Watching this and you think “wow what a power hitter Piazza was” and he sure was but maybe more impressive than that was his lifetime .308 average. Lifetime! A catcher who was a .300+ hitter year after year. The guy was just born to hit. And I never saw anyone go opposite field w/ such power before or since.
Mike Piazza's swing was so unique. I've never seen anything like it before or since. The 9/11 home run may be the best home run in the history of baseball, in my opinion.
ReklawLah I tend to agree. My eyes got a little misty when he hit that. Other than when they won it in '86 that's the most emotional I've ever gotten in a baseball game.
ReklawLah I'm a Dodgers fan through and through, but when Mike joined the Mets I followed his career there as well and rooted for the Mets every single time, except when they played the Dodgers, in those games I just wanted him to have a good game LOL. He's truly my favorite athlete of all time, grew up watching that man play ball.
ReklawLah Yes! Very light on his legs. Allowed his cross extension. Just the upper body power. Sweet with the swing. Never aggressive, complete follow through. Just amazing eye contact with the ball.
Unbelievable power! I was visiting family in Southern California during the late 90's. My cousin took me to a Dodger game. I'm from NJ, and a long time Met fan. So we go to the game, and have awesome seats behind the dugout down the third baseline. Mike comes up to bat and fouls a few balls away just before he cracks one into the crowd coming right for us! It goes right over my cousins head and hits an older gentleman in the right arm. I think it was broken because I heard a loud crack. He was in a lot of pain, and security came down to check him. I was on the end seat in the row and when he got hit, the ball rolled right to me. He had some family with him, so before they took him away, I handed the ball to one of his kids. I thought, man...this batter has tons of power. Little did I know he'd be playing for the Mets the next year. I was thrilled ! FANTASTIC VIDEO !!
He helped New York (and perhaps the nation) heal after 9/11. His modesty doesn't allow him to acknowledge it. But he will always be loved for that home run against Atlanta. Bless you, Mike Piazza.
HIs first year of eligibility was a hold-out year, where nobody was voted in. The next year was when Maddox and Glavine were first-balloters, and they're legit first balloters. Mike climbed the ladder every year, and eventually got his due.
@@johnniejay We were all rooting for him to get in, and we were all thrilled when it was announced. That summer, we took a trip to Cooperstown (not on Induction Day, but at the end of August), and I got myself a Piazza HoF jersey! The elegant pinstripes.
I was glad to watch him play live when he was with Dodgers and Mets. He is one of my favorite MLB players of all time. I'm glad that he's in the Hall of Fame.
Loved 1) The Grand Slam of Clemens and 2) The 3 run shot that completed the comeback against Atlanta after being down 8-1 in the 8th inning in 2000 against Atlanta that gave them an 11-8 lead. It wasn't until he started to break down as a player from being a catcher for too many games that he showed signs of slowing. His HRs and hitting were a sight. That 9/11 HR was great to see in person. Knew it was out from the moment he hit it.
I've never seen anyone hit the ball as hard as he did. Not just HR's, everything, singles, doubles. They talk about the ball Stanton hit at Coors. And it was a shot, halfway up the seats in dead CF. At 2:20 Piazza hits a ball on the same line and it cleared all of those seats and landed towards the back of the concourse. They said it was 495 ft. But it's well over 500 ft. like 530 ft. He's the only guy that I would stop whatever I was doing and watch his at bat.
The home run versus Smoltz is so fucking crazy. I don't think a lot of people realize how hard it was to hit it to that party of the park as a righty off of THAT guy
Mike was my favorite Dodger and over all player period. He would always come through when he needed a big hit at a big moment. I remember both he and Ken Griffey Jr. Took a really cool pic together for Sports Illustrated. Back in 1994 they were both the best two players in baseball in there prime .
I remember I was at that diamond back game at the 2:42 mark back in August of 1998. I remember when he crushed that grand slam everyone in the stadium 👀 saw that ball rocket 🚀 up in the sky 😳 it was amazing 👏 I'll never forget that day. Piazza was such a dangerous and lethal threat at the plate man. You could never let up on him as a pitcher because before you know it you're looking at that ball sail out of the park.
