Great Day for Middlebrooks Kids: Grand Slam for Will of Red Sox, Homer for Lacey

When rookie Will Middlebrooks hit a grand slam for the Red Sox yesterday in just his third major league game, he helped complete a rather unique family feat.

Playing college softball for Tulsa, his little sister, Lacey, also homered Sunday in a contest against the University of Alabama-Birmingham. Lacey is a junior pitcher for the Golden Hurricane, for whom she helped clinch the Conference USA title yesterday with her three-run blast at the plate and a one-hit shutout on the mound. Lacey Milddlebrooks has a 19-5 record with a 1.90 ERA through yesterday, and is one of Tulsa's leading hitters with a .326 average and five homers.

The highly-touted Will Middlebrooks, who hit 23 homers in the minors last year, had nine at AAA Pawtucket this year in just 27 games before being called up to Boston to replace the injured Kevin Youkilis at third base. In his first game for the Red Sox on May 2, Will Middlebrooks had a double, single, walk and a stolen base. Through Sunday, he is hitting .313 (5-for-16) to start his major league career.

He also has his grand-slam ball, which was recovered by a security guard after it cleared the Green Monster in left field. "It was probably the biggest rush of my life," he told reporters after the game. 

His sister, for one, probably knew exactly what he was talking about.  

Saul Wisnia lives less than seven miles from Fenway Park and works 300 yards from Yawkey Way. His latest book, Fenway Park: The Centennial, is available at amazon.com, and his Red Sox reflections can be found at http://saulwisnia.blogspot.com/. You can reach him at [e-mail] or @saulwizz.