One of those baseball expressions I’ve always hated is “this guy is a triple shy of the cycle.”
Sure, it might be factual when it is uttered, but how often does that triple actually come? It’s the rarest of the four cycle feats, and there’s a reason the Cubs hadn’t had a cycle since 1993 when Mark Grace did it. Usually the triple is left on the board in a night that was otherwise primed for a cycle. That part happens all the time. It had been over 30 years since a cycle, but you know how long it’d been since a Cubs hitter came “a triple shy of the cycle”? Literally last night. Kyle Tucker singled, doubled twice, and homered. Just shy. Tucker also did it two days earlier!
So when new Cubs catcher Carson Kelly came to the plate last night having singled, doubled, and homered in the game against the A’s, I’d hardly blame anyone who rolled their eyes at a friend saying, “hey, Kelly just needs a triple here!” I mean, this is a guy who came into the game with TWO career triples in more than EIGHTEEN HUNDRED big league plate appearances.
… but then, Kelly became the first Cubs player since Grace to answer that call and actually come through with the triple, ending the longest cycle drought in the NL:
CARSON KELLY JUST HIT FOR THE CYCLE 🤯
It's the first Cubs cycle since 1993 by Mark Grace. pic.twitter.com/EdRlTRy6RK— Marquee Sports Network (@WatchMarquee) April 1, 2025
Carson Cycle Kelly. pic.twitter.com/NWJMNJeWUj
— Chicago Cubs (@Cubs) April 1, 2025
Absolutely incredible. And very entertaining.
Carson Kelly was just as entertaining when talking about his historic feat after the game:
I love how Kelly was not going to be all self-serious and coy about the situation. He knew he had just two triples in his career, and he knew as soon as he saw the ball bounce off the wall that he had to try. “That’s probably the fastest you’ll ever see me run.”
Kelly had no idea that his was the first Cubs cycle in 32 years, though, and it was a fun bit of trivia for him, because he knows Mark Grace from their time together in Arizona, where Grace was a broadcaster. Also: Grace’s cycle came before Kelly was born.
Other historic bits of trivia from Kelly’s cycle …
- First ever in March, first cycle of the season, and first ever in a new ballpark’s first game:
From last night, gotta love it when a C hits for the cycle as Carson Kelly did for the Cubs. Per @ESPNStatsInfo: He's the first player with a clycle in a stadium’s first game. 1st player with a cycle in the month of March. 1st Cubs player with a cycle since Mark Grace in 1993.— Jesse Rogers (@JesseRogersESPN) April 1, 2025
- Only the third ever to also include two walks:
A wild stat: Carson Kelly became the 3rd player in MLB history to hit for the cycle *and* record two walks in a game. Kelly joins Joe Gordon (Yankees) on Sept. 8, 1940 and Mickey Cochrane (Athletics) on Aug. 2, 1933 to accomplish the feat.
- Pretty rare for a number 9 hitter (previously pitchers tended to hit 9th in the NL, but hey, still fun):
— Sarah Langs (@SlangsOnSports) April 1, 2025Cycle batting ninth, since 1901:
Today Carson Kelly
9/16/06 Chone Figgins
8/17/01 Jeff Frye
10/1/80 Charlie Moore https://t.co/rDNZdlbfwC
- Fun lineup from the day Grace did it:
Carson Kelly dethrones Mark Grace as the most recent cycle for a Cub hitter. Here is the starting lineup from Grace’s cycle on May 9, 1993: pic.twitter.com/lBgTMB1KOv— Daily Random Cub (@DailyRandomCub) April 1, 2025
- Kelly is now an offensive monster and this will absolutely sustain throughout the season:
Carson Kelly, Elite Hitter.
written by
Brett Taylor
Brett Taylor is the Lead Cubs Writer at Bleacher Nation. You can find him on Twitter at @BleacherNation, on Bluesky at @Brett-Taylor, and on LinkedIn here.Brett is also the founder of Bleacher Nation, which opened up shop in 2008 as an independent blog about the Chicago Cubs. Later growing to incorporate coverage of other Chicago sports, Bleacher Nation is now one of the largest regional sports blogs on the web.