I was fortunate enough to play against Mike in the minors when he was with Bakersfield in 1991 . The ball jumped off his bat like no other player at that level that I had ever seen .
I don’t think we’ll ever get to see someone with such natural strong swing as piazza. There was just something bout him when he stepped to the plate. You can feel the fear coming from the pitcher
In a world of greed, hatred & intolerance, tis lovely just to enjoy & appreciate The Boys of Summer, in all their Glory!! Thank you Mike Piazza xo the Monster Crusher!!
The one at Coors was farther it's at 2:00. It goes to dead CF, clears all the seats in that lower section, about 25 rows and lands way back on the concourse. You can see the kids running after it.
There was just something sooo...effective about his stance/swing; I only ever felt that strongly about Ken Griffey Jr's, but Piazza had that still, no-waggle stance and that laser-guided two-handed swing Been to a lot of Mets games and he had Shea jumping during his time. The crack of that ball leaving HIS bat was something else; always wished he could've been a career Met the way Jeter was a Yankee
Mike is definitely the best hitting catcher ever, no one close when you combine the average and power. As an Oriole fan I'm.hoping that Adley Rutschman will give him a run for his money, we'll just have to wait 15-20 years to find out.
The homerun at 5:43 was the 9/11 homerun. The ball was absoultely destroyed, but the mets announcers didn't want to scare listeners by saying target words like "bomb", so they said a 480 ft homerun had a chance
No. He, (Howie Rose, who grew up in Queens as a monster Mete fan) reacted to it the way a fan would - desperate for it to go, not sure - and it turned out to be a monster shot. I’ve been a Mets fan for 55 years and no home run comes even close to being as important - the ceremony, Piazza clearly crying on the field, the Mets trailing, the Braves starter a New Yorker, the reliever who gave up the home run a New Yorker, a pennant race against the hated Braves, bottom of the 8th, tons of firemen in the crowd, after Mike hit the HR, lots of the firefighters did the idiot Braves chop to mock them, hysteria, in the crowd, Mets dugout. I screamed like a madman, woke my baby daughter up, my wife came running in yelling at me and I shouted, “Get the F. out of here, you’re ruining the greatest moment ever as a fan!!” And it was. My wife worked at the WTC. A firehouse was two blocks from my Manhattan apt. We visited them, saw seven families crying, tough firemen crying. I visited Ground Zero the day before and it was a massive hole, like something out of Hiroshima. It stank of smoke and, you figured, bodies. I walked away steaming at Saudi Arabia. All of that came out with my scream. It was an American moment. Maybe for a New Yorker in particular, but no baseball moment compared to it.
I was a huge Piazza fan…after he left LA. I’m a Giants fan so F LA lol. I digress. His swing wasn’t “pretty” but holy smokes when he got his arms extended it was over. It was so strong. Such a brutish swing! Just power.
How you left off the 3 run homer to cap a 10 run 8th inning against the Braves on 6/30/00 is beyond me. He hit a laser over the 338 sign down the left field line. With the exception of the post 9/11 HR, it was his most electrifying homer as a Met.
Van Halen-Runnin With The Devil heard in the background. RIP Eddie Van Halen 1955-2020. Also Mike Piazza was the GOAT on the Dodgers and Mets. May this legend be remembered for life. Piazza was the Dodgers and Mets MVP during his MLB career. And Roger Clemens should be ashamed of himself for being such a terrible pitcher toward not just Mike Piazza but a number of other batters as well especially Manny Ramirez even though Manny brought it on himself when he started the fight back in 2003 when the ball was not even close to his head so that proves Manny Ramirez brought it on himself
Saw Mike hit a dead center homerun off John Smoltz in Atlanta on a Sunday afternoon back during the 1992 season, while enjoying [carry in] ribs...Should have stayed a LA Dodger....
people watching this who never experienced Pizza wont realize hes hit some of the farthest homeruns the MLB has ever seen. His homer into the concourse in Colorodo was easily 520+. this is why he's a hall of famer.
