What is grand slam in college baseball? Definition, scoring methods, and more explored
A grand slam is a home run with three men on base. It scores four runs for the offensive team, boosting the squad's chances of winning.
The term was taken from the card game Bridge, referring to a player winning every trick. Baseball used the term for a team scoring the maximum number of runs in one at-bat.
A batter who hits the grand slam is awarded four RBIs and it affects the outcome of the game as it either gives the team a four-run lead in a tied game or hands over the lead to the batting team behind by one, two or three runs.
The impact of a grand slam is enormous, whether it is in college baseball or MLB. A grand slam can break the game wide open, help overturn a deficit, and act as a comfortable cushion for the offense.
Tennessee moves to joint second for single-season grand slams
No. 1 seed Tennessee Volunteers continued to knock onto the college baseball record books, as it moved to a tie for second place in hitting multiple grand slams in a single season.
Billy Amick drilled a no-doubter in the third inning to give a 9-0 lead to the Volunteers in a regional game against Indiana on Saturday at the Lindsey Nelson Stadium in Knoxville, Tennessee. It was the 12th grand slam for the Volunteers this season as they became the third team in NCAA baseball history to have hit 12 or more grand slams in one season.
They are tied with Oklahoma State in second place.
The Cowboys hit 12 grand slams in 66 games in 1996. The 2003 Arizona State Sun Devils hold the season grand slam record at 14 through 68 games.
Amick's grand slam helped Tennessee move past the 1997 UCLA and 1995 Oklahoma State teams, which had 11 slams.
Tennessee's feat came a day after North Carolina's Gavin Gallaher drilled a grand slam that helped the top-seed Tar Heels overcome a three-run deficit to beat No. 4 Long Island, 11-8, in the Chapel Hill Regional.
With the bases loaded and North Carolina behind, 8-7, the freshman Gallaher launched the ball to the left-center and landed in front of the large scoreboard for the walk-off grand slam.
The Tar Heels made it to the Chapel Hill Regional final but lost their first game against LSU. North Carolina will look to win their next game against the Tigers to make it to the super regionals.