Entering Thursday, the San Diego Padres were already one of only five teams in MLB history to hit grand slams in three straight games, and the first since the 2006 White Sox. Then the fifth inning rolled around.
Austin Hedges and Fernando Tatis Jr. singled before Manny Machado walked, setting the stage for Eric Hosmer, who turned on a 1-1 fastball from Kyle Gibson. The ball crept toward the right-field porch at Petco Park, barely clearing the fence, at a projected 366 feet, according to Statcast. Hosmer extended both arms as the ball caromed off the padding behind the wall. The home dugout erupted.
“It’s not really something I was thinking about during the game,” Hosmer said, breaking into a grin. “But as soon as I got back to the dugout, I certainly was.”
After a back-and-forth finish, the Padres would win on Jake Cronenworth’s walk-off single and an ensuing error by Rangers center fielder Scott Heineman. It was their second straight walk-off victory to cap four nights of grand slams from four different players.
“That’s the best part of it,” Padres manager Jayce Tingler said. “It’s not one guy, it’s not two guys. It’s a group of men that are pulling for one another and delivering at different moments.”
Including Machado’s home run at Dodger Stadium last week, the Padres have now hit five grand slams in their first 27 games of the season — joining the 1996 Expos and the 2018 Red Sox as the only teams to do so.
Will Myers followed with a slam on Tuesday and Manny Machado did it walk-off style on Wednesday. By Thursday night, it was Eric Hosmer’s to get in on action, as the Padres became the first team ever to hit a grand slam in four consecutive games
“It’s fun to be a part of history,” said Hosmer following the Padres’ 8-7, 10-inning victory over the Rangers, completing a four-game, two-city sweep.
The official account of the Padres changed its Twitter name from “San Diego Padres” to “Slam Diego Padres” moments after Hosmer’s shot cleared the fence. And others followed suit, including FOX Sports San (Slam) Diego.
So, naturally, when your team name gives you a chance to commemorate such a historic occasion on Twitter, you do it.
Tonight, the Houston Astros are in town to take on the Padres in “Slam Diego” at Petco Park and the pressure won’t only be on the Padres to extend their grand slam streak to 5-games, but it’ll be a tough task for the Astros’ pitching staff to keep the Padres from extending their historical streak. Stay classy San Diego.
