Then, with one out and a man on first in the second, he made an equally jaw-dropping defensive gem, racing to the center-field wall and robbing J.J. Hardy of a two-run homer, before firing to first base to complete a double play.
Upton Jr.'s leadoff home run
BAL@SD: Upton Jr. crushes a leadoff homer to center
Melvin Upton Jr. belts a long solo jack to center field to lead off the bottom of the 1st inning and tie the game at 1
Upton -- who only started in center field because Jon Jay was placed on the disabled list earlier in the day -- tracked the ball beautifully, and timed his jump perfectly. He needed a full extension of his left arm to make the play. According to Statcast™, Upton covered 98 feet to reach the wall, and his throw to first base was clocked at 91.9 mph.
It marked only the third time in the past two seasons that an outfielder has covered 90 feet or more to make a catch before recording a throw of 90 mph or more on the same play. The Twins' Danny Santana and the Cubs' Albert Almora also did so.
Hardy drove the pitch, a 3-2 fastball from Padres starter Erik Johnson, to the deepest part of the park -- and probably about two or three feet over the center-field wall. In that regard, it could very well have been one of the longest outs in Petco Park's history. Statcast™ projected the ball's distance at 403 feet.
Upton's catch marked the third time this season he's robbed an opponent of a dinger. As a left fielder, he also stole one from the Pirates' Matt Joyce and the Braves' Freddie Freeman.
His home-run robbery Tuesday night came on the heels of the mammoth blast -- which ricocheted off the center-field batters' eye on the fly. At Petco Park, that's a spot reserved for the game's best power hitters.
With the 465-foot dinger, Upton passed his brother Justin Upton for the longest homer by a Padres hitter in the Statcast™ era -- and he cleared that mark by 10 feet.
An inning later, Upton made sure Hardy wouldn't get in on the fun.
AJ Cassavell covers the Padres for MLB.com. Follow him on Twitter @ajcassavell. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
Upton Jr. robs homer, turns DP with unreal play
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