Hitting for the cycle (Redirected from Hit for the cycle)

Curry Foley was the first player in Major League Baseball history to hit for the cycle, in 1882 for the Buffalo Bisons.
Harry Davis hit the first cycle in American League history, in 1901 for the Philadelphia Athletics.

In baseball, hitting for the cycle is the accomplishment of one batter who hits a single, a double, a triple, and a home run in the same game. Collecting the hits in that order is known as a "natural cycle". Cycles are rare in Major League Baseball (MLB), having occurred only 344 times, starting with Curry Foley in 1882. The most recent cycle in MLB was accomplished by José Altuve of the Houston Astros on August 28, 2023.

Rarity

The cycle is about as uncommon as a no-hitter; it has been called "one of the rarest" and "most difficult feats" in baseball. Based on 2009 offensive levels, the probability of an average MLB player hitting for a cycle against an average team in a game is about 0.0059%; this corresponds to about 212 cycles in a 162-game season with 30 teams. The most cycles hit in a single major league season is eight, which occurred in both 1933 and 2009.

In other baseball leagues, the cycle is achieved less frequently. Through June 2022, there have been 76 cycles hit in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB), the top-level baseball organization in Japan, most recently by Yasutaka Shiomi on September 18, 2021. One NPB player, Atsuya Furuta, has hit for the cycle in an NPB All-Star game. No player has ever hit for the cycle in the MLB All-Star Game. One MLB player has hit for the cycle in a postseason game: Brock Holt of the Boston Red Sox in Game 3 of the 2018 ALDS.

Two players have hit for the cycle on the same day once in NPB history; this has occurred twice in MLB history. There have never been multiple cycles completed in a single MLB or NPB game; this is known to have occurred twice in Minor League Baseball: on April 11, 2018, by Gio Brusa and Jalen Miller of the Class A-Advanced San Jose Giants, and on August 7, 2018, by Kevin Newman and Jacob Stallings of the Triple-A Indianapolis Indians.

Components

Michihiro Ogasawara hit the only cycle during the 2008 Nippon Professional Baseball season.

Single

Under Major League Baseball Rule 6.09(a), the "batter becomes a runner when he hits a fair ball". The single—in which the batter reaches first base without being put out, and without the benefit of a fielding error—is the most common type of hit in baseball: for example, there were 25,838 singles hit during the 1988 MLB season, compared to 6,386 doubles, 840 triples, or 3,180 home runs. The MLB leader in singles is Pete Rose, who is also the league's all-time hit leader. The single-season leader in singles is Ichiro Suzuki, who broke Willie Keeler's 106-year-old record in 2004 by notching 225, 19 more than the previous record. None of the top five players in singles (Rose, Ty Cobb, Eddie Collins, Cap Anson, and Keeler) in MLB history have hit for the cycle; of those five, only Rose had more than 150 home runs, and two (Collins and Keeler), who both played during the dead-ball era, had fewer than 50, lessening the probability of their completing the cycle.

Double

A double is a hit in which the batter reaches second base without being put out, and without the benefit of a fielding error. This scenario often occurs when a ball is hit into the gaps between the outfielders, or down the foul line on either side of the playing field. Tris Speaker is the all-time leader in doubles in MLB history, with 792, one of which was part of a cycle; Speaker accomplished the feat for the Boston Red Sox on June 9, 1912, against the St. Louis Browns. Two of the other top five players in MLB history in doubles have hit for the cycle: Stan Musial (725 doubles; third all-time) completed the cycle on July 24, 1949; and Craig Biggio (668; fifth all-time) accomplished the feat on April 8, 2002. The single-season MLB leader is Earl Webb, the left-handed outfielder who hit 67 in 1931.

Triple

Sam Crawford and Ty Cobb, the top two players in MLB history in triples

The triple, in which the batter reaches third base without being put out and without the benefit of a fielding error, is the "hardest part of a cycle" to complete. Triples are often hit to the same areas as doubles, but may require impressive speed by the runner. It is rare to see a player with slower-than-average running speed complete the cycle, but it has happened, such as when catcher Bengie Molina hit for the cycle on July 16, 2010; Molina described himself as "the [slowest] guy in baseball" earlier that season. The MLB all-time leader in triples is Sam Crawford, with 309; he never hit for the cycle. Of the top five players in MLB history in triples, two have hit for the cycle: Honus Wagner in 1912 and Roger Connor in 1890. Chief Wilson hit for the cycle in 1910, two years before he hit for a record 36 triples in a single season.

