Yankees slugger Aaron Judge tied the American League home run record when he socked his 61st of the season on Wednesday night in New York’s road game against the Toronto Blue Jays.
Judge hit a two-run shot against Blue Jays left-hander Tim Mayza in the seventh inning, giving the Yankees a 5-3 lead. The blast to left also scored Aaron Hicks, who led off the inning with a single.
He pulled level on the AL single-season homer list with Roger Maris, who hit 61 for the Yankees in 1961. The only other AL player ever to hit 60 in a season was Babe Ruth, who had 60 for the Yankees in 1927.
The all-time single-season record is 73, set by the San Francisco Giants’ Barry Bonds in 2001. Sammy Sosa topped 60 three times for the Chicago Cubs from 1998-2001, and Mark McGwire exceeded 60 for the St. Louis Cardinals in both 1998 and 1999.
Judge, 30, had gone homerless in seven consecutive games since hitting his 60th against the Pittsburgh Pirates on Sept. 20. The Yankees have seven regular-season games remaining after Wednesday.
–Field Level Media