Dansby Swanson powered the Chicago Cubs on Wednesday with three home runs, including a grand slam, even though the game was already out of reach by the time he stepped in with the bases loaded. His latest burst pushed him to 26 RBI in a 10-game span, a level no player had reached in 86 years.
Swanson’s three-homer night
Swanson’s biggest swing came with the bases loaded. The Chicago Cubs were already ahead by double-digits when he batted, and he drove in more runs with a grand slam in a game that had long since been decided.
He finished with three home runs on Wednesday. That included two home runs before the grand slam, turning one outing into a line that dwarfed the rest of the night.
26 RBI in 10 games
The production has now reached 26 RBI in a 10-game span, a pace the sport had not seen in 86 years. Babe Ruth never hit that level in such a stretch, which is why the comparison jumps straight to the biggest names in the game.
Lou Gehrig, Jimmie Foxx, Joe DiMaggio and Mel Ott were also named in the historical company around the RBI mark. Jesse Rogers was cited in connection with that list by Sporting News, while Billy Heyen, a Sporting News writer, identified himself as a 2019 graduate of Syracuse University who spent his senior year following Jim Boeheim's basketball team around the country.
Position player complicates the line
One of Swanson’s home runs came against a position player, which makes the cleanest historical read a little less tidy. The number still stands, but the context of one matchup softens the way the stretch compares with older eras built entirely against regular pitching.
Even with that wrinkle, the Cubs got the kind of extra damage that can flatten a game fast. The bigger question is not whether the streak stands out, but which specific games and opponents produced the 26 RBI that put Swanson in that company.
