Veteran slugger Mark Reynolds platooned with Matt Adams at first base for the 2018 Nationals when Ryan Zimmerman was hurt, appearing in 86 games overall and hitting .248 with 13 home runs. On Friday night, July 6, in Washington, Reynolds hit a pinch-hit, walk-off homer, to beat the Miami Marlins, 3-2.
The next night, however, he had the game of his career. As the Nats routed the Marlins at Nationals Park, 18-4, Reynolds went 5-for-5 with two homers, a double and a team-record-tying 10 runs batted in.
Reynolds put the Nats ahead with a two-run homer in the second inning. With the score tied in the fourth, Reynolds doubled for his third RBI, scoring Bryce Harper.
In the fifth, after Miami had tied it again at 3-3, Anthony Rendon’s double had given Washington a 5-3 lead. Reynolds’ two-run single drove in Bryce Harper and Rendon. Later, Pedro Severino’s three-run homer capped a seven-run inning for Washington.
In the sixth, Reynolds’ three-run homer gave him gave him eight RBIs. His home run drove in Harper and Trea Turner. In the seventh, Reynolds hit another two-run single, driving in Brian Goodwin and Juan Soto with his last two RBIs and Washington 17th and 18th runs.
The 10 RBIs tied the Nationals’ single-game record set on April 30, 2017, by Rendon. Reynolds was the 15th major leaguer with a 10-RBI game. Scooter Gennett of the Cincinnati Reds had been the 14th when he hit four home runs and drove in 10 run on June 6, 2017.
At age 34, Reynolds had begun the 2018 season with Syracuse, the Nats’ AAA team, after signing as a free agent in early April. He was called up May 12 when Zimmerman went on the injured list. Reynolds earned National League Player of the Week honors for his 10 RBI-game and his walk-off homer the night before.
It’s worth noting that in January 2013, Sam White of Baseball Prospectus wrote a piece claiming that Reynolds was — quite literally and not just legally — blind during his major league career. If this weird premise sounds beyond far fetched, White offers no hint that he has his tongue in his cheek as he provides considerable evidence and video clips to bolster his claim. Tellingly, though, he made no attempt to get comment from Reynolds. Read it and decide for yourself.
Although Reynolds hit as many 44 homers in a season and 30 or more four times, he never made an all-star team or made it to the post-season. However, he led the majors by striking out more than 200 times three seasons in a row from 2008 to 2010 with Arizona. He played his college ball at the University of Virginia, where he was a teammate of Ryan Zimmerman. In 2019, Reynolds played a final season with Colorado before retiring.
Washington baseball history 