Kendrys Morales's First Home Run with the Yankees

May 21, 2019

Kendrys Morales has gone down in history as the sixth Caribbean player to hit a home run wearing the uniform of the New York Yankees.

The feat took place last Friday, May 17, in a game against the Tampa Bay Rays, the second for the Cuban after being traded by the Oakland Athletics.

The ball traveled more than 400 feet, a hit that sent it to the second deck of the stands. "It came with a count of 2 balls and no strikes in the bottom of the second inning and in his first at-bat of the night," reports the SwingCompleto portal.

In the past, only five Cubans had achieved this type of feat. Kendrys is the second switch-hitter to accomplish it, since in 1953 Willy Miranda became the pioneer.

The rest were Bobby Ramos (1982), José Canseco (2000), Juan Miguel Miranda, the first National Series player to achieve it, (2009 and 2010), and Adeiny Hechavarría (2018).

Before the trade, Kendrys was averaging .204/.310/.259, with one home run in 34 games with the Oakland Athletics.