Holt Becomes 1st Red Sox Player to Hit for Cycle Since 1996

Boston Red Sox utility man Brock Holt had a memorable outing in Tuesday's 9-4 win over the Atlanta Braves, becoming the first Red Sox player since John Valentine in June 1996 to hit for the cycle, per Sean McAdam of CSN New England.

Batting leadoff and starting at second base while regular second baseman Dustin Pedroia got a rare day off, Holt started his historic afternoon with a double, then came around to score when Red Sox outfielder Mookie Betts immediately hit another two-bagger.

Holt's second at-bat, leading off the third inning, resulted in his only out of the afternoon, a groundout to first base.

He then bounced back with a bases-empty, two-out single in the fifth inning, although he was thrown out stealing to end the frame, at which point the game was still tied 2-2.

By the time Holt got his fourth at-bat, in the seventh inning, the Red Sox had taken a 6-2 lead, which turned to 7-2 when he went deep off Braves starter Julio Teheran.

Holt appeared unlikely to get a fifth at-bat and an opportunity for the cycle, but Boston pieced together a rally in the eighth inning, bringing him to the plate with an 8-2 lead, a runner on first base and two outs.

He responded by hitting a frozen rope over Braves center fielder Cameron Maybin's head off relief pitcher Sugar Ray Marimon, and he wasted no time in getting around the basepaths, eventually sliding into third base uncontested.

The 27-year-old Holt may not be a household name outside of New England, but he's arguably been the most productive hitter on a team that was supposed to have one of baseball's best lineups.

He owns a .309/.400/.454 batting line through 152 at-bats, albeit with modest totals of two home runs, 15 RBI, 20 runs and three stolen bases.

Although Holt has been one of the few bright spots for Boston this season, it isn't a great sign that the Red Sox's so-called utility man ranks first among the team's regular players in on-base percentage, second in batting average and third in slugging percentage.