Aaron Judge made history by hitting his 50th home run for the fourth time, matching a major league record. The New York Yankees’ slugger smashed a go-ahead three-run homer in the second inning against the Chicago White Sox on Wednesday night. Judge launched a 96.6 mph sinker from Jonathan Cannon 392 feet into the Yankees bullpen in right-center field, giving his team a 3-1 lead.
Having previously hit 52 homers as a rookie in 2017, an AL-record 62 in 2022, and 58 last year, Judge now joins the elite company of Babe Ruth, Mark McGwire, and Sammy Sosa as the only players with four 50-homer seasons. The 33-year-old, a two-time AL MVP, currently leads the major leagues in batting average (.326) and OPS (1.130), with 108 RBIs to his name.
In another part of the league, the Seattle Mariners’ Cal Raleigh showcased his power by hitting his 59th and 60th homers on the same night, leading the MLB in home runs. Raleigh’s solo shots came against the Colorado Rockies, with the first one off Tanner Gordon in the first inning and the second off Angel Chivilli in the eighth inning.
With 11 multi-home run games this season, Raleigh has equaled the MLB record shared by Aaron Judge (2022), Hank Greenberg (1938), and Sammy Sosa. As the Mariners have four games left in their regular season, Raleigh has a shot at surpassing Aaron Judge for the American League single-season home run record. Judge set the record at 62 homers in 2022, breaking Roger Maris’ long-standing mark set in 1961.
Raleigh’s recent home runs came shortly after he surpassed Ken Griffey Jr. for the Mariners’ single-season home run record with his 57th homer. Additionally, Raleigh has broken Mickey Mantle’s switch-hitter record of 54 home runs, which had stood since 1961, and set the MLB record for homers by a catcher this season, surpassing Salvador Perez’s 2021 mark of 48.
Currently, Raleigh leads Phillies’ Kyle Schwarber by four home runs and Dodgers’ Shohei Ohtani by six in the race for the most homers in the league.