MLB hitters slug playoff-record 21 HRs Monday, smash mark for runs scored
From Carlos Correa to Yoenis Cespedes, baseball's sluggers put on quite a show.
There were 21 home runs Monday, a record for one day in postseason play. The last was a three-run shot by Howie Kendrick in the ninth inning for the Los Angeles Dodgers in their NL Division Series game against the New York Mets.
Correa hit two of Houston's four homers against Kansas City, and the Chicago Cubs hit a postseason-record six home runs in their victory over St. Louis.
Cubs rookie Kris Bryant, who hit a two-run shot off Michael Wacha, found it hard to count all the home runs in that game.
"Everybody is smiling, obviously," Bryant said. "It's fun when you hit, what was it, I think it was six home runs or something."
Three of Toronto's first eight batters homered in an ALDS win at Texas, and Cespedes highlighted New York's 13-7 win over the Dodgers by crushing a three-run shot.
"It's really cool to see," said the Mets' Travis d'Arnaud, who hit a two-run homer. "It's good for the fan base."
While this is an era of pitching and defense, Mets manager Terry Collins is a fan of the long ball.
"When we hit home runs, we think we got a big chance to win," he said. "It's all about trying to get on base, and then have somebody up there that can hit something into the seats."
The 61 runs scored Monday also set a postseason record.
The previous postseason record for home runs was 15 on Oct. 3, 1995, according to STATS. Like Monday, there were four postseason games on that day 20 years ago.
