Bengie Molina’s Grand Slam Cycle
Posted by Andy on July 17, 2010
Last night Bengie Molina hit for the cycle, including a grand slam for his homer.
Molina is the second player this year to hit for the cycle, following Jody Gerut.
Click through for some other facts about Molina's achievement.
Catchers don't hit for the cycle very often. They are the least frequent position players to get all four types of hit in the same game. Here are all the cases of a catcher hitting for the cycle since 1920:
| Rk | Player | Date | Tm | Opp | Rslt | PA | AB | 1B | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Chad Moeller | 2004-04-27 | MIL | CIN | W 9-8 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| 2 | Jason Kendall | 2000-05-19 | PIT | STL | W 13-1 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 1 |
| 3 | Rich Gedman | 1985-09-18 | BOS | TOR | W 13-1 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 0 | 0 |
| 4 | Carlton Fisk | 1984-05-16 | CHW | KCR | L 6-7 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 5 | Charlie Moore | 1980-10-01 | MIL | CAL | W 10-7 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| 6 | Randy Hundley | 1966-08-11 (1) | CHC | HOU | W 9-8 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 1 |
| 7 | Bill Salkeld | 1945-08-04 | PIT | STL | L 5-6 | 5 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| 8 | Buddy Rosar | 1940-07-19 | NYY | CLE | W 15-6 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 0 |
| 9 | Harry Danning | 1940-06-15 | NYG | PIT | W 12-1 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| 10 | Mickey Cochrane | 1933-08-02 | PHA | NYY | W 16-3 | 6 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 0 |
| 11 | Mickey Cochrane | 1932-07-22 | PHA | WSH | W 8-4 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| 12 | Ray Schalk | 1922-06-27 | CHW | DET | W 9-5 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
As is the case when players hit for the cycle, most of the time, his team won the game.
Here are the occasions since 1920 when a player hit for the cycle against the Red Sox:
| Rk | Player | Date | Tm | Opp | Rslt | PA | AB | 1B | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bengie Molina | 2010-07-16 | TEX | BOS | W 8-4 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| 2 | Mark Ellis | 2007-06-04 | OAK | BOS | W 5-4 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| 3 | Andre Thornton | 1978-04-22 | CLE | BOS | W 13-4 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 4 | Jim Fregosi | 1968-05-20 | CAL | BOS | W 5-4 | 6 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| 5 | Jim King | 1964-05-26 | WSA | BOS | L 2-3 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 6 | Larry Doby | 1952-06-04 | CLE | BOS | L 11-13 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 0 |
| 7 | George McQuinn | 1941-07-19 (1) | SLB | BOS | W 9-3 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 8 | Joe Gordon | 1940-09-08 | NYY | BOS | W 9-4 | 6 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| 9 | Joe Cronin | 1929-09-02 (1) | WSH | BOS | W 10-7 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| 10 | Bob Fothergill | 1926-09-26 (1) | DET | BOS | W 11-2 | 5 | 5 | 2 | 4 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| 11 | Bobby Veach | 1920-09-17 | DET | BOS | W 14-13 | 7 | 6 | 3 | 2 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 0 |
(Molina shows up on the above list but not the one before it because the daily database update just happened!)
Of these players, only Thornton, King, Doby, Gordon, and Cronin did it in Fenway Park.
Here are all the times a member of the Texas Rangers (or their Senators progenitors---what a rhyme!) did it:
| Rk | Player | Date | Tm | Opp | Rslt | PA | AB | 1B | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bengie Molina | 2010-07-16 | TEX | BOS | W 8-4 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| 2 | Ian Kinsler | 2009-04-15 | TEX | BAL | W 19-6 | 6 | 6 | 2 | 5 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| 3 | Gary Matthews | 2006-09-13 | TEX | DET | W 11-3 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 0 |
| 4 | Mark Teixeira | 2004-08-17 | TEX | CLE | W 16-4 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 0 | 1 |
| 5 | Oddibe McDowell | 1985-07-23 | TEX | CLE | W 8-4 | 5 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| 6 | Jim King | 1964-05-26 | WSA | BOS | L 2-3 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
Interesting that Molina isn't the first Ranger/Senator to get a cycle at Fenway Park, having been beaten to the punch by Jim King in 1964.
The last times that a cycle performance included a grand slam are:
I went back to 1950 but didn't find any other cases before Tejada in 2001...
July 17th, 2010 at 8:18 am
What's the closest a pitcher has ever come to hitting for a cycle?
July 17th, 2010 at 8:28 am
Here are the most recent pitchers to miss it by a triple:
Generated 7/17/2010.
July 17th, 2010 at 8:28 am
http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/CHN/CHN192506200.shtml
Grover Cleveland Alexander went 3 for 3 with a double, triple, and a home run on June 20, 1925. But since his Cubs only managed 5 other base runners, poor Ol' Pete was left on deck at the end of the game.
