Benson captains rare four-homer game
As Will Benson circled the bases for the fourth time Thursday, he felt shivers throughout his body. Even with 44 career dingers under his belt, he -- or anyone in Class A Lake County history, for that matter-- had ever experienced a night like this. "To look into the eyes of
As Will Benson circled the bases for the fourth time Thursday, he felt shivers throughout his body. Even with 44 career dingers under his belt, he -- or anyone in Class A Lake County history, for that matter-- had ever experienced a night like this.
"To look into the eyes of my teammates and to see that they were amazed, that's what made it, 'Oh, this is legit,'" Benson said. "Most homers are cool, but this time, everyone's faces were different. It was nice."
Cleveland's No. 25 prospect collected a career-high four long balls -- including a grand slam -- to power the Captains past South Bend, 12-6, on Thursday at Classic Park. In the first four-homer game in the Minors since 2014, Benson set a professional best with eight RBIs.
Gameday box score
With the slugger's 55-grade power and the wind blowing 19 mph out to the outfield, all the ingredients were there for an historic evening. Even coming into the game with a .564 slugging percentage, Benson said there was no thought that anything like it was in the offering.
But in quick succession over six innings and four long balls later, he had a 300-point uptick in his slugging percentage.
"I do the same thing every day, I get the approach from my first swing I take in the cage," Benson said. "When it comes to game time, I just trust my approach, and whatever happens after that, happens."
In three of the four at-bats in which Benson went deep, he fell into two-strike counts before barreling up. There wasn't anything in particular that differed in his approach in those spots. The 20-year-old just found pitches to hit and did plenty of damage. The only time he couldn't muster up a long ball was in his final at-bat in the eighth, when he struck out on eight pitches.
"With two strikes, you're pretty much in battle mode -- you're just trying to win pitch by pitch," he said. "Thankfully today, other than the last at-bat, I was able to win in those two-strike situations. Even still in the last at-bat, I still got it to 3-2, so it was a good day with two strikes."
Benson got things rolling in the first inning against South Bend starter Eury Ramos with a two-run homer to right field. Two frames later, he mashed the first offering from the right-hander for a solo roundtripper over the fence in right-center. Benson said he didn't see anything in particular in the first at-bat that tipped the scales in the hitter's favor, he just stuck with his plan he had from the outset of the night.
Switching gears against reliever Zach Mort in the fourth, the Atlanta native had an at-bat he said he won't soon forget. Up 2-1 in the count with the bases full against the righty, Benson fouled off six consecutive pitches. On the 10th offering, Benson spotted a changeup and deposited it over the wall in right-center.
Benson said almost nothing can compare to that sequence.
"Honestly, that's probably my favorite at-bat of my whole life," he said. "The only thing that I vividly remember is that it was just a battle. I was on the fastball. Yeah, that'll probably be the at-bat that I'll remember for the rest of my career. That was awesome. ... There's not an at-bat that I've had that equals that at all."
With the game still in the early stages and Benson already the sixth player in the Minors this season with a three-homer game, his teammates took note of what was at stake.
"I remember after the grand slam, I think it was Tyler Freeman joked, 'We're only in the fourth inning,'" Benson recalled. "I said, 'Oh shoot, you're right.' I mean I was like, 'I need to stay locked in, this game ain't over.'"
Keeping that focus, Benson led off the sixth, going to a full count against Jeffrey Passantino. In 2018, Benson had gone 0-for-7 with four strikeouts against the righty. In the outfielder's words, Passantino had "eaten my lunch pretty good." But with one hand this time, Benson took the seventh pitch and slugged it over the much-visited fence in right-center.
According to SABR, that marked the first time since Garrett Jones completed the feat for Quad Cities in 2002 that anyone in the Midwest League homered four times in one night.
"Once I hit it, I was like, 'Wow, that's incredible," Benson said. "I was just thanking God all around the bases. ... I'm just very thankful and blessed to go out there and do that. I don't want to say it was a dream come true, but it's something that you'll never forget."
He had a chance to make it five-dinger night in the eighth, but was retired for the first time by righty Dalton Geekie. The Captains in the dugout didn't give him any ribbing following the punchout.
"They patted me on the back," Benson said of his teammates. "They didn't give me hard time [for the strikeout]."
It was the second time in the young season that a player went deep at least three times against South Bend. Dodgers prospect Niko Hulsizerblasted three homers against the Cubs on Monday.
In his first full professional season in 2018, Benson bashed a Midwest League-best 22 long balls with a .180 average in 123 contests. Back on the circuit this year, the 2016 first-round pick has upped his average to .341 while collecting six dingers through the first 12 contests. He surpassed his previous career high of five RBIs, which he accomplished twice in 2018. Benson has six career multi-homer games over three-plus pro seasons.
Mike Ford of Class A Charleston was the last Minor Leaguer to park four in a single game on May 25, 2014. Jon Griffin of Double-A Mobile had done likewise just four days before that.
"I'm very blessed and very thankful it was me," Benson said. "It was cool, it was all hard work. I've been putting in time and the results are showing, it was nice."
Andrew Battifarano is a contributor to MiLB.com. Follow him on Twitter, @AndrewAtBatt.
