Miguel Cabrera continued his reign of dominance over MLB pitching with a 3-home-run game in an 11-8 loss to the Texas Rangers on Sunday night.
Cabrera went 4-for-4 with 3 runs scored and 5 RBIs in the game. He started off with a line-drive single in the top of the first for Detroit’s lone hit of the inning. Two innings later, he followed hits from Omar Infante and Torii Hunter with a prodigious 3-run home run to right-center off Derek Holland:
Clear your eyes for a second and comprehend what you just saw. Miggy took an 83-mph change-up from lefty Derek Holland and sent it 441 feet to the opposite field. A 441-foot opposite field home run off a change-up from a lefty. Seriously. Do you realize how insane that is? Not only is a pitch like that intended to keep a hitter off balance or induce them to ground out weakly to the right side, but it requires a lot of power from the batter to deposit an 83-mph pitch 441 feet.
After getting burned with a change-up to Cabrera, Holland figured he’d bring the heat in the next at-bat to see how it would go. He brought in a 94-mph fastball, and Cabrera sent out a line drive to straight away center that left the park in about half a second:
After proving he could handle the off-speed away, and a fastball over the middle, reliever Tanner Scheppers decided he would see how Cabrera could do with a 96-mph heater on the hands. Cabrera didn’t even extend his arms and still got enough of the ball to see it carry over the center field fence:
I was banging the Mike Trout for MVP drum louder than anyone last season, and still say he deserved the award, but I remained consistent in saying one thing: Miguel Cabrera is the best hitter in baseball. I have been saying that for the last several years. The guy is just awesome.
Let me ask you one thing: When is the last time you have seen Miggy slump? Albert Pujols, A-Rod, Robinson Cano, Buster Posey, Ryan Braun — all MVPs and All-Stars — all of them have slumped. Has Miggy? Ever? For more than like a three-game stretch? No. The guy is just the best all-around hitter in baseball and has been for the last several years.
Want to see something scary?
Miggy’s numbers last year through 42 games: .304 average, 8 home runs, 34 RBIs.
Through 42 games this season: .387 average, 11 home runs, 47 RBIs.
Someone else might beat him out in one or more of those categories, but he’s going to put up a fight.
