Exit velocity isn’t the be-all, end-all in baseball: to be a successful hitter, it’s just one of the requirements because the player also needs to make consistent contact and have excellent plate discipline.
However, hitting the ball hard really does help.
New York Yankees slugger Aaron Judge hit his 61st home run of the season on Wednesday night, which tied the franchise record for most homers in a single season.
Most of those dingers were blasted.
“Average exit velocity of Aaron Judge’s 61 homers? 𝟭𝟬𝟵.𝟭 𝗠𝗣𝗛 Perspective: Mookie Betts (who has hit 35 HRs this year) hasn’t hit a single ball with an exit velo that high all season long!,” Codify Baseball tweeted.
Average exit velocity of Aaron Judge's 61 homers?
𝟭𝟬𝟵.𝟭 𝗠𝗣𝗛 😮Perspective: Mookie Betts (who has hit 35 HRs this year) hasn't hit a single ball with an exit velo that high all season long!pic.twitter.com/z9na8wd6vj
— Codify (@CodifyBaseball) September 29, 2022
As we stated, exit velocity is not the most important thing: Betts is universally considered a top-ten MLB player and top-15 hitter, and he has 35 homers this year without cracking the 110 mph max exit velocity barrier.
Judge’s Power Ceiling Is Unmatched
To have Judge’s power ceiling, however, you need to hit the ball very, very hard and to it consistently.
Last night’s home run left the yard in a hurry, and it came off Judge’s bat at an incredible 117 mph.
For reference, the hardest ball ever hit in the Statcast era, achieved this year by Pittsburgh Pirates’ Oneil Cruz, left the bat at a little over 122 mph.
Judge, together with teammate Giancarlo Stanton, have been the undisputed kings of the exit velocity categories for years.
Now that Cruz is in the picture, they have competition.
Cruz, however, would probably love to hit even half of Judge’s home run tally this year.
The Yankees star not only hits the ball hard, but he also does it consistently.
That’s the key to success.
NEXT: An Aaron Judge Home Run Usually Means 1 Thing