Today in Sports History: May 23rd

5/22/2002 - Green has his day

Shawn Green’s finest moment as a major leaguer came at Milwaukee’s Miller Park, where he put on one of the greatest batting displays in baseball history. He went 6-6 with four home runs, seven RBI, six runs, and 19 total bases. The four homers tied the record held by thirteen other individuals and the six hits was just one shy of the nine-inning record. The 19 total bases was also a record, beating out Joe Adcock’s 18 back in 1954, and he also tied the record for extra base hits in a game.

“There’s no one in the game that needed it more than I did,” said Green, who came in with a .238 batting average. He had been in the middle of a massive slump and even sat out of several games prior to his performance. “I was getting pretty down.”

After that, Green went on a torrid pace, hitting three more home runs over the next two days and breaking the three-game record. He finished strong, ending the year with 42 home runs and a .285 batting average, and carried the Dodgers back to the playoffs.

As rare as it is for a player to hit four home runs in a game, Seattle’s Mike Cameron hit four longballs just three weeks prior to Green.