Hair flapping out of his headband, Corbin Carroll races past second base as if a double is not an option.
It is a last resort.
Doubles are fine if that is what you want. Carroll needs one base more.
Photo: Anna Carrington-Imagn Images
“What’s a standup double to a majority of the people in the big leagues, it’s a standup triple to him,” Arizona manager Torey Lovullo said after Taiwanese-American outfielder Carroll legged out two triples in the Diamondbacks’ 9-1 win over Colorado on Sunday. “I enjoy every single one of them.”
There has been plenty to like.
Since his first full season in the big leagues, Carroll has been racking up triples like third base is owed to him.
The two triples — both run-scoring — against the Rockies gives Carroll eight on the season, four more than Tampa Bay’s Chandler Simpson. Carroll has 51 in his career, leaving him one shy of the team record set by Stephen Drew, who needed three more seasons and nearly a thousand more plate appearances to do it.
Carroll is the second-fastest player (537 games) in big-league history to reach 50 triples and 80 homers — he has 89 — behind Yankees Hall of Famer Lou Gehrig, who did it in 461.
“I’ve seen it a lot,” said Ryne Nelson, Arizona’s starter on Sunday. “I know he’s creeping up on the record and might get it tomorrow.”
Carroll has been taking them since he entered the big leagues.
Carroll led the National League with 14 triples his rookie season. He tied Boston’s Jarren Duran to lead the big leagues with 14 in 2024 and held the top spot alone with 17 last season.
If he can keep up the pace, Carroll would be the first player in MLB history to lead or tie for the lead in triples in three straight seasons. It would also be the first time leading a league in four straight seasons since Lance Johnson of the Chicago White Sox from 1991-94.
“I just want to take advantage of what’s given to me and when there’s an opportunity, definitely want to take the extra base,” the low-key Carroll said.
Carroll’s execution: a combination of speed and aggression.
Carroll is one of the fastest players in baseball, moving at a top speed of nearly 9 meters per second. He regularly goes home to first in under four seconds and has the fastest home-to-third time in MLB history at 10.71 seconds against San Francisco last Tuesday. His two triples on Sunday were both just over 11 seconds.
There is a mindset that anything that gets past an outfielder is a triple until it is not. Charging out of the batter’s box, Carroll thinks triple on any ball to the wall, often pushing forward even if the outfielder gets to the ball before he passes second base.
“As soon as that ball is hit, I’m looking at Corbin,” Lovullo said. “He’s cutting corners and by the time he’s between first and second, he’s in full stride.”
On his way to a triple, more often than not.
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