Giancarlo Stanton and MLB's Top 10 Tape-Measure Home Run Artists

There's nothing like a no-doubter. You see the ball hit the bat, and you know it isn't coming back as soon as it jumps off it. And just when you think it's going to stop and come back down to earth, it just keeps going.

Relatively few home runs are like this. Most home runs are fly balls that just barely have the distance, and quite a few others are line drives that squeak over the fence by just a couple feet.

Thankfully, there are a few players in the majors who specialize in hitting moonshots. Miami Marlins outfielder Giancarlo Stanton, who is roughly the size of an M1 Abrams tank, is one of them. Many of Josh Hamilton's home runs take a while to come down, too, and Adam Dunn very rarely hits a cheapie.

Let's pay homage to baseball's best tape-measure home run artists, shall we? Here are the top 10 light-tower power hitters in MLB today.

Note: All video links take you directly to MLB.com.

10. Yoenis Cespedes, Oakland Athletics

Eye-Popping Video: Watch Cespedes hit one up near Mt. Davis in April.

Yoenis Cespedes has hit five home runs this season, and those five home runs represent the only homers of his major league career.

Cespedes made the cut for this list anyway because of how obvious it is that he's going to hit a ton of moonshots throughout his major league career. He's got insane power.

Take that home run I linked to as an example. Per HitTrackerOnline.com, that ball traveled just more than 460 feet, which seems (to me) to be a rather conservative estimate. That thing still had plenty of juice when it clanked off the wall.

I've been going to A's games for many years, and I've only ever seen one guy hit a home run that far (I believe it was Adam Piatt). Nobody hits 'em that far in Oakland, a notorious pitchers' park.

Cespedes will. During his tenure in Oakland, he's going to make a habit of giving baseballs the grand tour of O.co Coliseum (or whatever the heck they're calling it a couple years from now).

9. Mark Trumbo, Los Angeles Angels

Eye-Popping Video: Watch Trumbo test the limits of Kaufman Stadium.

Mark Trumbo has limited experience launching moonshots. He only has 35 career home runs, and all of those have come since the start of the 2011 season.

But don't you worry—Trumbo is going to hit plenty of moonshots during his career.

After all, his career is just now getting off the ground, and he's already hit quite a few no-doubters.

Per HitTrackerOnline.com, Trumbo hit eight no-doubters last year. This year, he already has four, which places him among the leaders in the American League. He only has six homers so far this season, meaning two-thirds of those were gone as soon as they left the bat.

It's no secret how Trumbo generates so much power. He's 6'4" and about 220 pounds, and he's got a ton of upper-body strength. He looks like he doesn't even swing that hard, but all he has to do is extend his arms, and the ball will go far.

The scary part is that Trumbo is hitting .321 this year. He does a nice Albert Pujols impression, which will have to do for the Angels until the real Pujols shows up.

8. Mark Reynolds, Baltimore Orioles

Eye-Popping Video: Watch Reynolds hit one 480 feet in 2010.

When Mark Reynolds hits the ball, it goes far. His problem is hitting the ball consistently, as we're talking about a guy who routinely ranks among the league leaders in strikeouts.

When Reynolds hit 44 home runs back in 2009, he was among the National League leaders in no-doubters with 14, according to HitTrackerOnline.com. In 2011, his first year with the Orioles, Reynolds hit nine no-doubters.

Reynolds is slightly shorter than Mark Trumbo, but he's just as heavy. That allows him to pack a ton of power into his swing, which has produced quite a few 450-foot home runs during his relatively brief career.

The rest of baseball had better hope that Reynolds doesn't turn into a more complete hitter. If he does, he's going to make a lot of pitchers ponder retirement on the spot due to embarrassment.

7. Jose Bautista, Toronto Blue Jays

Eye-Popping Video: Watch Bautista launch a 450-foot home run in 2010.

Since the start of the 2010 season, Jose Bautista has hit more home runs than anybody in baseball, and it's not even close. He's hit 105 since Opening Day of the 2010 season; the next closest guy (Albert Pujols) has hit 80.

Bautista has power, but he's not the kind of guy who is going to hit any home runs more than  450 feet. That's about his maximum.

What's amazing about Bautista is how many of his home runs fall somewhere between 420 and 450 feet. He squares a lot of his home runs up, and he launches a lot of balls to left field like little white cruise missiles.

Per HitTrackerOnline.com, Bautista hit 20 no-doubters in 2010 and 18 more in 2011. He led all of baseball in no-doubters both seasons.

Bautista is just now starting to heat up this season, so it won't be long before he's among the league leaders in no-doubters once again.

6. Justin Upton, Arizona Diamondbacks

Eye-Popping Video: Watch Upton smash one more than 470 feet in 2011.

Justin Upton made a serious bid for the National League MVP last season, but he's struggled to get on track so far this year. He's only hitting .225, and he has just three home runs.