Phillies' Moore, Fausnaught join MiLB podcast
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
Red Sox prospect rips double THROUGH Fenway-esque scoreboard
Red Sox No. 4 prospect Franklin Arias, an infielder for High-A Greenville, REALLY didn’t want to let visiting Asheville score any runs in the top of the eighth inning on Friday night. With runners on first and second base in the bottom of the fourth, Arias showed he apparently held
April's hottest hitting prospects -- one for each organization
The Minor League season is a month old and several of the game's best hitting prospects are off to fast starts. Red Sox outfielder Roman Anthony is tearing up Triple-A (just like he did at the end of last year), Padres shortstop Leo De Vries is leading the High-A Midwest
Check out the best -- and wackiest -- Minor League promos happening in May
Benjamin Hill travels the nation collecting stories about what makes Minor League Baseball unique. This excerpt from the Baseball Traveler newsletter, presented by Circle K, is a mere taste of the smorgasbord of delights he offers every week. Read the full newsletter here, and subscribe to his newsletter here.
Orioles' Honeycutt joins The Show Before the Show
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
MiLB podcast coming LIVE to a Somerset this June
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
New ballparks highlight 2025 MiLB road trip stops
Benjamin Hill travels the nation collecting stories about what makes Minor League Baseball unique. This excerpt from the Baseball Traveler newsletter, presented by Circle K, is a mere taste of the smorgasbord of delights he offers every week. Read the full newsletter here, and subscribe to his newsletter here.
Minor League Baseball partners with TruGreen
FRANKLIN, Tenn. -- TruGreen, the nation's leading lawn care treatment provider, is proud to announce a groundbreaking partnership with Minor League Baseball that includes activations across all 120 clubs, a makeover of the home dugout in each market, sponsorship of select MiLB team grounds crews, and a new initiative called
Podcast explains why the Syracuse Mets are looking for Jim Morrison
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
Dash im-prom-tu promo and Mets' Suero joins the podcast
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
Minor League Baseball partners with Circle K
Minor League Baseball announced a new national partnership with Circle K, which will see the convenience store giant become the “Official Convenience Store of Minor League Baseball.” During the 2025 season, the Circle K brand will be integrated into the MiLB in-stadium experience through in-game video board assets at most
These 15 moments led to season No. 15 of Minor League road trips
Benjamin Hill travels the nation collecting stories about what makes Minor League Baseball unique. This excerpt from his newsletter is a mere taste of the smorgasbord of delights he offers every week. Read the full newsletter here, and subscribe to his newsletter here.
MiLB podcast crew makes Opening Day predictions
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
Everything you need to know for Triple-A Opening Day
First, there was big league Opening Day. Now it's Triple-A's turn to take the spotlight. The Minor League season opens Friday when the Triple-A International League and Pacific Coast League seasons get underway for the first of MiLB’s two Opening Days. And right out of the gates, several of baseball's
Top prospects to watch at Triple-A -- one for each organization
It’s Triple-A’s turn up to bat on Friday. The regular season begins for the Minor Leagues’ highest level one day after the action starts on the Major League side. Fun fact: it’ll be the earliest start to a Minor League season since 1951 (March 27). Double-A, High-A and Single-A will
Here's where every Top 100 prospect is expected to start the season
The 2025 Opening Day prospect roster announcements began last week when the Cubs informed Matt Shaw (MLB No. 19) he was making the trip overseas to compete in the Tokyo Series. Roki Sasaki (No. 1) also received the good news, but his assignment was much less of a surprise. Now
Nationals prospect King joins MiLB podcast
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
Here are the 2025 All-Spring Breakout Teams
Fifteen games, several jersey swaps and countless highlights later, the second edition of Spring Breakout has officially concluded – and it lived up to its billing. Of the 16 contests sprinkled across four days, only one game (Dodgers vs. Cubs) was rained out. Coincidentally, the Cubs were one of two
Rox young sluggers aim to bring pop back to Coors Field
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Coors Field may provide the best run-scoring environment in Major League Baseball, but the Rockies haven’t taken advantage of it in recent years. Even without adjusting for Coors, they have fielded offenses worse than the league average the past three seasons, and they scored the fewest runs
Astros brass sees potential in consistently 'underranked' farm system
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- The last time the Astros landed in the top 10 of MLB Pipeline’s farm system rankings was before the 2019 season. Since those rankings expanded to all 30 teams ahead of the 2020 season -- 11 lists in total -- they’ve never ranked higher than
Complete results and highlights from Spring Breakout
The second edition of MLB Spring Breakout is complete, and there was no shortage of highlights from the future stars of Major League Baseball over the four-day showcase. Here's a complete breakdown of the 16-game exhibition:
Southpaw Spring Breakout: White Sox future on display with Schultz, Smith
GLENDALE, Ariz. -- If all goes as planned for the White Sox, left-handers Hagen Smith and Noah Schultz won’t spend much time following each other to the mound in a single game. Schultz, the No. 1 White Sox prospect and No. 16 overall, per MLB Pipeline, and Smith, who is
In first pro game, Rainer offers pop, promise to Tigers fans
NORTH PORT, Fla. -- Bryce Rainer’s pro career consisted of workouts and batting practice until Sunday.
'Me and Brady on the dirt again': House, King reunite at Spring Breakout
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- The 2025 Spring Breakout was a flashback for Brady House and Seaver King. Over 10 years ago, the infielders were travel ball teammates in Georgia who shared the dream of making it to the Major Leagues. Now, they are top prospects in the same organization,
Lambert -- 'an adrenaline guy' -- hoping to be next Mets bullpen gem
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- Ryan Lambert loves throwing hard. He relishes the idea of getting to two strikes and blowing hitters away. “Get me in a game,” Lambert said, “cool things will happen.”