Players combine for a record 62 homers
By Thomas Harding / MLB.com
Damon Minor connects for a two-run homer Tuesday. (David Zalubowski/AP)
Major League Baseball went as deep as it could go into the record books Tuesday night, then went deeper.
In fact, teams combined to go deep a total of 62 times, smashing baseball's one-day record for home runs. The previous record was 57 on April 7, 2000.
The long balls came from likely sources, such as the Chicago Cubs' Sammy Sosa, who knocked his Majors-leading 28th, and Houston's Lance Berkman, who hit his 27th.
Mike Sweeney / 1B
Height: 6'3"
Weight: 225
Bats/Throws: R/R
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They came from guys no one would expect, such as the San Francisco Giants' Tsuyoshi Shinjo, who had gone 0-for-18 before hitting a grand slam in his first at-bat and another homer later.
They came in bunches -- a record-tying 12 between the teams during the Chicago White Sox' 17-9 victory over Detroit at Comiskey Park; 10 to tie a Coors Field record during the Giants' 18-5 trouncing of the Colorado Rockies.
They came in dramatic fashion. Kansas City's Mike Sweeney and Raul Ibanez knocked ninth-inning solo shots of Seattle's Kazuhiro Sasaki in a 7-5 Royals victory, and Oakland's Olmedo Saenz knocked a pinch-hit, two-run shot off Minnesota's Eddie Guardado for a 4-3 Athletics victory.
They came in pairs.
Reggie Sanders / RF
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Boy, did they.
San Francisco's Shinjo, Damon Minor and Reggie Sanders homered twice, marking the 16th time in history that three players had multi-homer performances in the same game. Houston's Berkman, K.C.'s Ibanez, the White Sox' Magglio Ordonez and Sandy Alomar, Detroit's Dmitri Young and Baltimore's Jay Gibbons all had two. The nine players with multi-homer games also broke a one-day mark -- eight on May 19, 1999.
They came back-to-back-to-back. St. Louis' Placido Polanco, Jim Edmonds and Albert Pujols homered in consecutive at-bats in the second inning against San Diego.
They came with the bases loaded. Shinjo, Ordonez, the New York Yankees' Jorge Posada and Montreal's Fernando Tatis knocked grand slams.
They came to bang in the American League, in which 30 homers were hit.
They came to bang in the National League, which saw 32 fly out of the park.
Only in one game did they not come to go deep. Toronto and Boston did not homer in the Red Sox' 2-1 victory at Fenway Park.
But everywhere else, they came and went deep, deep into the night.
Posted by: I Are Baboon
Sure, 62 home runs yesterday and the Red Sox hit ZERO in their double-header.
Posted by: dg806
You would have thought Big Mo would have hit one....
Posted by: I Are Baboon
Quote:
Originally posted by dg806
You would have thought Big Mo would have hit one....
Well, seeing how he's on the Mets now, that still wouldn't have helped us.
We still won both games of the double header, so no complaints here!
Posted by: dg806
Damn that's right! I even watched him a couple games several nights ago when they played the braves!! My brain is fried!! Glad I've got a couple days off coming up!
Dancing dude is cool!
Posted by: I Are Baboon
Mo hit one off the middle of the right field scoreboard at Shea a few nights ago. HOLY CRAP!!!!!! That was a frickin MOONSHOT.
