Hunter Goodman has been one of the more delightful developments for the Colorado Rockies over the last two seasons. The power has been unreal as he has emerged as not just one of the best sluggers in franchise history, but also one of the best sluggers in all of baseball.
This season has seen Goodman take his game to new heights as he chases down Johnny Bench’s single-season home run record for a National League catcher (45), as well as a potential shot at becoming the first Rockie with 50 home runs
in a season. Last Sunday, Goodman founded a brand new club for the Rockies as he became the first player to hit three home runs in a game multiple times in a single season, having done it the first time a few weeks ago in Minnesota.
Over the course of franchise history, the Rockies have had a player hit three home runs in a game 22 times, with 17 total players accomplishing the feat. With all of this fresh on the mind, let’s take a trip down memory lane to remember these incredible performances.
Andres Galarraga (1995)
It wasn’t until the Rockies’ third season of existence that a player hit three home runs in a game, and it’s only right that it was the Big Cat himself, Andres Galarraga.
Facing the San Diego Padres on the road on June 25, 1995, the game was relatively low-scoring, as the Rockies held a 2-1 lead heading into the sixth inning. After being walked in his first two at-bats, Galarraga unloaded on a 3-2 offering from Scott Sanders for his first home run of the day to drive in two. In the seventh inning, he greeted a 1-1 pitch from Willie Blair with another blast to left field for his second homer, a two-run shot. Then, facing Fernando Valenzuela in the eighth inning, Galarraga launched his third home run of the day down the left-field line for three runs, his 12th overall on the season.
The Rockies ended up winning the game 11-3 with Galarraga going 3-for-3 with seven RBI.
Larry Walker (1997, 1999, 2004)
Larry Walker, the only player in franchise history to hit three home runs in a game three times, had prodigious power that contributed to his enshrinement in the Hall of Fame.
His first time came on April 5, 1997, on the road against the Montreal Expos. Facing his former team with a 6-0 lead, the future MVP launched a fourth-inning solo home run off Anthony Telford. Two innings later, Walker sent a 1-2 pitch from Omar Daal to right field for another solo home run. Then, future Rockie Dave Veres surrendered another solo home run to Walker in the seventh inning as the Rockies went on to win 15-3 and he went 4-for-5 with five RBI.
The next instance for Walker came on April 28, 1999, at Busch Stadium II. He kicked things off with a three-run homer in the first inning, followed by another one in the second inning, both off future Rockie José Jiménez. Walker proved to be the difference-maker in a close game in the seventh inning when he delivered a two-run home run off Scott Radinsky to give the Rockies an eventual 9-7 win as he went 4-for-5 with eight RBI.
Before he was traded to St. Louis five years later, Walker still had plenty of highlights with the Rockies, one of which came on June 25, 2004. Facing the Cleveland Indians on the road, Walker belted a couple of solo home runs off starting pitcher Jason Davis in the second and sixth innings. The game went into extra innings tied 8-8, and Walker broke the tie with a two-run home run in the top of the 10th against his now-former teammate José Jiménez.
Walker went 4-for-4 with five RBI as the Rockies won 10-8.
Mike Lansing (1998)
Perhaps a forgotten Rockie by most, Mike Lansing had a solid first season in Colorado in 1998.
While he’s best known for his historic four-inning cycle in 2000, Lansing became just the third Rockie to hit three home runs in a game, and the first to do so at Coors Field. Facing the Arizona Diamondbacks on September 22, 1998, Lansing collected his first two home runs against starting pitcher Omar Daal, including a two-run shot in the sixth inning. His third homer came as a solo shot in the eighth inning against Aaron Small.
Despite Lansing going 3-for-4 with four RBI, the Rockies played from behind the whole game and lost 8-6.
Vinny Castilla (1999)
There are plenty of exciting Rockies moments for the legend Vinny Castilla, and his three-home-run performance came on June 5, 1999, at home against the Milwaukee Brewers. Leading off the second inning against Hideo Nomo, Castilla hit a two-run shot the opposite way. Castilla delivered another opposite-field home run in the seventh, a solo shot, off Rafael Roque to get the Rockies back within three runs. In the next inning, with the score tied 11-11, Castilla turned on a pitch from Eric Plunk to put the Rockies up 12-11 as they held on for the win in the ninth. Castilla went 4-for-5 with five RBI.
