Historic Chases · 2026-04-09 RECONSTRUCTED

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Nightly briefing

Baseball last night

Games of 2026-04-09

Xander Bogaerts hit a WALK-OFF GRAND SLAM — happens only a handful of times a season ▶︎ watch.

Andy Pages is hitting OVER .400. Needs a .400 clip the rest of the way to finish at .400.

Andy Pages sits at .413 — the last .400 season was Ted Williams in 1941.

History movers: Xavier Edwards — Hits: 19 now, pace 237, record 262 (Ichiro Suzuki) · Shea Langeliers — Home Runs: 5 now, pace 68, record 73 (Barry Bonds).

Lines of the night: Jeffrey Springs carried a NO-HITTER into the 7th — broken up by a single ▶︎ watch; Garrett Acton earned his FIRST career win; Willi Castro struck out 5 times — the 'platinum sombrero' — a 5-strikeout game happens only a few times a season ▶︎ watch.

The so-what: through 13 team games, Drake Baldwin sits 1 HR behind Bonds' 73-homer pace (6 at this point). That's the number that decides whether this season becomes a chase or a footnote.

That morning's stakes

What we were watching

MUST TRACK: CJ Abrams is on a 50/50 pace — 4 HR / 4 SB, projecting to 54/54. Only one player has ever done it — Shohei Ohtani's 54/59 in 2024. Every game matters from here.

The .400 burndown: Andy Pages carries a .413 average into today; a .400 finish takes a .400 clip the rest of the way (230-for-575). A 3-for-4 tonight lowers the requirement to .398; an 0-for-4 raises it to .403.

On this date in 2021, Joe Musgrove of the Padres threw a no-hitter.

30/30 watch: CJ Abrams sits at 4 HR / 4 SB — 26 homers short and 26 steals short of a 30/30 season, projecting to 54/54.

Historical intelligence

How the night stacked up

Pace through history

Drake Baldwin versus the great home-run seasons

Drake Baldwin has 5 home runs through 13 team games, 2 behind Mark McGwire's 1998 pace at the same checkpoint (7). Comparable chases finished with a median of 28; 1.9% reached 50 and 0.4% reached 60 (n=2054).

Retrosheet · verified play-by-play

If the pace holds

A projected top-1 season

If Taylor Ward finishes at the current projection of 122, it would be the most doubles in any season since 1901 — no season on record has finished higher.

SABR Lahman Baseball Database · through 2021

Franchise pressure

A franchise record is under pressure

The single-season record is 54 home runs, set by Ralph Kiner in 1949. Oneil Cruz projects to 54 and projects to tie it.

SABR Lahman Baseball Database · through 2021

Only X seasons ever

Drake Baldwin is building a rare combination

At his current pace, Drake Baldwin would reach at least .320 AVG, 60 HR, and 150 RBI. Only 2 completed seasons in the configured historical cohort reached every mark. The recent company includes Sammy Sosa (2001), Babe Ruth (1927).

SABR Lahman Baseball Database · through 2021

Closest to .400