The home runs are coming, though. For a guy who's only 6'2" and about 200 pounds, Upton generates a surprising amount of power.

Upton's long home runs all look pretty much the same. He'll get a pitch on the inner part of the plate, turn on it and blast it deep to left field. To top it all off, he has one of the best home run stare-downs in the league. In addition to power, Upton has swagger.

Upton can get a little homer-happy, and that can lead to some prolonged struggles. But hey, I would get homer-happy too if I could hit 'em as far as Upton does.

5. Ryan Howard, Philadelphia Phillies

Eye-Popping Video: Watch Howard take Tim Hudson for a ride in 2009.

Ryan Howard is going to be on the shelf a little while longer as he recovers from a torn Achilles tendon.

And honestly, his best days as a power hitter have probably passed him by.

Howard's best days as a power hitter sure did contain some monster home runs, though. While he's been known throughout his career for hitting home runs to left field, Howard's home runs to right and center have tended to travel far.

Just like with Upton's long home runs, Howard's long homers have a certain look. He'll turn on an inside pitch and uncoil like a snake, putting every ounce of strength in his 6'4" frame into his swing. Next thing you know, the ball is ticketed for the upper deck.

Howard still has a few of these home runs left in him. He'll never hit 58 home runs again like he did in 2006, but he's going to hit plenty of vintage Ryan Howard home runs after he comes back.

Here's hoping, anyway. There are few things more enjoyable than a good blast to right off the bat of Ryan Howard.

4. Prince Fielder, Detroit Tigers

Eye-Popping Video: Watch Fielder blast one more than 480 feet in 2011.

When Prince Fielder sees a pitch he likes, he doesn't swing at it—he explodes at it.

Fielder has one of the most violent home run swings in the game, and it does a lot of damage when he catches the ball on the sweet spot. Since he became a full-time player in 2006, he's hit a ton of 450-plus-foot home runs.

The home run I linked to was the longest home run in the majors last season, according to HitTrackerOnline.com; it went exactly 486 feet.

That's not the longest home run Fielder has ever hit, either. Per ESPN.com, he hit one 503 feet during the 2009 Home Run Derby.

If you live anywhere near Comerica Park, my advice is to replace your glass windows with brick windows. They won't look so great, but at least your residence will be safe from Fielder's bombs.

3. Giancarlo Stanton, Miami Marlins

Eye-Popping Video: Watch Stanton go upper deck in St. Louis in 2011.

Giancarlo Stanton is massive, as he checks in at about 6'5" and 250 pounds. He'd probably look more at home on a football field than he does on a baseball diamond.

Last year was Stanton's first full year in the majors, and he spent it hitting moonshot after moonshot. Per HitTrackerOnline.com, five of Stanton's 34 home runs last year traveled at least 450 feet, and one went 474 feet.

All told, Stanton led the National League with 15 no-doubters. By the end of the season, it's a good bet he'll at least be among the NL leaders in no-doubters.

Stanton has seven home runs on the season, and all of them have come since April 29. The most recent of which was his walk-off grand slam that landed well beyond the center field fence at Marlins Park. It nearly put a dent in that...that thing in center field.

That thing had better be sturdy, because it's just a matter of time before Stanton does put a dent in it.

I will die laughing if he breaks it. 

2. Josh Hamilton, Texas Rangers

Eye-Popping Video: Watch Hamilton launch one deep into the Boston night earlier this season.

Josh Hamilton is currently leading the majors with 18 home runs, and exactly six of those have been no-doubters, according to HitTrackerOnline.com.

That comes as no surprise. Hamilton has as much power in his bat as any hitter in the majors, and it's uncanny how easy he makes it look. He has a very smooth swing, and it's simply amazing how much power he's able to generate with his wrists alone.

Hamilton has hit some long home runs this season, but he'll never top his performance at the 2008 Home Run Derby. He launched home runs all over the old Yankee Stadium, including three 500-footers.

Of course, now that I've said he won't be able to top his hitting that day, he probably will. That's just how he tends to do things.

UPDATE: A baseball just came crashing through my office window. I suspect this is Hamilton's doing.

1. Adam Dunn, Chicago White Sox

Eye-Popping Video: Watch Dunn hit one 480 feet in 2010.

Adam Dunn has hit 376 home runs during his career. If I had to take a wild guess, I'd say roughly half of those have traveled at least 420 feet.

Per HitTrackerOnline.com, Dunn already has four no-doubters this year, and that's not a surprise. He led the National League in no-doubters in 2010.

And in 2009.

And 2008.

And—well, you get the point. 

Last year, it looked like Dunn's swing was slowing down, and though he's bounced back nicely this year, I still don't think his swing is as quick as it used to be.

But it doesn't matter. All Dunn has to do is hit the ball with the fat part of the bat. If he can do that, his 6'6," 285-pound frame will do the rest.

Dunn has stupid power—and I assure you that I mean that as a compliment.

Now, if we were to talk about Dunn's stupid contract, on the other hand...

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