Bill Sherdel (August 4, 1926) and Steve Sundra (July 5, 1942) are the only other pitchers since 1920 to have a double, triple, and home run in a game.
http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/BRO/BRO192608040.shtml
http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/CHA/CHA194207052.shtml
July 17th, 2010 at 8:29 am
Here are the most recent cases of a pitcher missing the cycle by a homer (so they got at least one single, one double, and one triple)
Generated 7/17/2010.
July 17th, 2010 at 8:32 am
Finally, here are all the cases of a pitcher getting at least a triple and a homer in the same game. Burdette and Bunning had 4 hits but missed the cycle by a double. Sundra and Sherdel had a double, triple, and homer but didn't get a single.
Generated 7/17/2010.
July 17th, 2010 at 8:35 am
I missed Alexander when I wrote my comment, but he's on the list and Robert mentioned him above.
By the way, this really shows the power of the PI. Robert obviously had his info from some other databank of knowledge. The PI really helps us find this sort of thing quickly.
By the way, the AP article on Bengie Molina's game must have been written by someone with PI access...it contained a lot of the same details I put in this article in terms of last catcher to do it, last guy at Fenway, etc.
July 17th, 2010 at 8:47 am
My understanding is that pitcher Tom Parrott hit for the cycle on Sept. 28, 1894
July 17th, 2010 at 8:49 am
I must admit that I am surprised that a pitcher has never hit for the cycle.
July 17th, 2010 at 9:07 am
"By the way, the AP article on Bengie Molina's game must have been written by someone with PI access...it contained a lot of the same details I put in this article in terms of last catcher to do it, last guy at Fenway, etc."
PI is great from what I can tell (I am not a subscriber, but am familiar with PI at the football site where it is free), but those types of details that were in the AP article are the types of details that have almost always shown up in these articles through the years. Maybe PI access was used or maybe team media guides and Elias were consulted.
July 17th, 2010 at 9:27 am
In this case the AP article contained an unusually large number of details. Just sounded like PI to me. I know a number of well-known baseball journalists subscribe to the PI...figures that even more lesser-known ones (like me) do as well.
July 17th, 2010 at 11:49 am
How many errors were committed on Molina's "triple"?
July 17th, 2010 at 1:20 pm
"Johnny Twisto Says:
How many errors were committed on Molina's "triple"?"
Official scorers charge errors?
July 17th, 2010 at 1:33 pm
The ball went off Eric Patterson's glove in CF and Molina hurt his hamstring slipping while running the bases. So it all went pretty much how you'd expect.
July 17th, 2010 at 1:39 pm
@4 - Interesting that there was only one National League instance in the pre-DH era.
@5 - But here, most of the pre-DH instances were in the NL.
July 17th, 2010 at 2:32 pm
Wow!
Benji Molina hit a triple??? 😀
July 17th, 2010 at 5:52 pm
Looking at Walt Terrell's page shows that he actually had a career and was more than the 1990 punchline he's remembered as in Pittsburgh. I guess that's a common thing...
Of course even the worst player in the majors is a darned talented athelete!
July 17th, 2010 at 8:05 pm
I guess that's all you need to know about Pittsburgh baseball... that there's still a joke about a failed player from 20 years ago.
July 17th, 2010 at 11:07 pm
Official scorers charging errors?
Well, they used to. I think the only time they do now, is when the ball goes between an IF's legs. Or the ball is thrown away and someone advances. Oy.
July 18th, 2010 at 4:48 pm
groundball Says:
July 17th, 2010 at 11:07 pm
"Official scorers charging errors?
Well, they used to. I think the only time they do now, is when the ball goes between an IF's legs. Or the ball is thrown away and someone advances. Oy."
No, a ball hit in between an IF's legs could be a "hot shot too hard too handle".
No, it has to be a soft liner.
Right at the first baseman.
Who's a step off the bag.
It has to hit him fully in the glove's pocket.
And he doesn't recover in time to get Ernie Lombardi :-O
July 18th, 2010 at 4:51 pm
Interesting that Molina was the fourth Ranger since 2004 to hit for the cycle and 3 players have also played for the Angels.
That was Molina's 6th triple in 5000 career plate appearances. How many people have a worse rate than that?
July 18th, 2010 at 10:35 pm
Not many: http://bbref.com/pi/shareit/vRXJa
July 19th, 2010 at 11:49 am
Thanks JT.
Notable that most of those players are current/recent - reflecting the way the game has changed in recent years away from speed towards power. Certainly makes it a remarkable achievement for Molina given his 'triple rate'.
July 19th, 2010 at 12:40 pm
By all accounts Ernie Lombardi was Molina-level slow: he led the league in GIDP four times despite only once topping 500 PA, he had only 8 SB in 17 seasons. Yet he managed 27 career triples, and it's because he played in the '30s and '40s when there were a lot more 450-foot alleys for a ball to roll in.
July 22nd, 2010 at 7:15 am
Do we have a list of all Cycles with a Slam? Has to be fairly rare.