Jackson Chourio’s Bold Prediction Comes True: Grand Slam with Bases Empty
MILWAUKEE — Predicting a grand slam is one feat; foretelling one with the bases unoccupied is quite another. Such audacity only magnifies the burgeoning legend of Brewers rookie Jackson Chourio, who seems to defy the bounds of the possible with each game.
“That’s just wild,” mused veteran Brewers starter Frankie Montas. “Utterly insane.”
Montas, alongside Chourio’s other Brewers comrades, insists on the veracity of the following account. As the Brewers exited the field during the sixth inning of their 9-3 triumph over the Cardinals—featuring home runs from Willy Adames and Rhys Hoskins and a sellout crowd of 41,731 savoring $1 hot dogs—Chourio approached Montas and others in the dugout.
“I’m going to get an at-bat with the bases loaded,” Chourio declared, “and I’m going to hit a grand slam.”
Later, when questioned about his prophecy, Chourio casually remarked, “I think I was just joking around.”
Yet, in a moment of surreal fulfillment, Chourio did precisely that. Hoskins drew a walk, Sal Frelick doubled, and Joey Ortiz walked before Brice Turang witnessed Paul Goldschmidt’s defensive gem thwart his run-scoring hit. This series of events left the bases brimming for Chourio, who then launched a slider from Cardinals reliever Riley O’Brien into the left-field bleachers for his 18th home run of the season and his second career grand slam.
Eight players have accomplished multiple grand slams before turning 21, including luminaries such as Ted Williams, Mickey Mantle, Alex Rodriguez—and now Chourio. Whether any of the others had the audacity to predict their slams with no runners on base remains unclear.
“It was simply phenomenal,” said Adames. “That’s why he was pointing at me and Frankie. We were talking about it, and he said, ‘I’m going to hit it.’ And he did. I was like, ‘Oh my God, he actually did it.’ … He’s proving he’s superstar material to the world.”
Brewers starter Freddy Peralta added, “And he told me again, ‘You see how good I am?’”
Chourio has posed that question to Peralta multiple times now. Each occasion, Peralta can only laugh.
“I just say, ‘I know you’re great,’” Peralta replied.
Chourio, who signed an eight-year, $82 million contract in December—a record for a player with as many major league days as the Brewers had on base when Chourio predicted his grand slam—experienced a notable slump in May. It took what amounted to an intervention from Adames, Peralta, and William Contreras to lift him out of it.
Since June, Chourio has transformed into a different player. He’s boasting a slash line of .320/.374/.544 since June 2, with 13 home runs and 13 stolen bases, surpassing 20 steals for the season and reaching 18 total homers. With two more, he would join Vada Pinson and Mike Trout as the only players in AL/NL history to achieve a 20/20 season at age 20, becoming the first to do so before turning 21 in March.
“He’s in that perfect zone,” observed Brewers manager Pat Murphy. “He blends just the right amount of charisma and intensity, coupled with focus. It’s as if he was born for this.”
Murphy also noted Chourio’s three walks, wondering how many players aged 20 or younger have ever walked three times and hit a grand slam in a Major League game.
“I’d wager there are fewer than 20 instances in all those games,” Murphy speculated.
Indeed, before Chourio, only six players had walked at least three times and homered in a game before their 21st birthday since 1901. None of those homers were grand slams. The last player to achieve this feat was Washington Senators outfielder Jeff Burroughs in 1971, and before him, White Sox third baseman Bob Kennedy in 1940.
“The kid’s in the right frequency, or whatever it is,” Murphy mused.
Fortunately, Chourio’s remarkable season did not end on a sour note last Friday in Cincinnati. During Game 1 of the Brewers’ doubleheader sweep over the Reds, Chourio sustained a severe right ankle injury as he stepped on first base. He required assistance from two members of Milwaukee’s athletic training staff to return to the dugout, leading Murphy to fear the worst for Chourio’s season.
Yet, remarkably, Chourio sprinted back to left field at the start of the subsequent half-inning.
“We’ve given him a new nickname—he’s a soccer player now,” Adames joked.
Chourio, embracing the good-natured ribbing, remains eager to continue wielding his bat.
“It’s just astounding,” Chourio said. “Absolutely fantastic.”
