Baltimore Orioles: Two Grand Slams in One Game

There are several rare statistics in MLB, and the Baltimore Orioles are near the top of the small pile when it comes to hitting two Grand Slams in one game.

In fact, when it comes to teams with players who have hit two Grand Slams in one game, the Baltimore Orioles come in second to the Boston Red Sox. Considering that the Orioles did not join the league until 1954, this record is truly impressive.

So, what’s the story on the double-Grand-Slam games?

The Orioles have three of 13. They were hit in 1961, 1970, and 1998. These feats are so rare, that in the MLB, the last one happened in 2009 when Josh Willingham of the Washington Nationals hit two against the Milwaukee Brewers at Miller Park. He hit one in the 5th and one in the 6th.

Another unique statistic relating is that only one player has hit TWO in ONE inning: Fernando Tatis did it in 1999 against the Dodgers Chan Ho Park in the 3rd inning.

Fortunately, no one has hit two Grand Slams in any game against the Baltimore Orioles. The three men who hit them for the Orioles did it against the Minnesota Twins, Washington Senators, and Cleveland Indians. Interestingly, all of them were hit at away games. Considering that Oriole Park at Camden Yards is considered a home-run-friendly park, there is something to be said about the feat never happening at a home game.

The first double-Grand-Slam game belongs to Jim Gentile, who did it on May 9, 1961. That season he batted .302/.423/.646 with 46 home runs and 141 RBI. On May 9, the final score was 13-5 and Gentile actually had 9 RBI! His first Grand Slam was a bomb to center in the 1st inning. His second was in the second inning and went to right field. His ninth RBI came off of a sac fly in the 8th. He batted fourth in the game, and completely delivered on his clean-up role.

The second double-Grand-Slam game came from the bat of Frank Robinson on June 26, 1970 – a World-Series-winning year. Robinson hit .306/.398/.520 with 25 home runs and 78 RBI. He hit his two Grand Slams against the Senators at RFK Stadium under the lights. The final score was 12-2. Interestingly, the night before, the O’s had another big scoring night in a 13-8 win over the Red Sox.

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In the June 26 game, Robinson batted third and went 2-4 with the two home runs and a walk. He hit the first one in the fifth, after a walk, single, and walk loaded the bases. He hit the next one in the 6th. Both went to left-center.

The third double-Granny game came from Chris Hoiles on August 14, 1998. He hit .262/.358/.476 with 15 home runs and 56 RBI. The final score was a blowout of 15-3 against the Indians at Jacobs Field. He went 3 for 5 that day, and batted in the eight hole. His first home run came in the 3rd with one out. His second came in the 8th inning.

With baseball players hitting so many home runs today, it comes as no surprise that this feat hasn’t been replicated since 2009.