When hitters dig into the batter’s box at Great American Ball Park, you can’t help but wonder if they might be trying to stifle a smile. That’s because the Cincinnati ballpark is one of the most hitter-friendly parks in the big leagues. From the time it opened in 2003 through the 2020 season, there were more home runs hit at GABP than anywhere else in baseball — including at Coors Field.
In this list, we’re counting down the 10 longest home runs at Great American Ball Park as of June 17, 2023. It’s important to note that these home runs are only from 2015 onward, when MLB’s Statcast began to officially track the distance of each MLB home run. This list includes an entry from a lifelong Red, a big home run from a Cincinnati rookie and a couple of visits to the river boat feature in deep center field. (All videos appear courtesy of MLB.)
Here’s a look at the 10 longest home runs at Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati.
9 (t). Adam Duvall — 457 feet
Adam Duvall hit one of the longest home runs in Citizens Bank Park history in 2021, but he’s also had success with the long ball in Cincinnati. On May 22, 2016, as a member of the Reds, Duvall smacked a fastball from Wade Miley 457 feet to the top row of the field-level seats in left-center field. The home run had an exit velocity of 110.3 mph and was Duvall’s longest home run of a season in which he hit 33.
9 (t). Eugenio Suárez — 457 feet
The longest home run of Eugenio Suárez’s 2019 season came at GABP on June 30. Facing a full count in a first inning at-bat against Chicago’s Jon Lester, Suárez connected with a fastball and drove the pitch 457 feet with an exit velocity of 112.2 mph. The home run to straightaway center field landed on the river boat above the batter’s eye — a place that baseballs seldom reach, even during batting practice.
8. Elly De La Cruz — 458 feet
One of the most celebrated home runs of 2023 came off the bat of Reds rookie Elly De La Cruz, who hit his first career long ball in front of the GABP faithful in fine form. De La Cruz connected with a fastball from Noah Syndergaard, pounding the baseball 458 feet to the top row of seats in right-center field. With an exit velocity of 114.8 mph, the June 7 home run is the hardest-hit ball on this list. It came in just De Le Cruz’s second career big league game.
7. Tyler Naquin — 459 feet
Tyler Naquin got the scoring started for the Reds in fine fashion during a game on May 21, 2021, against Milwaukee. With two runners on base, Naquin got a slider from Adrian Houser and drove it deep into the seats in right-center field. The home run measured 459 feet — the longest of the season for Naquin — and had an exit velocity of 112.6 mph.
6. Matt Adams — 460 feet
First baseman Matt Adams hit a career-high 21 home runs in 2018, and the one that traveled the farthest was his first of the season — hit on March 31. That 460-foot shot came at GABP against Luis Castillo. The baseball left Adams’s bat at 109.3 mph and landed three-fourths of the way up the seats in right-center field.
5. Joey Votto — 466 feet
First baseman Joey Votto has hit more than 300 home runs for the Reds, including a memorable long ball at home on September 27, 2021. Votto blasted a cutter from Cody Ponce 466 feet to the top of the seats in right-center field, 466 feet from home plate. The home run, which had an exit velocity of 110.9 mph, was Votto’s 35th of the season.
4. Aristides Aquino — 469 feet
During his 2019 rookie season with the Reds, Aristides Aquino smacked 19 home runs. The longest of those came at home against Chicago on August 10. Aquino drilled a fastball from Dillon Maples into the second deck in left-center field, 469 feet from home plate. The home run had an exit velocity of 107.4 mph and was Aquino’s seventh of the season.
3. Jung Ho Kang — 472 feet
Jung Ho Kang hit 46 home runs during his four-season MLB career, and the longest of these was one that he hit in Cincinnati on September 8, 2015. Kang drilled a hanging curveball from Collin Balester 472 feet into the upper deck in left-center field. The home run was Kang’s 14th of the season and had an exit velocity of 110.1 mph.
2. Carlos González — 473 feet
With a full count and two runners on during his seventh-inning at-bat on June 5, 2018, against Wandy Peralta, Carlos González got a high fastball and made no mistake. The Rockies slugger blasted a home run off the facing below the river boat in right-center field. The home run left González’s bat at 109.8 mph and traveled 473 feet for his sixth long ball of the season.
1. Paul DeJong — 486 feet
Cincinnati pitcher Austin Brice could do little more than hang his head after Cardinals slugger Paul DeJong connected with a high slider during an at-bat on April 12, 2018. The no-doubt home run, DeJong’s fourth of a 19-home run season, sailed 486 feet into the upper deck, becoming the longest home run at Great American Ball Park in the Statcast era. DeJong’s blast, which had an exit velocity of 110 mph, was third-longest home run in the big leagues in 2018.
The 10 Longest Home Runs at Great American Ball Park are:
1. Paul DeJong — 486 feet
2. Carlos González — 473 feet
3. Jung Ho Kang — 472 feet
4. Aristides Aquino — 469 feet
5. Joey Votto — 466 feet
6. Matt Adams — 460 feet
7. Tyler Naquin — 459 feet
8. Elly De La Cruz — 458 feet
9 (t). Eugenio Suárez — 457 feet
9 (t). Adam Duvall — 457 feet