Red Sox
Urías hit grand slams in back-to-back games.
Before Thursday, Luis Urías had never hit a grand slam in the majors.
As of Saturday, he’s hit two.
Urías launched one against the Nationals, then – in his very next at-bat, following an off day Friday – he did the same against the Yankees. He became the first Major League player to hit grand slams in consecutive plate appearances since 2009.
His blast to left Saturday – which came off Cy Young contender Gerrit Cole (10-3, 2.76 ERA) – gave the Red Sox a 4-0 edge in the second inning. It’s the second-straight day Boston has jumped ahead of New York early to build a commanding lead.
His feat wasn’t quite as dramatic as Nomar Garciaparra’s two-grand-slam game in 1999, but it was extremely rare in its own way.
Per ESPN Stats & Info, Urías became the first Red Sox player since Jimmie Foxx in 1940 to hit a grand slam in back-to-back games played. He’s also the first Red Sox No. 9 hitter to hit a grand slam off the Yankees since Luis Rivera in 1990.
Urías, whom the Red Sox acquired prior to the trade deadline, has upped his average to .250 and provided some pop at the bottom of the lineup. The 5-foot-10 infielder leads the Red Sox with nine RBIs in August. These are his only two homers of the year.
The Red Sox now lead MLB with three grand slams from No. 8 or 9 hitters. Pablo Reyes smashed a walk-off grand slam in early August.
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Originally posted 2023-08-19 18:21:08.