WACO, Texas — Tyce Armstrong hit three grand slams in his Baylor University debut Friday night, the Bears’ 15-2 season-opening home win over New Mexico State, making him just the second college baseball player to ever accomplish that feat.
“I’m speechless,” Armstrong said. “It’s the coolest thing I’ve ever been a part of.”
He joins Louisville’s Jim LaFountain as the only players with that distinction. LaFountain hit two of his three grand slams in the same inning on March 24, 1976, in the second game of a doubleheader against Western Kentucky. LaFountain also hit a two-run home run in the 26-4 victory that was called in the fifth inning.
No player has ever hit three grand slams in one Major League Baseball game, although 13 players are credited with two in a game.
Armstrong, a senior first baseman from Magnolia, transferred from the University of Texas at Arlington, where he had 17 homers and 87 RBIs over three seasons.
In his first time out for Baylor, Armstrong batted cleanup and went 3-for-4 with 12 RBIs against New Mexico State, extending his on-base streak to 14 games and his hitting streak to six games dating to last season. His RBIs set a single-game record for the Bears.
Armstrong hit all three homers to left field: a 401-foot shot in the third inning, a 407-foot blast in the fourth, and a 386-foot homer in the seventh. He got hit by a pitch while leading off the second inning and struck out swinging on an 0-2 count with two runners on in the sixth.
“Well, he’s got power; we knew he had power,” Baylor coach Mitch Thompson said. “He brings experience, he’s such a great kid, he works hard, he’s a good mentor to the young guys, so everything about it’s good.
“And then to have that day, it’s fantastic. I want him to enjoy the heck out of it tonight, and show back up tomorrow, and everybody not be disappointed when he hits a single tomorrow. But it sure was nice to see those three balls jump out of here. It was fun to watch.”