Todd Helton (2000, 2003)
The early 2000s were legendary for Todd Helton as the Hall of Famer showcased the damage he could do at the plate.
On May 1, 2000, at Coors Field, Helton put the hurt on the Expos in an eventual 15-8 Rockies victory. In the third and fifth innings, Helton launched a pair of two-run home runs against Dustin Hermanson, the second of which gave the Rockies an 8-7 lead. Then, up by seven in the seventh, Helton sent an Anthony Telford offering to deep right field to cap off the scoring for Colorado. He ended up going 4-for-5 with five RBI.
The next instance came on May 29, 2003, against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Coors Field. Facing starting pitcher Odalis Pérez, Helton hit a two-run homer in the first inning, followed by a solo shot in the third. With the Rockies up 10-5 in the eighth inning, Helton added another two-run homer off Éric Gagné to fuel the Rockies’ 12-5 victory as he went 4-for-5 with six RBI.
Jeff Cirillo (2000)
In another classic Coors Field slug fest, the Rockies would need every bit of production from the offense, and Jeff Cirillo delivered the goods on June 28, 2000. Facing the San Francisco Giants, Cirillo’s first two home runs came against future Rockie Liván Hernández, a two-run shot in the third and a solo shot in the fifth. The Rockies eventually tied the game 12-12 when Cirillo stepped up to the plate in the eighth against John Johnstone, and he promptly hit a go-ahead solo home run.
The Rockies went on to win 17-13 with Cirillo going 4-for-5 with six RBI and being named an All-Star not long after.
Todd Hollandsworth (2001)
Mostly a fourth outfielder type during a mostly successful three-season stint in Colorado, when on the field, Todd Hollandsworth delivered a memorable performance on April 15, 2001, despite only playing 33 games that season. Facing the Arizona Diamondbacks at Coors Field, Hollandsworth collected his first home run in the bottom of the sixth inning, a two-run shot off Curt Schilling. In the eighth inning, with the game tied 5-5, Hollandsworth put the Rockies ahead with a two-run shot off Greg Swindell. The Diamondbacks tied it up 7-7 and the game went to the bottom of the 10th, where Hollandsworth delivered a three-run, walk-off homer against Matt Mantei to win 10-7. He went 3-for-7 with seven RBI.
José Ortiz (2001)
How many guesses would it take you to land on José Ortiz as one of the Rockies to hit three home runs in a game?
After joining the club via trade at the end of July, Ortiz hit three of his 14 career home runs (all with Colorado) in a single game on August 10, 2001. Facing the Florida Marlins at Coors Field, Ortiz launched a two-run home run off Ryan Dempster in the fifth inning. Ortiz then added a solo shot against Vladimir Núñez in the sixth to extend the lead to 10-5. His third home run came in the eighth inning when he sent a 3-1 pitch from Ricky Bones to left field for a solo home run. The Rockies won 12-5, and Ortiz went 3-for-5 with four RBI.
Jason Giambi (2011)
After Walker’s 2004 performance, the Rockies wouldn’t see another three-homer game until Jason Giambi became a one-man wrecking crew on the road against the Philadelphia Phillies on May 11, 2011. I covered this game extensively in a 2021 article, which you can check out. In his first at-bat against future Rockie Kyle Kendrick, Giambi blasted a three-run home run to get the Rockies on the board. His second time up against Kendrick, Giambi blasted a two-run home run to put the Rockies up 5-0. In the fifth inning, he hit another two-run homer, this time against Danys Báez, to put the Rockies up even further.
He went 3-for-5 on the night with seven RBI as the Rockies won 7-1.
Carlos González (2012, 2013)
There didn’t seem to be anything Carlos González couldn’t do when he stepped up to the plate in the 2010s. On May 30, 2012, CarGo delivered one of the more memorable moments in an otherwise abysmal season. Facing the Houston Astros at Coors Field, CarGo kicked things off with a go-ahead solo home run in the fifth inning against Lucas Harrell. He came up to the plate in the sixth against Xavier Cedeño and blasted a two-run shot to put the Rockies up 12-6. He capped off the night with a solo home run against David Carpenter in the eighth to cap the scoring and give the Rockies a 13-5 victory.
