By David Golebiewski

Published: Sunday, May 6, 2012, 1:09 a.m.
Updated: Sunday, February 17, 2013

Third baseman Pedro Alvarez has been the definition of an all-or-nothing hitter in 2012, striking out more than six times as often as he has walked but also leading the run-starved Pirates in home runs (seven) and slugging percentage (.603) through Friday's games.

While the No. 2 pick in the 2008 draft isn't getting on as often as the Bucs would like — his on-base percentage is just .295 — he continues to make his trots around the bases last.

Alvarez leads the National League with four “No Doubt” home runs, defined by ESPN's Hit Tracker Online as blasts that clear the fence by at least 20 vertical feet and land at least 50 feet past the wall. Ten of Alvarez's 27 career home runs (37.0 percent) have been of the “No Doubt” variety, compared to the major league average of 18 percent.

Here are Alvarez's greatest hits, along with the “True Distance” of the dingers after controlling for variables such as wind, temperature and altitude:

True Date Park distance (feet)

9/30/10 Sun Life Stadium 444

9/5/10 PNC Park 437

9/20/11 Chase Field 419

5/18/11 Great Am. Ballpark 418

5/1/12 Busch Stadium 416

4/30/12 Turner Field 412

4/8/12 PNC Park 403

4/25/12 PNC Park 393

7/21/10 PNC Park 389

8/6/10 Coors Field 387

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