The Home Run Mike Hit at Shea after 9/11/2001 against the Braves will be embedded in every NY Mets fan forever. Aside from every homer off the biggest As...le ever: Roger Steroids Clemens.
Watching this and you think “wow what a power hitter Piazza was” and he sure was but maybe more impressive than that was his lifetime .308 average. Lifetime! A catcher who was a .300+ hitter year after year. The guy was just born to hit. And I never saw anyone go opposite field w/ such power before or since.
What a powerful swing. His home runs had a great sound to them. None cheated.
Agree the crack of that bat is amazing
Piazza was worth every dime the Mets ever paid him.
tru that want pizza on the needle when he went to the mets
I stopped following baseball after the Dodgers traded him. Glad he had the success with the mets. Very bitter sweet.
Calm down
Should of been at first, he would of lasted longer.
AS A MET FAN I SIT HERE IN TEARS THE 9/11 HOME RUN WAS WORTH EVERY DIME WE EVER PAID HIM
Mike Piazza's swing was so unique. I've never seen anything like it before or since. The 9/11 home run may be the best home run in the history of baseball, in my opinion.
ReklawLah I tend to agree. My eyes got a little misty when he hit that. Other than when they won it in '86 that's the most emotional I've ever gotten in a baseball game.
ReklawLah I'm a Dodgers fan through and through, but when Mike joined the Mets I followed his career there as well and rooted for the Mets every single time, except when they played the Dodgers, in those games I just wanted him to have a good game LOL. He's truly my favorite athlete of all time, grew up watching that man play ball.
ReklawLah Yes! Very light on his legs. Allowed his cross extension. Just the upper body power. Sweet with the swing. Never aggressive, complete follow through. Just amazing eye contact with the ball.
My two favorite swings of all time are his and Bonds' . Piazza's was just poetry.
When Joe Carter hit a 3 run home run in the bottom of the 9th inning to win the 1993 World Series for the Blue Jays that was the best home run ever
Unbelievable power!
I was visiting family in Southern California during the late 90's. My cousin took me to a Dodger game. I'm from NJ, and a long time Met fan.
So we go to the game, and have awesome seats behind the dugout down the third baseline. Mike comes up to bat and fouls a few balls away just before he cracks one into the crowd coming right for us! It goes right over my cousins head and hits an older gentleman in the right arm. I think it was broken because I heard a loud crack. He was in a lot of pain, and security came down to check him. I was on the end seat in the row and when he got hit, the ball rolled right to me. He had some family with him, so before they took him away, I handed the ball to one of his kids.
I thought, man...this batter has tons of power. Little did I know he'd be playing for the Mets the next year.
I was thrilled !
FANTASTIC VIDEO !!
To ALL fields. His opposite field shots are the best I’ve ever seen.
Love how Gary Cowen gave Piazza love even as a Padre with a Mets HR call.
Yup both homers that game haha I loved it too. I would have done the same !
He helped New York (and perhaps the nation) heal after 9/11. His modesty doesn't allow him to acknowledge it. But he will always be loved for that home run against Atlanta. Bless you, Mike Piazza.
The man was so dang strong... combined with crazy bat speed. Love his swing...he's still as can be, no wasted motion at all, and just uncoils.
you're spot on. no leg kick like most power hitters had like Bonds and Canseco. All upper strength.
Plus he used a big bat also, that helps with distance.
And the 'roids didn't hurt.
@@rmartin7558 He was noticeably thin as a rookie and was blasting homers. That swing was a thing of beauty.
8 minutes of Piazza home runs. AWESOME
Every Italian dude from the tri state loves Piazza....def one of my favorites.
It's a travesty that this guy didn't go into the HoF on the first ballot. Piazza was just incredible.
I agree but that wrong has been corrected he's in the HOF now.
Willie Mays wasn’t voted into the HoF 100 percent. Willie freaking Mays. Yeah the HoF voters can eat it.
HIs first year of eligibility was a hold-out year, where nobody was voted in. The next year was when Maddox and Glavine were first-balloters, and they're legit first balloters. Mike climbed the ladder every year, and eventually got his due.
