers...
In three seasons Mantle reached double figures in opposite field home runs: 1958, 1960, 1966.
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Saturday, July 23, 1966
Start Time: 3:09 p.m. Local
Attendance: 34,042
Venue: Yankee Stadium I
Game Duration: 3:01
Day Game, on grass
Angels 7, Yankees 6
HR: Mickey Mantle (19, off Marcelino Lopez, 3rd inn, 3 on, 1 out to RF)
The Yankees scored all six of their runs in the third inning but lost 7-6.
Marcelino López
Position: Pitcher
Bats: Right • Throws: Left
6-3, 195lb (190cm, 88kg)
Born: September 23, 1943 in La Habana, Cuba cu
Marcelino Lopez threw left handed, so Mantle batted right handed when he hit that bases loaded (grand slam) home run to right field, the opposite field. But here's the thing. Mantle hit it into the upper deck, something he had done batting lefty, but never righty. As far as I know, the only other righty batter to homer into the right field upper deck in the old Yankee Stadium was ... surprise: Derek Jeter, who was not a home run hitter.
My friend Paul Plaine got me the documentation for my recollection:
New York Times, July 24, 1966:
Angels Win on Error, 7-6, After Old Yanks Revive '41
Grand Slam for Mantle
by GORDON S WHITE JR.
... DiMaggio's reception was a whisper by comparison to the tremendous roar that accompanied Mickey Mantle after his trot around the bases after a grand slam ... It was hard to believe the crowd could make such noise...
... hitting a 3-and-1 pitch high into the third deck in right field - the opposite field since he was batting right-handed.
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The next day Mantle hit another homer to right against another Angel lefty: George Brunet:
HR: Mickey Mantle (20, off George Brunet, 1st inn, 0 on, 2 outs to RF)
That was career home run 493, which tied Lou Gehrig.
Note: The Times article for the doubleheader Sunday July 24, 1966 had this:
Mantle has hit 149 home runs batting right-handed, 344 left-handed, 244 at Yankee Stadium and 249 on the road.
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How did GORDON S WHITE JR. know that?
Mantle had 20 home runs but finished with only 23: first half 18, second half 5. No homers in September in 8 at bats.
Home Run location for the 30 players with at least 493 homers. Monday, March 7, 2022
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