From Nearly Out of Baseball to Cubs Legend: So Much More Fun to Be Had With David Bote’s Grand Slam
Aside from the fact that it was the regular season and not Game Seven of the World Series, David Bote’s home run last night was THE maximal version of any kind of home run you could possibly hit. It was the EXTREME version of the moment you dream about as a kid taking hacks in the backyard. And Bote actually did it, only a couple years after he was nearly out of the sport entirely.
Suffice to say, it is extremely rare that a homer plays out like that:
David Bote just hit the Golden Homer: a walk-off grand slam, down three, and with his team down to his last strike.
For all the years we have pitch data, there are just two other Golden Homers: Chris Hoiles on 5/17/1996 and Alan Trammell on 6/21/1988.
— Rany Jazayerli (@jazayerli) August 13, 2018
Bote is the 2nd player in MLB history to hit a walk-off grand slam with his team trailing 3-0 at the time.The other was Samuel Byrd for the Reds vs the Pirates on May 23, 1936. But Byrd did it with no outs. Bote with 2
— Jesse Rogers (@ESPNChiCubs) August 13, 2018
- If you need an excuse to watch it again, here it is – the full comeback in the 9th – with Pat Hughes and Ron Coomer on the call, and so many beautiful angles (MLB.com):
- Man. My dude was FLYING around the bases – both with his arms, and also with his pace. One of the faster home run trots you’ll see. Couldn’t wait to get to home plate. I can’ blame him.
- Not to be lost in what Bote did with that low pitch is the fact that the Nationals gave the Cubs each of those three baserunners. Thanks!
- That blast was 110-mph off the bat for Bote, which sounds about right for the guy who is THE hardest-hitting batter in all of baseball:
After last night's 110-mph blast, David Bote remains the hardest-hitting batter in all of baseball. pic.twitter.com/qxEVdoAQbM
— Bleacher Nation (@BleacherNation) August 13, 2018
- Bote is now up to .329/.418/.539 (154 wRC+) on the year. When he’s been up, he’s been one of the best hitters in baseball, and he’s approaching that 100 plate appearance threshold where you can have more confidence that this is “real.” (But, let me just add: you can’t really fake that kind of exit velocity. Hitting the shit out of the ball is not luck when you do it 50+ times in the big leagues. That doesn’t mean it’ll last forever, but it does mean his .400 BABIP is largely earned to this point.)
- From the man, himself:
After hitting a walkoff grand slam (with two outs and two strikes, down three in the ninth), David Bote tried to put the moment into words to @Kelly_Crull. pic.twitter.com/CW7uCNIQmV
— NBC Sports Chicago (@NBCSChicago) August 13, 2018
- Heh. I always like this schtick, but it works especially well for this one:
https://twitter.com/TitanicBaseball/status/1028843854580121600
- A very lucky fan got to meet Bote:
Legends. pic.twitter.com/DMqTKN99J5
— Chicago Cubs (@Cubs) August 13, 2018
- Matt Wieters looked like he’d been physically assaulted by Bote’s swing:
When you both know. pic.twitter.com/GldlJ6eIAl
— Bleacher Nation (@BleacherNation) August 13, 2018
- The in-crowd videos, man. I love them so much. Every corner of Wrigley Field was going nuts BEFORE Bote’s blast, and then it was just pandemonium:
BEST way to end the summer @Cubs grand slam by BOTE pic.twitter.com/4cnwyXJz7D
— hannah (@hahahannah6412) August 13, 2018
Safe to say I and thousands of others lost their minds after David Bote crushed a walk-off grand slam. Wrigley Field was deafening and absolutely electric! Fly The W!#Cubs #EverybodyIn@Cubs @BleacherNation @LMBFSports pic.twitter.com/1I1Z8K8M7q
— Nicholas Austin (@CallMeNAP33) August 13, 2018
— Adam T. Cooper (@ISelChiProperty) August 13, 2018
- Weird but also neat and fun:
https://twitter.com/darenw/status/1028852937077010432?s=12
- Someone out there was having some fun on Wikipedia:
Oh, you rascals. pic.twitter.com/GaNoKJ87Nt
— Bleacher Nation (@BleacherNation) August 13, 2018
- I love, by the way, that this was the SECOND walk-off grand slam for the Cubs this year.
- You are reminded that Bote was almost out of baseball a couple years ago:
Here's my story from April on Bote & the swing change that allowed him to tap into his latent power & completely changed the trajectory of his career. It's a great story, but what he said about his wife when he first spoke to us is what impressed me most https://t.co/bLXnStox5A pic.twitter.com/be0tEa3YWi
— Sahadev Sharma (@sahadevsharma) August 13, 2018
David Bote, a minor leaguer whom many thought had no shot at the big leagues as recently as two years ago, is now hitting .329/.418/.539 in MLB while filling in for a former MVP.
Chase your dreams, kids.
— Bleacher Nation (@BleacherNation) August 13, 2018
- In conclusion, don’t tell me I can’t fly:
