Cincinnati Reds left fielder Tyler Naquin followed his 454-foot solo home run in the first inning Tuesday night against the Pittsburgh Pirates at Great American Ball Park with a 413-foot three-run homer in the second inning, to give the Reds a 5-0 lead through two innings with his second and third blasts in just 12 at-bats this season.
"Wow, (Naquin's) got two home runs! This guy's not even supposed to be playing!" color analyst Jeff Brantley said during 700 WLW's radio broadcast of the Reds' 14-1 win.
Naquin added a two-run single in the bottom of the fifth to increase the Reds' lead to 12-0 and his RBI total to seven.
"I would imagine this will be a night he'll remember for a long time," radio play-by-play announcer Tommy Thrall said later in the broadcast.
"I can't say enough about the opportunity to come up with this ballclub and play for these fans and this city," Naquin told Bally Sports Ohio's Jim Day after the game. "I've had a lot of fun over here in the early go, but the Reds are good. We feel good. We feel confident."
Told by Day that his first home-run ball of the night ended up with a family pushing a stroller outside the ballpark, Naquin replied, "Really? That's awesome. That's awesome."
From The Enquirer's Bobby Nightengale:
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Naquin had a strong Spring Training as a non-roster invitee for the Reds.
Naquin hit four homers in 133 at-bats for the Cleveland Indians last season. A year earlier, he hit 10 homers in 274 ABs. He hit 14 home runs in 321 ABs as a rookie in 2016.
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