The top 5 games by a hitter in Guardians history

CLEVELAND -- There have been many big offensive games by Cleveland players over the past century-plus, but which ones stand out as the best of the best? Let’s take a look at the top five single-game hitting performances in Guardians franchise history:

1. Lonnie Chisenhall: June 9, 2014 at Texas
Welcome to the battle of Rocky Colavito and Lonnie Chisenhall.

There was no doubt that Chisenhall and Colavito would take the top two spots of this list, but determining who would be No. 1 was a challenge. Putting Chisenhall on top does not take away from Colavito's four-homer game (we'll get to this shortly), but Chisenhall’s five-hit, three-homer, nine-RBI performance gives him the slightest of all edges in this race.

Chisenhall’s nine RBIs matched a club record set by Chris James in 1991, and he became the first big leaguer in at least 100 years to collect at least three homers, five hits and nine RBIs without recording an out. He was just the fourth hitter to have at least that many home runs, hits and RBIs in a single game. Scooter Gennett, Anthony Rendon and Shohei Ohtani have since joined that list.

Chisenhall was also just the 32nd Cleveland batter to launch at least three long balls in a single game, and it marked the 15th time in at least the previous 100 years that a Major League player had at least three homers and nine RBIs in a single game.

2. Rocky Colavito: June 10, 1959 at Baltimore
Colavito penciled his name on a very short list of players who have hit four home runs in a single game. It had gone down as the best game by a Cleveland batter without a doubt, as he finished with five runs scored and six RBIs … that is, until Chisenhall gave him some competition almost 55 years later to the day. There really is no right answer as to who gets the title of the best individual game by a Cleveland hitter between the two, because they were both such dominant performances.

At the time, Colavito became just the eight person in MLB history to accomplish the feat in Cleveland's 11-8 victory over the Orioles. After a walk in his first plate appearance, Colavito went on to launch two solo blasts and a pair of two-run jacks. Since then, that prestigious list has since grown to 21 players, through 2025.

3. George Hendrick: June 19, 1973 vs. Tigers
Hendrick worked his way to No. 3 on this list, thanks to his .725 Win Probability Added in his 4-for-4 performance against the Tigers that ended with a walk-off single in the ninth. His other three hits came on the long ball.

Hendrick got Cleveland on the board in the first with a solo homer before he cut a two-run deficit to one in the fourth with another solo blast. His third dinger of the game, in the sixth, helped Cleveland come back from a five-run deficit to allow him to become the hero in the bottom of the ninth with a game-winning single to left field.

4. Josh Naylor: May 9, 2022, at Chicago
Naylor was a driving force for the Guardians in their 12-9 win over the White Sox. He not only went 3-for-5 with two homers and eight RBIs, but the bulk of his damage came late in the 11-inning affair.

The Guardians were down, 5-1, in the top of the eighth, when Naylor hit an RBI double that cut the deficit to three. Then, with two outs in the top of the ninth inning, he belted a game-tying grand slam off closer Liam Hendriks to tie things at 8. Naylor followed that up by hitting a go-ahead three-run homer in the 11th inning that proved decisive in the Guardians' win.

5) Chris James: May 4, 1991 at A's
This list wouldn’t be complete without the only other player (joining Chisenhall) to knock in nine runs in a single game in franchise history. Cleveland’s 20-6 win over the A's began with a three-run homer from James in the first before he smacked another three-run dinger in the second. He picked up a pair of RBI singles before he was replaced by Jeff Manto, who worked a walk in his plate appearance in the top of the ninth.

Honorable mentions

Luke Easter: Sept. 29, 1951 vs. Tigers
After already logging a triple in the second inning, Easter delivered a grand slam in the sixth to put Cleveland ahead of the Tigers, 5-4. After Detroit took a 6-5 lead in the top of the eighth, Easter came back in the bottom half of the frame to launch yet another game-tying homer. After 13 innings, Cleveland was able to walk away with a 7-6 victory.

Larry Doby: June 4, 1952, at Boston
Doby became the fourth Cleveland player to hit for the cycle, when he went 4-for-5 with six RBIs in a 13-11 loss to the Red Sox at Fenway Park. He completed the cycle with a leadoff single in the top of the ninth inning.

Joe Carter: Aug. 29, 1986 at Boston
In a 7-3 win over the Red Sox, Carter went 5-for-5 with three homers, four RBIs and three runs scored.

Casey Blake: July 5, 2003 at Minnesota
Blake is just one of 29 players in franchise history (through 2025) to plate at least seven runs in a single game. In Cleveland's 13-2 win over the Twins, he went 5-for-5 with two doubles, two homers, three runs scored and seven RBIs.

Victor Martinez: July 16, 2004 at Seattle
Martinez joined Blake on the list of players to knock in at least seven RBIs in a single game against the Mariners. In an 18-6 Cleveland victory, Martinez went 5-for-5 with three runs scored and three home runs.

José Ramírez: Sept. 3, 2017, at Detroit
Ramírez tied a single-game franchise record held by Lou Boudreau and Kelly Shoppach by tallying five extra-base hits in an 11-1 win over the Tigers. He hit a solo home run in the first and a two-run shot in the sixth, while adding three doubles along the way.