According to ELIAS – 3 home run games

Dozier dazzles in defeat

Brian DozierBrian Dozier slammed three homers, his 36th, 37th and 38th of the season in a Labor Day afternoon game at Target Field, though the Royals came away the 11-5 victors in Minneapolis. Dozier has now hit 21 homers in his last 35 games, and he became the first major-leaguer to connect for that many homers over a 35-game span since Shawn Green connected for 22 round-trippers over a 35-game span (including four in one game) for the Dodgers in 2002. Dozier has hit 24 homers in 50 games since the All-Star break, with 22 of them coming while in the game as a second baseman (the other two came in a game in which he was the designated hitter). Dozier broke the American League record for homers by a second baseman after the break; the old mark had belonged to Hall-of-Famer Joe Gordon since 1940, when he hit 21 post-break homers with the Yankees.

Dozier’s season total of 38 home runs has been reached by only one other player since the Twins moved from Washington to Minnesota in 1961. The Hall-of-Famer Harmon Killebrew reached that level in eight different seasons in Minnesota (he had also done it once while the team still played in the nation’s capital), knocking out a team-record of 49 homers in 1964 and 1969.

Minnesota Twins 3 home run games

Rk Player Date Tm Opp Rslt PA AB R H HR RBI BOP Pos Summary
1 Brian Dozier 2016-09-05 MIN KCR L 5-11 5 5 3 3 3 4 1 2B
2 Max Kepler 2016-08-01 MIN CLE W 12-5 6 6 3 4 3 6 3 RF
3 Justin Morneau 2007-07-06 (2) MIN CHW W 12-0 5 5 3 3 3 6 5 1B
4 Tony Oliva 1973-07-03 MIN KCR L 6-7 5 5 3 3 3 3 3 DH
5 Harmon Killebrew 1963-09-21 (1) MIN BOS W 13-4 5 5 3 3 3 5 4 LF
6 Bob Allison 1963-05-17 MIN CLE W 11-4 5 5 3 3 3 6 4 RF
Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Play Index Tool Used
Generated 9/6/2016.

Opponents 3 home run games

Rk Player Date Tm Opp Rslt PA AB R H HR RBI BOP Pos Summary
1 Josh Donaldson 2016-08-28 TOR MIN W 9-6 5 4 3 3 3 4 2 3B
2 Alex Rodriguez 2015-07-25 NYY MIN W 8-5 4 4 3 3 3 4 3 DH
3 Curtis Granderson 2012-04-19 NYY MIN W 7-6 5 5 3 5 3 4 2 CF
4 Jose Bautista 2011-05-15 TOR MIN W 11-3 5 5 3 3 3 4 3 RF
5 Evan Longoria 2008-09-18 TBR MIN L 8-11 5 5 3 3 3 4 4 3B
6 Nick Markakis 2006-08-22 BAL MIN W 6-3 4 4 3 3 3 3 2 RF
7 Hee-Seop Choi 2005-06-12 LAD MIN W 4-3 4 4 3 3 3 3 2 1B
8 Ellis Burks 2001-06-19 CLE MIN L 9-10 7 7 3 5 3 3 2 DH
9 Edgar Martinez 1999-05-18 SEA MIN W 10-1 5 5 3 3 3 4 4 DH
10 Ivan Rodriguez 1997-09-11 TEX MIN W 7-0 4 4 3 3 3 5 2 C
11 Geronimo Berroa 1996-08-12 OAK MIN W 11-1 5 5 3 4 3 5 5 RF LF
12 Ernie Young 1996-05-10 OAK MIN W 15-5 6 5 4 4 3 6 1 CF
13 Darnell Coles 1994-07-05 TOR MIN W 14-3 5 5 3 3 3 4 7 3B
14 Juan Gonzalez 1992-06-07 TEX MIN W 5-4 4 4 3 3 3 4 6 CF
15 Dave Henderson 1991-08-03 OAK MIN L 6-8 5 5 3 3 3 3 2 CF
16 Dave Winfield 1991-04-13 CAL MIN W 15-9 6 6 4 5 3 6 4 RF
17 Joe Carter 1989-07-19 CLE MIN W 10-1 5 3 3 3 3 6 4 LF
18 Cory Snyder 1987-05-21 CLE MIN W 6-3 4 4 3 3 3 3 7 RF
19 Harold Baines 1984-09-17 CHW MIN W 7-3 5 4 3 3 3 4 3 RF
20 Doug DeCinces 1982-08-03 CAL MIN L 4-5 5 5 3 3 3 4 2 3B
21 Jeff Burroughs 1981-08-14 (2) SEA MIN W 13-3 5 4 3 3 3 6 6 RF
22 Eddie Murray 1979-08-29 (2) BAL MIN W 7-4 5 5 3 3 3 7 4 1B
23 Al Oliver 1979-05-23 TEX MIN W 7-2 4 4 3 3 3 4 3 CF
24 Bobby Grich 1974-06-18 BAL MIN W 10-1 5 5 3 3 3 6 3 2B
25 Joe Lahoud 1969-06-11 BOS MIN W 13-5 5 5 3 3 3 4 6 RF
26 Tommy McCraw 1967-05-24 CHW MIN W 14-1 6 6 3 3 3 8 4 1B
Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Play Index Tool Used
Generated 9/6/2016.

How rare is 4 XBH in a game?

In yesterday’s Minnesota Twins 6-5 loss to the New York Yankees at Target Field Yankee second baseman Brian Roberts went four for five with four extra base (three doubles and a triple) hits.

You don’t see that too often so it was time for me to see how often this feat has been done by a Twins player in a 9 inning game. Come to find out it has been done only six times by the Twins and the only player to do it twice was the late great Hall of Famer Kirby Puckett.

Puckett 1987 Topps

Rk Player Date Opp Rslt PA AB R H 2B 3B HR XBH RBI Pos Summary
1 Michael Cuddyer 2005-09-21 OAK W 10-4 5 4 2 4 3 0 1 4 4 RF
2 Corey Koskie 2001-07-12 MIL W 13-5 5 5 3 4 2 0 2 4 3 3B
3 Rich Becker 1996-07-13 CLE L 11-19 6 6 3 4 1 1 2 4 6 CF
4 Kirby Puckett 1989-05-13 TOR W 10-8 5 5 1 4 4 0 0 4 3 CF
5 Kirby Puckett 1987-08-30 MIL W 10-6 6 6 4 6 2 0 2 4 4 CF
6 Cesar Tovar 1967-05-21 CAL W 12-3 6 6 3 4 2 0 2 4 4 2B CF
Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Play Index Tool Used
Generated 7/5/2014.

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The most XBH in a regulation nine inning game since 1961 stands at five. The players that accomplished this were Josh Hamilton (TEX) with four HR and a 2B in 2012, Shawn Green (LAD) with four HR and a 2B in 2002, Steve Garvey (LAD) with three 2B and 2 HR in 1977 and Willie Stargell (PIT) with three 2B and 2 HR in 1970. Catcher Kelly Shoppach (CLE) also had three doubles and a 2 HR in 2008 but it was in a 13 extra-inning game. As far as I can tell, no player has ever had more than five XBH in a game going back to 1914.