Cleveland Guardians catcher Bo Naylor of Mississauga, Ontario became the first Canadian native this season with two home runs in a game. He accomplished the feat in a 6-0 Guardians win over the Minnesota Twins on Saturday.
Naylor’s first home run was 365 feet and put the Guardians up 2-0 in the top of the second inning with a solo shot. He then hit another solo shot in the top of the eighth inning and put the Guardians up 6-0. This home run went 412 feet.
Despite the fact Naylor has an eight game hitting streak, he has not had a good season. He is batting .195, which is five points below the Mendoza Line. During 117 games, 343 at bats and 395 plate appearances, Naylor has scored 44 runs and had 67 hits, 20 doubles, one triple, one stolen base, 14 home runs, 44 runs batted in, 131 total bases, three sacrifice bunts, four sacrifice flies, an on base percentage of .286 and a slugging percentage of .382. Naylor’s stolen base came in a 3-2 Guardians win over the New York Yankees on April 22. Naylor’s triple came in a 3-1 Guardians win over the Detroit Tigers on May 23.
Naylor is actually one of three Canadians to have a multi-home run game this season. The other two were not born in Canada. Freddie Freeman of the Los Angeles Dodgers and Otto Lopez of the Miami Marlins also accomplished the feat.
With the win, the Guardians improved to a record of 83 wins and 71 losses. They are a game and a half back of the Detroit Tigers for first place in the American League Central.