Cincinnati Reds slugger Derek Dietrich was hit by a major league record sixth pitch in one series when he was struck by a 71 mph changeup from Brewers reliever Alex Claudio in the top of the fifth inning of Cincinnati's 6-5 loss Saturday in Milwaukee.
It marked the sixth time in three games against the Brewers that Dietrich was hit by a pitch, already an MLB record for one series with one game still to be played Sunday.
"I'm not a stranger of getting hit by pitches, but the way it's been happening this series is just a little bit out of the norm. I don't think any of them were intentional," Dietrich told MLB.com on Saturday. "That was a bad changeup up and in. It was kind of tough to see with the shadows there anyway."
Having Dietrich on base has helped the Reds so far this series -- he has scored seven runs in the three games.
"I've been trying to make a conscious effort of staying in there, and staying over the plate and getting my best swing off," Dietrich told MLB.com. "I think it's one of those times. Just like you can hit five, six homers in a week, you can get five or six hit-by-pitches in a week."
Dietrich now has been hit with an MLB-high 15 pitches this season.
While Dietrich was with the Miami Marlins from 2013 through 2018, he was hit a franchise-record 93 times and the second most in the majors over those six seasons, behind Anthony Rizzo of the Chicago Cubs (111).
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
