Baseball: wakefield gives up 6 home runs, ties record

Wakefield ties record for homers allowed in a game


August 8, 2004
DETROIT (AP) -- Tim Wakefield gave up six homers Sunday against the Detroit Tigers, tying a modern major league record last set 64 years ago.

Wakefield started for the Boston Red Sox at spacious Comerica Park and allowed two homers to Ivan Rodriguez and one each to Craig Monroe, Eric Munson, Carlos Pena and Dmitri Young. The knuckleballer left after five innings with a 10-7 lead.

Of course, the most famous home run Wakefield has given up was Aaron Boone's game-winning shot in Game 7 of the AL championship series last October.

He is the sixth pitcher since 1900 to yield six homers in a game, but the first since George Caster of the Philadelphia Athletics against the Red Sox on Sept. 24, 1940. The others were Larry Benton of the New York Giants (1930), Brooklyn's Hollis Thurston (1932), Wayman Kerksieck of the Philadelphia Phillies (1939) and Al Thomas of the St. Louis Browns (1936).

The previous Red Sox record was five, by Hall of Famer Dennis Eckersley in 1979 and Wakefield in 1996.

In 1886, Charlie Sweeney of the St. Louis Maroons in the National League gave up seven homers in a game, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.