WASHINGTON – There's a new member of the 40-40 club: Alfonso Soriano. Soriano became the fourth player in major league history to record 40 home runs and 40 stolen bases in a single season when he swiped second Saturday night for Washington in the first inning against Milwaukee.
That gave Soriano 40 steals to go along with 45 home runs.
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Jose Canseco (Oakland 1988), Barry Bonds (San Francisco 1996) and Alex Rodriguez (Seattle 1998) are the only other players who have topped 40 in each of those categories in a single season.
Soriano came close in 2002, when he stole 41 bases and hit 39 home runs.
Soriano led off the bottom of the first with a single to left field. On a 2-0 count to the next batter, Felipe Lopez, Soriano raced for second base. Brewers catcher Mike Rivera double-clutched but did not attempt a throw.
After the steal, Soriano called time, removed the base and handed it to a groundskeeper. The game was held for a moment while the RFK Stadium crowd rose for a standing ovation, and Soriano tipped his helmet to the crowd.
Soriano stole his 39th base on Sept. 10 at Colorado but had stalled in his pursuit of 40-40. In the next four games, Soriano had reached base five times but was caught stealing three times.
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