JUPITER, Fla. (AP) — Giancarlo Stanton hit a three-run homer in the first inning that bounced on the roof of Miami's clubhouse beyond the left-field wall during the Marlins' 8-1 win over the Houston Astros on Tuesday.
"I've only seen one other guy, Mark McGwire, hit a ball that far, especially in this ballpark," Marlins manager Mike Redmond said. "He's got some sick pop."
Stanton turned on a Dallas Keuchel changeup for his second three-run homer in as many days and fourth home run of spring training. Stanton also lined a single in the fourth, raising his batting average to .333 and his slugging percentage to .692.
Keuchel, who hadn't allowed a run in nine innings during his three previous spring training starts, gave up seven runs and 13 hits in four innings.
"They had a better plan than I did in the first two innings, and I just didn't make an adjustment," said Keuchel, a candidate for a rotation spot.
Keuchel went 6-10 with a 5.15 ERA last season, but Astros manager Bo Porter attributed those numbers to a handful of poor outings.
"If you look at his whole body of work, he put together a pretty good season last year," Porter said.