Jimmy Rollins Will Attempt to Break Red-Bull Fueled Guinness World Record

The Philadelphia Phillies open their home season on April 12 when they face the Washington Nationals at Citizens Bank Park. The next day is scheduled as an off day, usually in the event that the home opener is rained out, so the team has some wiggle room for those holding first-game tickets. ↵↵Red Bull better hope it doesn’t rain on the 12th, as they have an enormous event in Philly on the 13th involving Jimmy Rollins, a Philadelphia highway during lunchtime and copious amounts of energy drinks. Get your wings on:↵

↵↵⇥Attention Philadelphia: Baseball All-Star and World Series champion Jimmy Rollins will be knocking baseballs over Benjamin Franklin Parkway for Red Bull Ball Park Cranks on Tuesday, April 13th. Clear your lunch hour because we’re not just talking home runs here…Rollins is aiming beyond the typical stadium distance and looking to hit a massive 550-foot bomb -- or the distance of almost two football fields.↵⇥↵⇥Not stopping there, Rollins will also attempt to break the current Guinness World Record for ‘Longest Batted Ball’, which currently stands at 576 feet. The record is for the greatest distance one individual can hit a batted baseball in a legal manner with no restriction on equipment.↵⇥

↵⇥↵⇥Rollins is encouraging his fellow Philadelphians to stop by to witness the science, the technology, the talent, the strength, or to just see their favorite professional athlete really hit it out of the park…and over a highway.↵⇥

↵↵Look, I don’t know about you, but if I were to pick one member of the Phillies to break a Guinness World Record for hitting a baseball the furthest, Rollins would be fourth or fifth on the list. As a long-time fan of the team, I love J-Roll, but unless it’s a contests to see who can pop a ball up the highest – he has a lot of those – I don’t see Jimmy being the guy for this. That being said, it’s a Red Bull gimmick and Jimmy is Red Bull’s sponsor of some repute, at least around these parts. Alas, the company wants you to show up at Ben Franklin Parkway and 20th Street on April 13th to see Rollins try and hit a ball more than 575 feet.↵
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↵As Meech from the Fightins points out, “Best case scenario: He breaks the record on his first couple swings, we all get free Red Bull, and are back in our offices by the end of lunch. Worst case scenario: The wind’s blowing in that day and he starts pressing to crush the ball, which in turn winds up ruining his swing for the first month of the season.” ↵↵So there’s that. Meech also thinks Rollins is using an aluminum bat, which is ridiculous on so many levels. Eh, at least there will be free Red Bull.↵

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