Home run

A home run is a hit in which the batter reaches home plate, scoring a run on the same play without being put out, and without the benefit of a fielding error. Most often in modern baseball, this occurs when the batter hits the ball over the outfield wall in fair territory. Home-run hitters are commonly believed to be larger, slower players due to their strength, and may not be fast enough to complete the triple. The MLB single-season and all-time leader in home runs is Barry Bonds, who hit 73 home runs in the 2001 season and notched 762 in his 22-season career. Bonds never hit for the cycle. Among the MLB leaders in career home runs, the highest-ranking player with a cycle is Alex Rodriguez (fifth all-time; retired in 2016 with 696 home runs), who hit for the cycle on June 5, 1997. Home runs can also occur on a batted ball that does not leave the field of play; this is called an inside-the-park home run. Inside-the-park home runs are rare, and no player has hit one as part of a cycle since 1943.

Accomplishments

Major League Baseball

Multiple cycles

Bob Meusel is one of only six MLB players with three career cycles.

The most career cycles hit by an MLB player is three, accomplished by six players:

MLB players with three cycles in their career
Years Player Team League Ref.
1883 1883   John Reilly Cincinnati Red Stockings American Association
    1890 Cincinnati Reds National League
1921 1922 1928 Bob Meusel New York Yankees American League
1931 1931   Babe Herman Brooklyn Robins National League
    1933 Chicago Cubs
2008     Adrián Beltré Seattle Mariners American League
  2012 2015 Texas Rangers
2017 2019 2021 Trea Turner Washington Nationals National League
2018 2018 2022 Christian Yelich Milwaukee Brewers National League

All of Beltré's cycles occurred at Globe Life Park in Arlington; he is the only player to hit for the cycle with different teams in the same ballpark. All of Yelich's cycles were hit against the Cincinnati Reds; he is the only player to hit for the cycle three times against the same team.

Christian Yelich is the most recent player to hit for the cycle twice in a season, in 2018.

Forty-four players have hit for the cycle at least twice. Five have hit for the cycle twice in one season:

MLB players with two cycles in a season
Year Player Team League Ref.
1883 John Reilly Cincinnati Reds American Association
1887 Tip O'Neill St. Louis Brown Stockings American Association
1931 Babe Herman Brooklyn Robins National League
2012 Aaron Hill Arizona Diamondbacks National League
2018 Christian Yelich Milwaukee Brewers National League

One player has hit for the cycle twice against the same team in one season: Christian Yelich against the Cincinnati Reds in 2018.

Cycles have occurred on the same day twice in MLB history; on September 17, 1920, by Bobby Veach of the Detroit Tigers and George Burns of the New York Giants; and on September 1, 2008, by the Arizona Diamondbacks' Stephen Drew and the Seattle Mariners' Adrián Beltré. The longest period of time between two players hitting for the cycle was 5 years, 1 month, and 10 days, a drought lasting from Bill Joyce's cycle in 1896 to Harry Davis's in 1901.

Bobby Veach with arms akimbo
George Burns looking to the left of the image
Bobby Veach (left) and George Burns (right) hit for the cycle on the same day, September 17, 1920.

Natural cycles

The natural cycle, in which the hits come in order from fewest to most total bases (single, double, triple, home run), has been accomplished 15 times in MLB history:

The only natural cycle by a member of the New York Yankees was hit by Tony Lazzeri in 1932.
MLB players who have hit natural cycles
Year Player Team League Ref.
1883 Lon Knight Philadelphia Athletics American Association
1910 Bill Collins Boston Doves National League
1926 Bob Fothergill Detroit Tigers American League
1932 Tony Lazzeri New York Yankees American League
1939 Charlie Gehringer Detroit Tigers American League
1943 Leon Culberson Boston Red Sox American League
1963 Jim Hickman New York Mets National League
1964 Ken Boyer St. Louis Cardinals National League
1966 Billy Williams Chicago Cubs National League
1976 Tim Foli Montreal Expos National League
1979 Bob Watson Boston Red Sox American League
1996 John Mabry St. Louis Cardinals National League
2000 José Valentín Chicago White Sox American League
2003 Brad Wilkerson Montreal Expos National League
2006 Gary Matthews Jr. Texas Rangers American League

