PHOENIX — Arizona Diamondbacks rookie outfielder Corbin Carroll stole his 50th base and clobbered his 25th home run of the season on Wednesday in a 7-1 win against the San Francisco Giants.
Carroll became the ninth player in AL/NL history to reach both marks in the same year. It has happened 13 times.
The D-backs’ All-Star is also the first rookie to accomplish the milestone and third player overall to reach 25/50 in 30 years.
Corbin Carroll becomes the first rookie in AL/NL history to hit 25 home runs and steal 50 bases. pic.twitter.com/M8CEGYcMRq
— MLB (@MLB) September 20, 2023
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Atlanta Braves star and MVP candidate Ronald Acuña Jr. reached the mark earlier this year, but Florida Marlins shortstop Hanley Ramirez in 2007 was the only other example since Rickey Henderson and Barry Bonds in 1990.
The other five to do so were Eric Davis, Joe Morgan, Ryne Sandberg and Cesar Cedeño.
D-backs manager Torey Lovullo said hearing those names got him excited about what his young star accomplished.
“I know that one day we’ll understand exactly what he’s done in his rookie baseball season,” Lovullo said. “He’s gonna probably want to turn the page … he’s probably already on to New York, so I think it’s amazing. And I want to make sure that I do talk about it because it is a spectacular feat. We have to recognize such special accomplishments. He’s a good one and we know he’s gonna be here a long time.”
Carroll said he was proud of what he put together but he’s not currently focused on personal accomplishments. He said there will be a time and place to reflect on the highs and lows of his rookie season after it is said and done.
But he wasn’t oblivious to the feat during the game or even going into it.
“I saw it on the board,” Carroll said. “I’m proud of it. There was a lot of work that went into it.”
He said first-base coach Dave McKay has had a running joke asking him how many steals he needed to reach 50.
The rookie stole two bases in the first three innings of Wednesday’s game against the Giants to reach 50, and he scored on both occasions. The NL Rookie of the Year favorite has eight steals in his last 11 games.
In doing so, Carroll became the third D-backs player to crack 50 steals in a single season. Eric Byrnes stole 50 bases in 2007, while Tony Womack owns the franchise record with 72 steals in 1999.
His ability to create chaos, as the team’s slogan goes, on the bases plus his teammates’ execution allowed him to score five runs in two games against San Francisco.
Carroll and Ketel Marte executed a double steal in Tuesday’s 8-4 win, and they scored when the ball kicked away from third baseman Wilmer Flores.
“For somebody who works as hard as he does and takes pride in his craft, to see him start to rack up the accolades and really get people to notice, it’s fun to see,” starting pitcher Merrill Kelly, who threw 6.2 innings with one earned run on Wednesday, said. “It’s a pleasure being on his team and seeing him go to work every day.”
Create it.
Embrace it.
Full on chaos. pic.twitter.com/RPxrkudQJd— Arizona Diamondbacks (@Dbacks) September 20, 2023
Carroll and Marte hit back-to-back home runs in the seventh inning on Wednesday.
Carroll finished the game with four hits to help the D-backs complete a two-game sweep of the Giants and claim the season series.
“Today was great, it’s fun to be able to add those runs on and take some of that pressure off the bullpen,” Carroll said. “I think those are the games that are probably the most fun.”
Wednesday was Arizona’s fifth straight win and it held onto the second NL Wild Card spot for another day.