Credit: YES Network
By Matt Clapp on

The Los Angeles Angels took down the New York Yankees 11-4 on Thursday at Yankee Stadium. While the four-game series resulted in a split, Mike Trout absolutely dominated the Yankees’ pitching staff.

And Trout’s fifth home run of the series featured hilarious timing on commentary from Yankees color commentator Paul O’Neill on the YES Network broadcast.

While the Angels led the Yankees 6-4 with two outs in the top of the seventh inning, O’Neill noted the velocities and pitch mix of the right-hander who was on the mound, 23-year-old Angel Chivilli.

“You’re looking on paper, Michael (Kay),” O’Neill said. “You’ve got 99 (mph) fastball, 94 (mph) slider, and [89-90 mph changeup]. I mean, it’s, on paper, you shouldn’t give up hits.”

Right as O’Neill finished his thought, Trout destroyed an offering from Chivilli for a 446-foot home run deep into the left-field seating.

“Except he just did,” Kay said,

“WHOA, did he crush that!” Kay exclaimed at the massive blast. “Deep into the bleachers! It’s his fifth home run of this series! He is putting on a show!”

“You saw that changeup like three or four times in the count,” O’Neill explained. “And sooner or later, to a great hitter, you’ve got to try something else. Just an absolute bomb.”

And there’s a reason O’Neill said “on paper” multiple times with his commentary about Chivilli’s profile ahead of the home run. It was Chivilli’s debut outing for the Yankees after having a rough 6.18 ERA over two major-league seasons with the Colorado Rockies (90 1/3 innings pitched out of the bullpen).

Superstar hitters like Trout will make pitchers pay for mistakes, poor tendencies, and command issues in the big leagues, no matter how good the raw stuff might be. And O’Neill knows that quite well, as a former five-time All-Star who was the AL batting champion in 1994.

About Matt Clapp

Matt is an editor/writer at The Comeback and Awful Announcing.

He can be reached by email at mclapp@thecomeback.com.

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