@@davidwalter2002 That explains it then, thank you 👍
@@johnniejay We were all rooting for him to get in, and we were all thrilled when it was announced. That summer, we took a trip to Cooperstown (not on Induction Day, but at the end of August), and I got myself a Piazza HoF jersey! The elegant pinstripes.
Roger Clemens: "If you can't beat him, throw his broken bat at him."
They should have fought....would have been good. Both guys seem pretty damn tough.
Or head-bean him, like he did to Piazza.
Greatest offensive catcher that ever stepped to the plate. His career stats just in general are insane. Pure dominating player in his prime
"Goodbye! Absolutely crushed!"
Love that line.
I just finished up his book called "Longshot" Worth the read for a Piazza fan. This guy was absolutely lethal at the plate.
Just loved that swing wtf. Time went by to fast.
I LOVED hearing the legendary Bob Murphy call some of his homers. He was a true icon. Bob, Ralph and Lindsey. May they RIP.
Totally agree. I loved listening to Murph, Kiner, and Lindsay.
My Favorite Player As a kid and as a Dodger fan!
My Favorite Player As a kid and as a Mets fan!
I was glad to watch him play live when he was with Dodgers and Mets. He is one of my favorite MLB players of all time. I'm glad that he's in the Hall of Fame.
Loved 1) The Grand Slam of Clemens and 2) The 3 run shot that completed the comeback against Atlanta after being down 8-1 in the 8th inning in 2000 against Atlanta that gave them an 11-8 lead. It wasn't until he started to break down as a player from being a catcher for too many games that he showed signs of slowing. His HRs and hitting were a sight. That 9/11 HR was great to see in person. Knew it was out from the moment he hit it.
The electricity that was in Shea Stadium for big games was amazing. You can feel the energy in these clips from his Shea home runs.
I miss Shea and mike what an awesome combination
There's such a satisfying crack every time he hit a home run.
I've never seen anyone hit the ball as hard as he did. Not just HR's, everything, singles, doubles. They talk about the ball Stanton hit at Coors. And it was a shot, halfway up the seats in dead CF. At 2:20 Piazza hits a ball on the same line and it cleared all of those seats and landed towards the back of the concourse. They said it was 495 ft. But it's well over 500 ft. like 530 ft. He's the only guy that I would stop whatever I was doing and watch his at bat.
Thanks for this. This is like a sizzle reel. His swing, the sound off his bat - I need this on a regular basis. He hit the ball *so damn hard*.
I was at the game when the Mets came back to win at 4:14 (first row above the Waterhouse sign). Never heard Shea Stadium explode like that.
I still cannot believe the home run in Game 6 1999. Hitting it there - in that park - is nuts let alone off of John goddamn Smoltz.
The Smoltz and Wagner home runs were just nuts
The home run versus Smoltz is so fucking crazy. I don't think a lot of people realize how hard it was to hit it to that party of the park as a righty off of THAT guy
Mike was my favorite Dodger and over all player period. He would always come through when he needed a big hit at a big moment. I remember both he and Ken Griffey Jr. Took a really cool pic together for Sports Illustrated. Back in 1994 they were both the best two players in baseball in there prime .
10 dislikes? Bonds, Sosa, Maguire, Jeter, Garciaparra, Ramirez, Vizquel, Fryman, Williams, and the Knuckleballer Tim Wakefield.
I remember I was at that diamond back game at the 2:42 mark back in August of 1998. I remember when he crushed that grand slam everyone in the stadium 👀 saw that ball rocket 🚀 up in the sky 😳 it was amazing 👏 I'll never forget that day. Piazza was such a dangerous and lethal threat at the plate man. You could never let up on him as a pitcher because before you know it you're looking at that ball sail out of the park.
MP was definiely of the mindset "swing hard in case you hit it"! Dude never got cheated, a freaking murderous swing.
My favorite Mets player, when he was with the Dodgers I wasn't a baseball fan. My father was a big Mets fan. Rest In Peace Daddy.
