3 Homer Games… Rare But Fun To Watch… Grand Slams Even Better.

The last time we saw a Dodger hit 3 Home Runs in a game was last season when Mookie went deep against the Padres 3 times at Dodger Stadium last August. And there we no fans out there to catch them. Twenty-seven times in Dodger history, a player has hit 3 or more in a game. Only two players, Shawn Green and Gil Hodges ever hit four. I saw four hit against the Dodgers once. A few years ago in a game at Dodger Stadium when J.D. Martinez was with Arizona. And I remember well Dave Kingman’s 3 HR performance against L.A. simply because of the interview with Tommy Lasorda after the game which instantly became a classic.

In Dodger history, only four players have done it twice in a Dodger uniform. Duke Snider, Shawn Green, Adrian Gonzalez, and Corey Seager. They victimized the Braves and the Padres 4 times each. They got the Braves in each of the three cities they have played in. Hodges in Boston, Snider in Milwaukee, and Seager and Turner in Atlanta. The Giants three times. The Cardinals, Reds, and Cubs all twice.

Here is the list of players who did it, Hodges, Green, Fournier, Hermanski, Snider, Campanella, Brown, Demeter, Wynn, Lopes, Snyder, Piazza, Elster, Choi, Ethier, Uribe, Gonzalez, Seager, Grandal, Puig, Turner, Pollock and Betts. I watched the game on TV when Cory Snyder did it. Same with Puig and Pollock. Puig did it in St. Louis. I hardly remember Kevin Elster ever being in a Dodger uni. I also thought the trade for He Sop Choi was a really bad one. Choi and Ethier both did it against AL teams in interleague games.

I thought Muncy might do it this season, but he fell short. The guy I have always felt has the best shot is Bellinger, if he ever gets his mojo back. I would love to see Betts do it again because if he does, he will set an MLB record for the most times hitting 3 homers in a game. He is currently one of three players who have done it six times. Pretty exclusive company.

I know Turner set the record for post-season homers at 12 last season, passing Snider who had 11. But all of Dukes were in World Series games. A lot more pressure there. And he hit four in a Series twice. Still a record. So, who are the top candidates to hit 3 again? I would say, Betts, Muncy, Bellinger, and Seager. But whether Seager does it in a Dodger uni remains to be seen. Another possible candidate is Will Smith. He does have the power. And if he gets two early in a game, he has the patience.

I was surprised Joc never did it. He hit two a few times. And one time at Dodger Stadium, missed his 3rd by () this much when his drive bounced off the top of the wall and came back into play. Grand Slams are always great to see also. And LA has hit 9 I think this year. And they had two in a game earlier this season and did that twice. Pollock and Beaty did it first in Milwaukee.

The record for the most Grand Slams for a career as a Dodger is 14. That is held by Gil Hodges. Most in MLB history is 25 by Alex Rodriguez. Most in a season is 6, with Mattingly and Travis Hafner holding that title, interestingly, those were the only 6 of Mattingly’s career. NL record of 5 held by Pujols and Ernie Banks. In World Series play, the Dodgers were on the wrong end of a Grand Slam 5 times and have never hit one in Series play. In playoffs they have given up four and hit five.

So, who will hit the next Dodger Slam? No matter who if they do it this season, it will be a record for the most in a season. Turner’s this season was the first of his career. I have seen them hit a lot of HRs in a game on TV, and once when I went to Dodger Stadium in the late ’70s, they hit 7 in a game. They crushed the Reds that day.