Fastball

Chicago Cubs' Slugger Joins Rare Team History of Last 50 Years

The Chicago Cubs beat the Cincinnati Reds on Saturday night as outfielder Seiya Suzuki made some impressive team history with his day at the plate.

Brady Farkas

Jun 1, 2024; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Chicago Cubs outfielder Seiya Suzuki (27) rounds the bases after hitting a grand slam against the Cincinnati Reds during the second inning at Wrigley Field. Mandatory Credit: Kamil Krzaczynski-USA TODAY Sports
Jun 1, 2024; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Chicago Cubs outfielder Seiya Suzuki (27) rounds the bases after hitting a grand slam against the Cincinnati Reds during the second inning at Wrigley Field. Mandatory Credit: Kamil Krzaczynski-USA TODAY Sports / Kamil Krzaczynski-USA TODAY Sports
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The Chicago Cubs beat the Cincinnati Reds on Saturday night, 7-5, to move to 29-30 on the season.

In the win, outfielder Seiya Suzuki had a historic day at the plate, going 2-for-4 with four RBI.

Per Sarah Langs of MLB.com on social media:

Cubs with a HR & triple in first 2 innings of a game, last 50 seasons:

Today Seiya Suzuki
8/4/19 Jason Heyward
5/2/09 Ryan Theriot
7/30/99 Sammy Sosa
7/1/79 Bill Buckner

ALL at Wrigley! baseball!

Not only did Suzuki hit a home run - he hit a game-tying grand slam in the bottom of the second inning which made it 4-4 at the time.

The 29-year-old from Japan is now hitting .265 this season with six homers and 23 RBI. Now in his third season in the United States, he's a lifetime .274 hitter with 40 home runs and 143 career RBI. He signed a five-year deal to come to the Cubs before the 2022 season after a previous career playing in Japan.

In addition to Suzuki's big day, the Cubs also got a home run from Dansby Swanson, which was his fifth of the year.

At 29-30, the Cubs are in second place in the National League Central heading into play on Sunday. The Reds are 25-33, which is good enough for last place.

The two teams will play again on Sunday afternoon at Wrigley Field with first pitch set for 2:20 p.m. ET. Nick Lodolo will get the ball for Cincinnati while rookie Ben Brown pitches for Chicago.

Lodolo is 4-2 with a 3.12 ERA, while Brown is 1-1 with a 2.72.

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Brady Farkas
BRADY FARKAS

Brady Farkas is a baseball writer for Fastball on Sports Illustrated/FanNation and the host of 'The Payoff Pitch' podcast which can be found on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Videos on baseball also posted to YouTube. Brady has spent nearly a decade in sports talk radio and is a graduate of Oswego State University. You can follow him on Twitter @WDEVRadioBrady. 

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