I was fortunate enough to play against Mike in the minors when he was with Bakersfield in 1991 . The ball jumped off his bat like no other player at that level that I had ever seen .
@Piazza 427 at 6'-3" and 215 lbs he was . Being a big guy has no relation to bat speed , and that's what he had .
The most opposite field power there has ever been.
5:42 is all you need to see
'Lopez wants it away...'
What a career 👏 and I got to watch him
That hr + bat flip around :50 🔥 🔥
I don’t think we’ll ever get to see someone with such natural strong swing as piazza. There was just something bout him when he stepped to the plate. You can feel the fear coming from the pitcher
1:59 my personal favorite
Legend.
5:42.......that HR everyone remembers
Dude could crush it!! Legend Piazza, goodbye!!
In a world of greed, hatred & intolerance, tis lovely just to enjoy & appreciate The Boys of Summer, in all their Glory!! Thank you Mike Piazza xo the Monster Crusher!!
Mike Piazza was my hero when I was a kid
The crack of the bat when mike makes contact you know it’s gone
That bomb at Miami at approximately 0:50 is one of the longest I have seen. That went 500 feet.
Tommy Lasorda agrees
The one at Coors was farther it's at 2:00. It goes to dead CF, clears all the seats in that lower section, about 25 rows and lands way back on the concourse. You can see the kids running after it.
The bat flip after was incredible as well
Very satisfying 8 minutes
He was a great dodger but his home runs as a met for some reason just were something special
All those amazimg HR calls in the video all to end it with the boring call of Red Sox announcers lol
Cool vid! Keep up the good work! You just earned a new sub!
Thanks! Keep watching!
There was just something sooo...effective about his stance/swing; I only ever felt that strongly about Ken Griffey Jr's, but Piazza had that still, no-waggle stance and that laser-guided two-handed swing
Been to a lot of Mets games and he had Shea jumping during his time. The crack of that ball leaving HIS bat was something else; always wished he could've been a career Met the way Jeter was a Yankee
man i can watch mike piazza bat all day so easy on the eyes
All these years later and it still sickens me that the Dodgers traded him
I grew up loving Gary Carter as a Met. But M.P you are the best at that position and a true N.Y Met.
The perfect RUclips video doesn't exi... Oh
Too bad he couldn't throw people out. I loved him with the Mets. I loved that team.... Hell, I just love the Mets
Piazza should have changed is name to Steinbrenner cuz he OWNED the Yankees.
No cheap homers here, those were all bombs or liners. He was all hands too, not much of a stride if any. Tremendous power.
My favorite.
I never watched a guy more deadly as far as power to all fields.
Any HR against the yanks is fannnnnnnntastic.
Mike is definitely the best hitting catcher ever, no one close when you combine the average and power. As an Oriole fan I'm.hoping that Adley Rutschman will give him a run for his money, we'll just have to wait 15-20 years to find out.
Phenomenal player.
That sound off his bat. Watching him as a mets fan it seemed like he homered every at bat
I agree the crack of that bat love it
The post 9/11 homerun didnt just have a chance. That thing was gone off the bat.
The best hitting catcher ever
The homerun at 5:43 was the 9/11 homerun. The ball was absoultely destroyed, but the mets announcers didn't want to scare listeners by saying target words like "bomb", so they said a 480 ft homerun had a chance
No. He, (Howie Rose, who grew up in Queens as a monster Mete fan) reacted to it the way a fan would - desperate for it to go, not sure - and it turned out to be a monster shot. I’ve been a Mets fan for 55 years and no home run comes even close to being as important - the ceremony, Piazza clearly crying on the field, the Mets trailing, the Braves starter a New Yorker, the reliever who gave up the home run a New Yorker, a pennant race against the hated Braves, bottom of the 8th, tons of firemen in the crowd, after Mike hit the HR, lots of the firefighters did the idiot Braves chop to mock them, hysteria, in the crowd, Mets dugout. I screamed like a madman, woke my baby daughter up, my wife came running in yelling at me and I shouted, “Get the F. out of here, you’re ruining the greatest moment ever as a fan!!”
