Alex Bregman hits first-ever 3-homer game as Cubs rout Nationals

Alex Bregman signed a 5-year, $175 million deal with the Cubs back in January, and for a chunk of this season the return on that investment looked shaky. Not anymore. On Wednesday night against the Nationals, Bregman had the best game of his career, going deep 3 times and driving in a career-high 7 runs as Chicago routed Washington 12-6.

Barstool Chicago

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THREE DINGERS ON THE NIGHT FOR ALEX BREGMAN

It's Bregman's first career 3-homer game, and it made him the 29th player in franchise history to pull off the feat — something that's happened only 44 times total in Cubs history. He also became the first player in franchise history to draw multiple walks in a 3-homer game, which tells you the Nationals simply stopped wanting to pitch to him by the end of the night.

Barstool Gambling

@stoolgambling

ALEX BREGMAN'S THIRD HOME RUN OF THE NIGHT

The barrage wasn't a fluke or a one-off. Since July 27, Bregman has been hitting.388 with 6 home runs and 17 RBIs over his last 16 games, leading all of MLB in hits during that stretch. Six of his 16 homers this season have come specifically against Washington, so Wednesday was less an outlier and more a culmination. "Feel like the last month or so has been a step in the right direction, but really the last two days have been a real step in the right direction," Bregman said afterward.

That turnaround is exactly what Big Cat was pointing at when he took a shot at anyone who'd already buried Bregman's season. Big Cat's follow-up made the target explicit, calling out fans who wrote Bregman off after a rough first half.

Big Cat

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Objects in the mirror are closer than they appear. Also a lot of people completely wrote off Bregman after half a season. #NotSmart

Barstool Chicago summed up the stakes about as tightly as possible, tying the individual outburst directly to the standings: 3 homers from Bregman, and the Cubs now sit 3 games back in the division. That's the real reason this game matters beyond one guy's stat line — Chicago's chasing a playoff spot, and their $175 million third baseman just reminded everyone why he got that contract in the first place.

Barstool Chicago

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Three homers from #3. Three games back in the division.