The Yankees, who had homered in a record 31 consecutive games – every contest since May 26 – were the talk of the town in New York yesterday as they traveled crosstown to Citi Field to take on the Mets (before a crowd of 42, 150). The Mets got the upper hand on their older-brother Bombers, handing the Yankees a 4-2 loss and keeping the ball in the park. Four Mets’ hurlers – Zach Wheeler, Justin Wilson, Seth Lugo and Edwin Diaz – held the powerful, homer-happy Yankee squad to two runs on five singles and a double, while walking one and fanning ten. (Truth be told, I was kind of hoping the streak would stretch at least one day into a third month.)
So, here is BBRT’s final tale of the tape for the streak – May 26 through July 1.
- Hit 57 home runs;
- Averaged .282;
- Won 20 and lost 11;
- Outscored their opponents 195 to 164;
- Had 14 different players go yard; eight of those at least four times.
Key contributors to the streak were:
- DJ LeMahieu, who played in 30 of the game and hit .378, with eight home runs and 35 RBI;
- Gary Sanchez, who put up a .252-8-23 line in 28 games; and
- Gleyber Torres, .323-7-22 in 27 games.
DJ LeMahieu
Photo by jenniferlinneaphotography 
Gary Sanchez Photo by apardavila
Others homering for the Yankees in the streak were: Brett Gardner (5 HR); Aaron Hicks (5); Luke Voit (4); Gio Urshela (4); Cameron Maybin (4); Didi Gregorius (3); Edwin Encarnacion (3); Clint Frazier (2); Aaron Judge (2); Austin Romine; Giancarlo Stanton.
During the course of the streak, the Yankees had 14 games with one home run; 11 games with two; three games with three long balls; and three games with four.
ANOTHER HOMER-HAPPY TIDBIT – IT’S A BRAVES’ NEW WORLD
On this date (July 3, in 1969, Braves’ pitcher Tony Cloninger became the first National Leaguer (any position) to hit two Grand Slam home runs in a single game. He got the first GS in the top of the first inning (against the Giants in San Francisco), as Atlanta batted around and scored seven runs. The second came in top of the fourth and stretched the Braves lead to 13-0. For good measure, Cloninger added a run-scoring single in the eighth inning – for his ninth RBI in a 17-3 win. Oh yes, he also pitched a complete-game, seven-hitter. Cloninger finished the 1966 season with a .234 average, five home runs and 23 RBI in 47 games. Now back to our regularly scheduled top.
The previous MLB team record for consecutive games with a home run belonged to the Texas Rangers’ – August 11 – September 9, 2002.
In that streak the Rangers:
- Hit 55 home runs;
- Averaged .306;
- Went 17-10;
- Outscored their opponents 177-144.
That streak was driven by Alex Rodriguez, Rafael Palmeiro and Herbert Perry – who combined for 35 of the Rangers’ 55 round trippers. Here’s a look at the sluggers who powered the Rangers’ surge:
- SS Alex Rodriguez, who hit 16 home runs, drove in 33 runs and hit for a .333 average.
- DH/1B Rafael Palmeiro, who hit ten home runs, drove in 18 and put up a .316 average.
- 3B Herbert Perry, who launched nine round trippers, drove in 22 and hit .296.
Others going deep during the streak included: Ivan Rodriguez (6 HR); Todd Hollandsworth (4 HR); Carl Everett (3 HR); Todd Greene (2 HR); Mike Lamb (2 HR); Travis Hafner; Kevin Mench: and Michael Young.
There were ten games in which the Rangers’ hit only one home run. They hit two round tripper in 11 contests; three home runs in three games; four in one; and five in two.
Primary Resources: ESPN.com; MLB.com
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