ANAHEIM, CALIFORNIA – APRIL 02: Yermin Mercedes #73 of the Chicago White Sox reacts after his RBI double against the Los Angeles Angels during the ninth inning at Angel Stadium of Anaheim on April 02, 2021 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by Katelyn Mulcahy/Getty Images)
Chicago White Sox rookie Yermin Mercedes showed on Thursday that he loves swinging on 3-0 pitches.
Chicago White Sox rookie Yermin Mercedes was in the news recently for hitting a home run on a 3-0 count during a blowout against the Minnesota Twins. That caught the ire of his own manager Tony La Russa, who gave his best Abraham Simpson “old man yells at cloud” impression following the game, citing that he told him not to swing at the pitch when the team had an 11-run lead. Nearly two weeks since this occurrence, Mercedes swung at another 3-0 pitch.
During the bottom of the second inning of Thursday’s game against the Baltimore Orioles, Mercedes took a 3-0 pitch from pitcher Bruce Zimmerman and crushed it towards the left field stands to give the White Sox an early 1-0 lead.
White Sox: Yermin Mercedes crushed another home run on a 3-0 count
Do you think La Russa signaled towards Mercedes to take the 3-0 pitch from the dugout?
When we say that Mercedes demolished that baseball, it is not hyperbole. According to Sarah Langs of MLB.com, the home run had an exit velocity of 116.8-mph, which was the hardest hit by a White Sox player this season.
With this, Mercedes now has seven home runs to his record for the 2020 season. Ironically, this was Mercedes’ first home run since…the 3-0 home run against the Twins. You can not make this up.