Josh Hamilton Becomes the 16th Player to Homer Four Times in a Game
It’s only May 8th of the Major League Baseball season and we have seen a no hitter, a perfect game, and now a four home run game. Texas Rangers’ outfielder Josh Hamilton becomes the 16th player in baseball history to hit four home runs in a single game. Josh Hamilton homered in the 1st and 3rd inning off of Baltimore Orioles‘ starter Jake Arrieta, in the 7th inning off of Zach Phillips, and his fourth home run came off of former teammate Darren O’Day on an 0-2 count in the 8th inning. All four of Josh Hamilton’s home runs were 2-run shots. Josh Hamilton also added a double off of Arrieta, giving him 18 total bases, one total base shy of the record that was set by Shawn Green in 2002 when he hit four home runs against the Milwaukee Brewers.
This is the first four home run game since Carlos Delgado did it for the Toronto Blue Jays in late September of 2003. There have been five hall of fame players who have accomplised the feat: Ed Delahanty, Lou Gehrig, Chuck Klein, Willie Mays, and Mike Schmidt.
With the four home runs, Josh Hamilton’s home run total stands at 14, which surpasses Matt Kemp for the Major League lead. It’s been quite the roller coasted for Josh Hamilton since last October. It all started when he said God helped him hit what was supposed to be the game-winning homer in Game 6 of the World Series, that is until the Rangers bullpen imploded. After the Series, Hamilton had a minor relapse in a local Dallas-Fort Worth bar, in which he was rumored to be drunk and possibly hook up with a woman in the bathroom. Even if that rumor was never proven true, it still doesn’t help the image of a man who has previous demons.
Congratulations to Josh Hamilton on being apart of baseball history. My fantasy team appreciates it.
Bryan is a featured writer for Rant Sports. Although he concentrates mostly on the game of baseball, you can find him covering things all over the Rant Sports Network.
