A five-season examination of how inning, day, month, and schedule position shape the frequency of baseball's most dramatic play.
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01
Findings · Inning Breakdown
The Inning Story
Peak Inning
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Most home runs hit
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Early Innings (1–3)
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Share of all home runs
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Extra Innings (10+)
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HR rate vs. regulation avg
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HR Inning Analysis · 2014–2024 Regular Season
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02
Findings · Schedule Patterns
Does the Day Matter?
Highest HR Rate Day
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HR per game
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Day-of-Week Range
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Spread between best and worst day
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03
Findings · Season Arc
The Monthly Rhythm
Peak Month
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Highest HR rate
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Season Arc
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Season progression
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September Effect
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Sep/Oct vs season average
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04
Findings · Schedule Position
The Week-of-Season Effect
Peak Week
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of the season
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Early vs. Late Season
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Wks 1–6 vs Wks 20–26
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05
Notes
Methodology
A
Data Source
All data sourced from the MLB Stats API (statsapi.mlb.com) via play-by-play endpoints. Only completed regular season games (status code "F") are included. Postseason and spring training games are excluded.
B
2020 Season Excluded
The 2020 COVID-shortened season (60 games, July–September only) is excluded from this dataset. Its anomalous schedule, empty stadiums, and universal DH rule would distort comparisons with full 162-game seasons. All 10 seasons in this dataset are full regular seasons.
C
Rate Calculation
HR rate per game is calculated as total home runs in a given inning ÷ number of games that reached that inning. This corrects for the fact that extra innings are reached in far fewer games than innings 1–9.
D
Inside-the-Park Home Runs
Inside-the-park home runs are included in all counts. These represent a very small fraction of total home runs (~0.1%) and do not materially affect any findings.