CarGo went 4-for-5 with four RBI. And just for fun, he homered in his first at-bat the very next game.
The following season, CarGo launched three home runs in Cincinnati on June 5, 2013. Pedro Villarreal was the primary victim of CarGo that night as he surrendered a solo home run in the first inning and a three-run shot in the fourth inning that put the Rockies ahead. Manny Parra then coughed up a two-run homer to CarGo in the eighth inning as the Rockies went on to win 12-4 with CarGo going 3-for-5 with six RBI.
Charlie Blackmon (2016)
Five years after Giambi, Charlie Blackmon would invoke his spirit by putting up a three-homer game against the Phillies on August 12, 2016. Blackmon’s first home run came in the third inning as he hit a solo shot off Jake Thompson. He later hit his second solo shot in the seventh inning off Edubray Ramos. Still trailing in the ninth, Blackmon hit a third solo home run, this time against David Hernandez. The Rockies lost 10-6, but Blackmon went 3-for-4 with three RBI as the leadoff hitter.
Nolan Arenado (2017)
During the height of Nolan Arenado’s Rockies tenure, he delivered plenty of jaw-dropping performances.
On July 19, 2017, Arenado displayed one of his greatest offensive games at Coors Field against the San Diego Padres. The Rockies pounded the Friars 18-4 with Arenado going 5-for-6 with seven RBI. His first home run was a solo shot in the fourth inning against Clayton Richard. His other two came against Kevin Quackenbush as he belted another solo shot in the fifth, followed by a three-run blast in the sixth inning.
Arenado became the first player in franchise history to have five hits and three homers in a single game.
Trevor Story (2018)
Trevor Story had his fair share of incredible home run feats in Colorado, but where were you when he delivered three mammoth home runs in a game at Coors Field on September 5, 2018? The oddity of this game was that Story hit all three homers against Giants starter Andrew Suárez, and all of them were solo shots. He went 3-for-4 with three RBI as he hit a home run in the first, fourth, and sixth innings. The Rockies eventually won the game 5-3. At the time, Story hit a towering blast to left field that landed on the concourse that was initially measured at 505 feet. Somehow MLB eventually decided that was inaccurate and dropped it down to 487 feet.
Ryan McMahon (2021)
It was always a joy to see Ryan McMahon tap into his power, and he provided an early highlight for the club in the wake of the Arenado trade that happened the season started. Facing the Diamondbacks on April 6, 2021, McMahon greeted Luke Weaver with a solo home run to lead off the second inning. When he faced Weaver again in the fourth, McMahon launched a ball to left-center for another solo shot. He then hit another solo home run in the seventh, this time against Alex Young.
The game eventually went 13 innings with the Rockies losing 10-8, but McMahon went 4-for-6 with four RBI.
Brendan Rodgers (2022)
There was never much power for second baseman Brendan Rodgers. Between the myriad of injuries and lack of production at the plate, it was a surprise when he hit three homers on June 1, 2022. Facing the Miami Marlins in the second game of a doubleheader, Rodgers kicked off his day with a solo home run against Trevor Rogers in the second inning. He then hit a solo homer off Louis Head in the fifth inning to get the Rockies within a run. The game eventually went to the 10th with the Rockies down 12-11 and Rodgers leading off. On a 3-2 pitch from Cole Sulser, he sent the ball to left field for a walk-off home run and a 13-12 victory. Rodgers went 3-for-5 with four RBI.
Michael Toglia (2024)
The final player to hit three home runs in a game before Goodman was Michael Toglia on July 14, 2024. Facing the New York Mets on the road, Toglia hit solo home runs from the right side against Jose Quintana in the fifth and sixth innings. In the eighth inning, the switch-hitting first baseman flipped over to the left side against Adrian Houser and blasted a third solo shot to left-center. The Rockies won the game 8-5 with Toglia going 3-for-4 with three RBI.
Conclusion
The history of three-homer games for the franchise is interesting.
There are plenty of names you’d expect to see, but several that seem to have come out of nowhere. It’s also interesting to see how many have understandably come at Coors Field but also the incredible performances that have happened on the road as well. I eagerly wait to see the next time a Rockie accomplishes the feat.