And it was. My wife worked at the WTC. A firehouse was two blocks from my Manhattan apt. We visited them, saw seven families crying, tough firemen crying. I visited Ground Zero the day before and it was a massive hole, like something out of Hiroshima. It stank of smoke and, you figured, bodies. I walked away steaming at Saudi Arabia.
All of that came out with my scream. It was an American moment. Maybe for a New Yorker in particular, but no baseball moment compared to it.
I was a huge Piazza fan…after he left LA. I’m a Giants fan so F LA lol. I digress.
His swing wasn’t “pretty” but holy smokes when he got his arms extended it was over. It was so strong. Such a brutish swing! Just power.
Piazza definitely should of been on an AL team, he'd of gotten way more at bats with a mix of DH and catching
Who agrees that he is a push hitter?
How you left off the 3 run homer to cap a 10 run 8th inning against the Braves on 6/30/00 is beyond me. He hit a laser over the 338 sign down the left field line. With the exception of the post 9/11 HR, it was his most electrifying homer as a Met.
It wasn't left off.
4:13, Gary Thorne's call.
2:08 completely out of Dodger Stadium - legend
Piazza would easily have over 500 HRs if he played any other position than catcher. He missed so many games due to injury/wear and tear and rest.
Mike Piazza has the most home runs against Pedro Martinez of any other player in MLB history
Ironically They Would Become Teammates In 2005 In Piazza's Final Year With The Mets
Seeing Piazza at bat as a pitcher must be like seeing Earnhardt in your rear view mirror
Great video. One that isn't here is against atlanta I believe at shea that went over the scoreboard.
msw600 how come there are no HIGHLIGHTS AS A MARLIN!!!!!
I wish Mike was still in his prime with Pete Alonso in the Mets lineup.
I always looked at Piazza's two handed follow through as a resemblance of Fred McGriff's one handed follow through
Van Halen-Runnin With The Devil heard in the background. RIP Eddie Van Halen 1955-2020. Also Mike Piazza was the GOAT on the Dodgers and Mets. May this legend be remembered for life. Piazza was the Dodgers and Mets MVP during his MLB career. And Roger Clemens should be ashamed of himself for being such a terrible pitcher toward not just Mike Piazza but a number of other batters as well especially Manny Ramirez even though Manny brought it on himself when he started the fight back in 2003 when the ball was not even close to his head so that proves Manny Ramirez brought it on himself
Piazza had some much power going opposite field.
Saw Mike hit a dead center homerun off John Smoltz in Atlanta on a Sunday afternoon back during the 1992 season, while enjoying [carry in] ribs...Should have stayed a LA Dodger....
Piazza had opposite field power that could rival a left-handed pull slugger!
I don't know why the home run he hit off Randy Johnson is not on here. He knocked it completely out of Diamond Bach stadium.
nice vid
Not bad for someone who was drafted as a favor
I like the bruceeeeee to start the video
My favorite Dodger of all time
They missed his homer at Petco Park
where drive one on the roof of the
Western Metals building.
Back when the ball was not simply flying out the park..other than Bonds, Sossa and McGurie.
If Piazza hit against Clemons every game, he would have hit 800. Go Mets
people watching this who never experienced Pizza wont realize hes hit some of the farthest homeruns the MLB has ever seen. His homer into the concourse in Colorodo was easily 520+. this is why he's a hall of famer.
Imagine how many more saves Hoffmann could've had. Had he not faced mike
He hits the one at 2:10 OUT of Dodger Stadium.
you don't show the apple in any of them?
The Home Run Mike Hit at Shea after 9/11/2001 against the Braves will be embedded in every NY Mets fan forever. Aside from every homer off the biggest As...le ever: Roger Steroids Clemens.
5:11 what’s the name of this commentator? That guy is amazing
Joe Morelli His name is Jon Miller
Piazza was great as a dodger...but damn was he clutch as a Met
Mike Piazza 🍕 was the best🔥
The only other player I have seen to have opposite field power like Piazza is another Met...Pete “Polar Bear” Alonso. LFGM!