Arizona’s Eugenio Suárez becomes 19th player in MLB history to hit 4 HRs in game
PHOENIX (AP) — Arizona Diamondbacks slugger Eugenio Suárez has had an all-or-nothing type of season.
If’s safe to say that his performance Saturday night falls squarely into the “all” category.
Suárez became the 19th player in Major League Baseball history to hit four homers in a single game, accomplishing the feat in an 8-7 loss to the Atlanta Braves in 10 innings. The third baseman is the first player in the big leagues to do it since J.D. Martinez — also for the D-backs — in 2017.
“What can I say — obviously it’s awesome,” Suárez said. “I never thought in my life that I would be able to hit four homers in a game.”
Suárez came into the game batting .167 with six homers and 15 RBIs. After Saturday, he has 19 hits this season, including 10 homers.
The 33-year-old Suárez hit a solo shot in the second, a two-run homer in the fourth and two more solo homers in the sixth and the ninth to finish with five RBIs. His fourth homer off Braves closer Raisel Iglesias tied it at 7 as the home crowd of more than 43,000 at Chase Field roared in disbelief.
D-backs manager Torey Lovullo admitted he couldn’t believe Suárez had done it again.
“I thought there’s no way he goes deep. When does that happen?” Lovullo said. “It’s like a fairy tale. When it happened, I just was shaking my head. I couldn’t believe it. He turned around a pretty good pitch. … It’s one of those magical nights. It’s hard to describe.”
The four baseballs traveled a combined 1,655 feet, with the longest being a 443-foot shot to center for his third homer. The first three homers came off Grant Holmes.
The Braves rallied in the 10th to win after Matt Olson scored on a wild pitch.
“Mixed feelings right now because we didn’t win the game,” Suarez said. “But this is baseball, that’s why this game is so special. I just want to glorify God with this for the game today. It’s a gift and I don’t take it for granted.”
The Venezuelan-born veteran has hit 286 homers over a 12-year career with the Reds, Mariners and Diamondbacks.
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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB
By DAVID BRANDT
AP Baseball Writer
