Royals Minor-Leaguer One-Ups Mike Trout With 501-Foot Home Run

Eat your heart out, Mr. Three-Time MVP

Apr 10, 2024; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Kansas City Royals batting helmets in the dugout after the game against the Houston Astros at Kauffman Stadium. Mandatory Credit: William Purnell-Imagn Images | William Purnell-Imagn Images

Hitting a baseball 450 feet is a gift possessed only by a select few players. When you get to 500 feet, you're approaching rare air.

The Kansas City Royals have one player at the major league level who can probably do it under the right conditions - rookie right fielder Jac Caglianone. But they also have a farmhand who proved he can do it on Tuesday.

Gavin Cross, an outfielder who was the Royals' 2022 first-round pick (ninth overall), hit a home run against the Corpus Christi Hooks in Double-A that traveled an estimated 501 feet. His Northwest Arkansas Naturals took home a 6-4 victory.

The longest home run in Major League Baseball this season was 484 feet, set by Los Angeles Angels superstar and three-time Most Valuable Player Mike Trout. Boston Red Sox rookie Roman Anthony hit a ball 497 feet for the Worcester Red Sox in Triple-A.

Cross is currently ranked 11th among Royals prospects by MLB Pipeline. He's only put up a .616 OPS in his age-24 season, so despite the prolific power display, he's got a tough road ahead if he wants to climb the last two levels to Major League Baseball.

MLB Pipeline's experts estimated that Cross would earn a promotion to Triple-A before the season began, so doing so would be an important marker of progress on his road to the majors. The odds might not be in his favor at the moment, but he's still got another few weeks to launch more home runs.

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