Mike Napoli’s monster home run starts early rally for Red Sox

(USA Today) Mike Napoli hit three of the top 30 longest home runs in MLB this season. Well, four now.

Napoli hit a monster home run in the second inning for the Boston Red Sox that opened a three-run second inning in Thursday's Game 5 of the ALCS. Three runs by the second inning? That's a lot for the Red Sox in this series. Who says home runs kill rallies?

The tape-measure holders decided that Napoli's homer traveled 460 feet. He hit one that same distance on April 7. He had two that were longer, 467 and 472, both of which he hit May 1. The people who most often watch balls fly out of Detroit's Comerica Park will tell you that Napoli's was something they don't see too often.

After Napoli's homer, the Red Sox added two more runs after an error, doubles by Xander Bogaerts and David Ross, then a single by Jacoby Ellsbury. By the end of the second inning the Red Sox had five hits off Tigers starter Anibal Sanchez, who held them hitless through six innings in Game 1. The Red Sox added another run in the third inning and, as of this posting, lead the Tigers 4-0 in the fourth inning. The series is tied 2-2.

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Mike Oz is an editor for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at mikeozstew@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!

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