Reverse cycles

The natural cycle has been accomplished in reverse (home run, triple, double, single)—also known as an "unnatural" cycle—ten times:

Luke Scott's reverse cycle in 2006 was the first in nearly 40 years.
MLB players who have hit reverse cycles
Year Player Team League Ref.
1885 Henry Larkin Philadelphia Athletics American Association
1887 Bid McPhee Cincinnati Red Stockings American Association
1904 Sam Mertes New York Giants National League
1937 Gee Walker Detroit Tigers American League
1939 Arky Vaughan Pittsburgh Pirates National League
1948 Jackie Robinson Brooklyn Dodgers National League
1968 Jim Fregosi California Angels American League
2006 Luke Scott Houston Astros National League
2008 Carlos Gómez Minnesota Twins American League
2016 Rajai Davis Cleveland Indians American League

Other accomplishments

Miguel Tejada's cycle included a grand slam.

Nine players have hit a grand slam as part of their cycle:

MLB players hitting a grand slam in their cycle
Year Player Team League Ref.
1882 Curry Foley Buffalo Bisons National League
1901 Nap Lajoie Philadelphia Athletics American League
1928 Bill Terry New York Giants National League
1932 Tony Lazzeri New York Yankees American League
1933 Jimmie Foxx Philadelphia Athletics American League
1993 Jay Buhner Seattle Mariners American League
2001 Miguel Tejada Oakland Athletics American League
2009 Jason Kubel Minnesota Twins American League
2010 Bengie Molina Texas Rangers American League
George Brett completed his cycle with a walk-off home run.

Six players have had a walk-off home run as the final hit of their cycles:

MLB players hitting a walk-off home run to complete their cycle
Year Player Team League Ref.
1961 Ken Boyer St. Louis Cardinals National League
1972 César Tovar Minnesota Twins American League
1979 George Brett Kansas City Royals American League
1984 Dwight Evans Boston Red Sox American League
2010 Carlos González Colorado Rockies National League
2017 Nolan Arenado Colorado Rockies National League
Ian Kinsler went 6-for-6 on the day of his cycle.

Ten players have collected six hits in the game in which they hit their cycle. Only three of these—by Larry Twitchell, Sam Thompson, and Ian Kinsler—were accomplished in a nine-inning game in the American League or National League.

MLB players with six hits in their cycle game
Year Player Team League Ref.
1883 John Reilly Cincinnati Red Stockings American Association
1885 Dave Orr New York Metropolitans American Association
1885 Henry Larkin Philadelphia Athletics American Association
1889 Larry Twitchell Cleveland Spiders National League
1890 Farmer Weaver Louisville Colonels American Association
1894 Sam Thompson Philadelphia Phillies National League
1920 Bobby Veach Detroit Tigers American League
1995 Rondell White Montreal Expos National League
2009 Ian Kinsler Texas Rangers American League
2018 Christian Yelich Milwaukee Brewers National League

† indicates an extra-innings game (Yelich collected his six hits in the first nine innings of a 10-inning game.)

Kinsler's six-hit cycle came on Jackie Robinson Day, honoring the African-American pioneer who had hit for the cycle in 1948.

In 1901, Nap Lajoie hit for the cycle and won the AL Triple Crown.

The most recent player to hit for the cycle with an inside-the-park home run was Leon Culberson in 1943.

The earliest in a game that a cycle has been completed is the fourth inning, accomplished by Mike Lansing of the Colorado Rockies on June 18, 2000, when he had a first-inning triple, second-inning homer, third-inning double, and fourth-inning single.

Four batters hit for the cycle in the same season in which they won the Triple Crown; Nap Lajoie (AL, 1901), Jimmie Foxx (AL, 1933), Chuck Klein (NL, 1933), and Lou Gehrig (AL, 1934). Gehrig is the only player to complete the MLB Triple Crown in his cycle-hitting season, leading both leagues in batting average, home runs, and runs batted in.

