The 10 Best Home Run Celebrations in Baseball History

Home run celebrations have evolved greatly over the years.

There was a time when if you did anything but immediately put your head down and quickly make your way to first base you'd end up with a baseball in your ear during your next at bat.

However, as society, and in turn baseball players, has become less conservative and more flashy, so have the reactions to one of sports most exciting moments.

Some of the 10 best home run celebrations in baseball history are the work of some of the sport's flashier talents, while some left their mark for their creativity, and some are simply the product of some of the most important moments in baseball history.

10. Jose Canseco and Mark McGwire

It was simple.  It was subtle.  It was classic.
 
The Bash Brothers forearm bash became a phenomenon in the late 1980s when Jose Canseco and Mark McGwire formed the most dynamic one-two power-punch in the league.
 
If you look closely, you can see needles sticking out of their forearms.

9. Joe Carter

Words can't really explain the celebration that followed Carter's 1993 World Series-ending home run. It is without a doubt one of the most electric moments in modern baseball history.

The moment when Carter realizes that....forget it, just watch!

8. Jeffrey Leonard

Jeffrey Leonard enjoyed 14 seasons in the big leagues, and is remembered fondly by this Giants fan as one of my favorite players in my younger years of Little League.

Leonard was a two-time All-Star, but is best remembered for his traditional home run celebration, 'one flap down.”

As Leonard circled the bases, he would pump one arm, while the second dangled down by his side. Check it out.

7. Kirk Gibson

Gibson’s 1988 World Series Game One-winning home run ranks as one of the greatest moments in baseball history.

Gibson’s hobble around the bases, repeated fist pumps, and uncontainable joy as he makes his way around the bases ranks as one of the greatest home run responses of all-time.

Here is Gibson’s entire at bat against Oakland’s great closer Dennis Eckersley.

6. Jimmy Piersall

Jimmy Piersall was quite the character. He enjoyed a moderately successful career as an outfielder for a number of clubs in the 1950s and 60s, but was better known for his unusual behavior.

Piersall, who suffers from bipolar disorder, once spanked the four-year-old son of a teammate in the Red Sox clubhouse, and frequently talked to Babe Ruth’s bust in Monument Park at Yankee Stadium.

However, Piersall, whose life was the basis for the movie “Fear Strikes Out,” makes this list for his celebration following his 100th career home run…

He ran backwards around the bases.

5. Sammy Sosa

Sammy Sosa’s home run celebration is forever ingrained in the minds of baseball fans all over the country.
 
A quick look at his handiwork, a flip of the bat, and a hop or two as he start his trot towards first base. 
 
Slammin’ Sammy knew how to put on a show.

4. Prince Fielder

Prince Fielder made big news last regular season when he took home run celebrations to a new level.
 
Following his blast against the Giants, Fielder acted as a bowling ball after reaching home plate, knocking his Brewers’ teammates to the ground in one of baseball’s most elaborate home run celebrations of all time.
 
Not surprisingly, Fielder’s actions resulted in a negative response from the Giants, as well as players around the league, including well-respected veteran Torii Hunter.

He faced the Giants this Spring Training for the first time since the infamous celebration and was plunked on the back by Barry Zito with his first pitch.

3. Carlton Fisk

Unbridled joy.  That pretty much sums up the aftermath of Carlton Fisk’s home run to win Game Six of the 1975 World Series.
 
Fisk wills the ball to stay fair by frantically waving his arms as the ball clears the Green Monster, and erupts into full fledged celebration mode as he circles the bases.
 
MLB seems to be holding tight to their copyright on this glorious moment, but here is a video of the moment caught on the small screen.
 

2. Adam Rosales

14.47 seconds.

That is the how long it took Adam Rosales to round the bases following his first career home run, and it very likely is the fastest home run trot of all time.

Rosales has made a habit of breaking into a full-fledged sprint following each of his home runs, making for one of the simplest, but best home run celebrations ever.

Perhaps Rosales could offer some advice to Usain Bolt!

1. Babe Ruth

Ruth's home run trot has never been recreated.

He walked out of the box as he watched the ball fly out of the stadium, then stood upright while his arms pumped at almost exactly a 90-degree angle as he made his way around the bases.

He ran at a pace that fell somewhere between that of a tortoise and a sloth. It looked like he was always running in quicksand.

Ruth's home run routine was classic, and that's why he secured the top spot on this list.

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