No history was made last night, but the box scores still talked: José Tena hit his first home run of the season — in his game No. 21 ▶︎ watch; Paxton Schultz earned his FIRST career save ▶︎ watch.
Historic Chases · 2026-04-26 RECONSTRUCTED
Nightly briefing
Baseball last night
Ernie Clement has 13 doubles — projecting to 78, +2 vs Earl Webb's 67 pace. That pace would be the most doubles in any season since 1901. Needs 37 more to reach 50.
Ildemaro Vargas sits at .367 — the last .400 season was Ted Williams in 1941.
History movers: Mike Trout, after homering — Franchise Home Runs: 9 now, pace 50.3, record 47 (Troy Glaus) · Xavier Edwards — Batting Average: record 0.406 (Ted Williams); Hits: 36 now, pace 208, record 262 (Ichiro Suzuki).
Lines of the night: Tim Tawa hit his first home run of the season — in his game No. 16 ▶︎ watch; Graham Pauley hit his first home run of the season — in his game No. 22 ▶︎ watch; Lane Thomas hit his first home run of the season — in his game No. 22 ▶︎ watch; Bobby Witt Jr. hit his first home run of the season — in his game No. 28 ▶︎ watch.
The so-what: through 29 team games, Yordan Alvarez sits 2 HR behind Bonds' 73-homer pace (13 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: Oneil Cruz is on a 40/40 pace — 8 HR / 10 SB, projecting to 46/58. Only five players have ever done it: Canseco, Bonds, A-Rod, Soriano, and Ohtani. Every game matters from here.
The .400 burndown: Ildemaro Vargas carries a .367 average into today; a .400 finish takes a .408 clip the rest of the way (161-for-395). A 3-for-4 tonight lowers the requirement to .404; an 0-for-4 raises it to .412.
On this date in 1997, Roberto Alomar hit 3 home runs in one game.
30/30 watch: Oneil Cruz sits at 8 HR / 10 SB — 22 homers short and 20 steals short of a 30/30 season, projecting to 46/58.
Historical intelligence
How the night stacked up
Yordan Alvarez versus the great home-run seasons
Yordan Alvarez has 11 home runs through 29 team games, 3 behind Barry Bonds's 2001 pace at the same checkpoint (14). Comparable chases finished with a median of 34; 5.5% reached 50 and 1% reached 60 (n=477).
Retrosheet · verified play-by-playA projected top-1 season
If Taylor Ward finishes at the current projection of 75, it would be the most doubles in any season since 1901 — no season on record has finished higher.
SABR Lahman Baseball Database · through 2021A franchise record is under pressure
The single-season record is 52 home runs, set by George Foster in 1977. Sal Stewart projects to 52 and projects to tie it.
SABR Lahman Baseball Database · through 2021Yordan Alvarez is building a rare combination
At his current pace, Yordan Alvarez would reach at least 60 HR, and 125 RBI. Only 8 completed seasons in the configured historical cohort reached every mark. The recent company includes Barry Bonds (2001), Sammy Sosa (2001), Mark McGwire (1999).
SABR Lahman Baseball Database · through 2021Closest to .400
.367AVG
5 consecutive hits needed to reach .400
LONG SHOT
Home Run Leader
11HR
61 projected HR · 2 behind Bonds's 73 pace
Hits Leader
38H
212 projected H · 9 behind Suzuki's 262 pace
Stolen Base Leader
13SB
73 projected SB · 10 behind Henderson's 130 pace
Doubles Leader
132B
78 projected 2B · +2 vs Webb's 67 pace
Triples Leader
43B
24 projected 3B · 2 behind Wilson's 36 pace
Triple Crown Watch (MLB)
.358· 11 HR · 26 RBI
2 / 1 / 2 in AVG/HR/RBI league ranks — full board on the Watch page
30/30 Club Pace
8/10HR/SB
46/58 projected HR/SB · team-game pace · 10 others in the hunt
ON PACE
Wins Leader (Team)
Braves
20W
112 projected wins · record 116
NEAR PACE
Run Differential Leader
Dodgers
+67
+388 projected run differential