Brent Rooker, Lawrence Butler Spark Oakland Athletics' Historic Home Run Parade
![Jul 14, 2024; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Oakland Athletics outfielder Brent Rooker (25) hits a two-run home run against the Philadelphia Phillies during the sixth inning at Citizens Bank Park. Jul 14, 2024; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Oakland Athletics outfielder Brent Rooker (25) hits a two-run home run against the Philadelphia Phillies during the sixth inning at Citizens Bank Park.](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_crop,w_3910,h_2199,x_0,y_231/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/images/ImagnImages/mmsport/fastball/01j2sfjdq3w8hfwavb6g.jpg)
The Oakland Athletics put every last ounce of their power on display Sunday against the Philadelphia Phillies.
It started in the fourth inning, when Brent Rooker blasted a go-ahead, two-run home run to center. That ball traveled 450 feet, and it wasn't even his furthest hit of the afternoon.
Lawrence Butler kept the ball rolling with a 429-foot solo shot in the top of the fifth, then he passed the baton right back to Rooker. The designated hitter crushed a 452-foot bomb in the sixth, again to straightaway center.
According to MLB.com's Sarah Langs, Rooker became the seventh player with two home runs of 450-plus feet in the same game since the Statcast era began in 2015.
Brent Rooker is the 7th player with 2 450+ ft HR in a game under Statcast (since 2015), joining:
— Sarah Langs (@SlangsOnSports) July 14, 2024
4/27/24 Yordan Alvarez
6/22/23 Byron Buxton
5/25/23 Austin Riley
9/13/19 Willson Contreras
5/12/19 Charlie Blackmon
9/5/18 Trevor Story https://t.co/f51zacbLjP
Just two batters later, Seth Brown got in on the action with a solo homer of his own.
The A's next home run came from Butler, who barely got his fly ball to clear the left field fence in the seventh. Brown then jacked his second of the day in the top of the eighth.
Before the inning was over, Butler came back up to the plate and crushed a 449-foot no-doubter to right-center. It was his third home run of the day, and Oakland's seventh as a team.
Not 1️⃣
— Oakland A's (@Athletics) July 14, 2024
Not 2️⃣
But 3️⃣ Lawrence Butler home runs today pic.twitter.com/wtAh9zDXay
Zack Gelof put the finishing touches on the A's 18-3 win, blasting a grand slam in the top of the ninth.
The eight home runs marked the franchise's most in a single game since June 27, 1996. As noted by MLB analyst Ryan M. Spaeder, the A's became the first MLB team to homer eight times in a game since the Los Angeles Dodgers on July 10, 2010.
On top of that, the Athletics became the first team to have a player hit three home runs, plus two other players record multi-home run games, since the Toronto Blue Jays on Sept. 14, 1987. Underdog Fantasy's Justin Havens added that it was the first time the Athletics had ever had three players hit multiple homers in a single game.
The #Athletics are the first team to have a player with a three homer game and two others with a multi-homer game since the #BlueJays on Sept. 14, 1987.
— Ryan M. Spaeder (@theaceofspaeder) July 14, 2024
Oakland: Lawrence Butler (3), Brent Rooker (2), and Seth Brown (2)
Toronto: Ernie Whitt (3), Rance Mulliniks (2), George Bell…
Oakland has now scored 18-plus runs in three separate games this season. No one else has even done so once, per Havens.
Rooker leads the Athletics with 21 home runs and 62 this season. He is now batting .291 with a .942 OPS.
As for Butler and Brown, they entered Sunday with 11 home runs and 35 RBI on the season between them. Their sudden power surges helped Oakland improve to 37-61 in blowout fashion, giving them their best record at the All-Star break since 2021.
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