Five players have hit for the cycle in the same season in which they won a Most Valuable Player (MVP) award; Jimmie Foxx in 1933, Ted Williams in 1946, Mickey Mantle in 1957, and both Mookie Betts and Christian Yelich in 2018.

Three players — John Olerud, Michael Cuddyer, and Bob Watson — have hit for the cycle in both the National League and American League.

Three family pairs have hit for the cycle; father and son Gary Ward (1980) and Daryle Ward (2004), grandfather and grandson Gus Bell (1951) and David Bell (2004), and father and son Craig Biggio (2002) and Cavan Biggio (2019).

Two players have hit cycles both for and against the same team; Joe Cronin against (1929) and for (1940) the Red Sox, and Adrián Beltré against (2008) and for (2012, 2015) the Rangers.

One player, Brock Holt of the Boston Red Sox, hit for the cycle in a postseason game: Game 3 of the 2018 ALDS, on October 8, 2018, against the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium.

On September 19, 2021, Eddie Rosario of the Atlanta Braves hit for the cycle on five pitches, the smallest number since at least 1900.

Nippon Professional Baseball

Multiple cycles

Arihito Muramatsu is one of five players to hit a natural cycle in NPB.

During his eight seasons playing for the Yokohama BayStars, Bobby Rose hit for three cycles, the most of any Nippon Professional Baseball player. Spaced two seasons apart, his first cycle occurred on May 2, 1995, the next on April 29, 1997, and his final cycle on June 30, 1999. Three NPB players have hit for the cycle twice; Fumio Fujimura (both with the Osaka Tigers), Hiromi Matsunaga (both with the Hankyu/Orix Braves), and Kosuke Fukudome (one with the Chunichi Dragons, and one with the Hanshin Tigers). Fujimura is also the only player to have hit a cycle during both the single league era and the current dual league era.

The 2003 NPB season saw the most cycles hit in a single season—five. That season also saw the only instance of cycles occurring on the same day: on July 1, hit by Atsunori Inaba of the Yakult Swallows and Arihito Muramatsu of the Fukuoka Daiei Hawks. The next day, Shinjiro Hiyama became the third player to hit for the cycle in two days. Conversely, the longest period of time between two players hitting for the cycle was 5 years, 11 months, and 30 days, a drought lasting from Michihiro Ogasawara's cycle in 2008 to Rainel Rosario's in 2014.

Natural cycles

The natural cycle has been accomplished five times in NPB history. Fumio Fujimura's second cycle on May 25, 1950, was the first time a player collected the hits in order. On average, the natural cycle occurs approximately every 13 years. Other than Fujimura, the four players to hit for the natural cycle are Kazuhiko Kondo in 1961, Takahiro Tokutsu in 1976, Takanori Okamura in 1985, and Muramatsu in 2003. The natural cycle has been accomplished in reverse by Alex Ochoa (2004) and Rosario (2014).

Other related accomplishments

Yakult Swallows catcher Atsuya Furuta is the only player to hit for the cycle in an NPB All-Star game, doing so in game 2 of the 1992 series. Inaba is the only player to hit for the cycle in a rain-shortened game—after hitting a triple in the first inning and hitting a home run in the fourth, Inaba collected the other two necessary hits in a seven-run fifth inning when the order batted around. Kosuke Fukudome is the only NPB player to have hit a grand slam as the home run of the cycle. Hiroshi Ohshita and Kazuhiko Kondo are the only two players to have hit a walk-off home run to win the game as the final hit of their cycles.

Ochoa's cycle with the Chunichi Dragons on April 13, 2004, made him the first (and to date, only) player to hit a cycle in both MLB and NPB. He had previously accomplished the feat on July 3, 1996, while playing for MLB's New York Mets.

KBO League

Multiple cycles

Eric Thames hit for the cycle twice during the 2015 season of the KBO League.

See also

  • Home run cycle, when a player hits a solo home run, two-run home run, three-run home run, and grand slam all in one game

This page was last updated at 2023-12-12 17:37 UTC. Update now. View original page.

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