MLB single-season and all-time home run records – NBC10 Philadelphia

Aaron Judge had a record-breaking season at bat two years ago, and in 2024 he was somehow even better.

The New York Yankees captain is on a historic home run streak this season. On Sunday, he hit two home runs against the Colorado Rockies and now has 51 home runs in total, nine more than second-place Shohei Ohtani of the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Judge is on pace to surpass the 60-home run mark for the second time in three seasons. His 62 home runs in 2022 set a new American League record, one more than Yankees legend Roger Maris’ 61 home runs from the 1961 season, and could well set a new record in the final month of the regular season.

While Judge has his sights set on more AL history, he still has a long way to go before he reaches the top of the home run record books.

Here’s a look at where Judge stands compared to other historical hitters for most home runs in an MLB season

Most home runs in an MLB season

Barry Bonds holds the record for most home runs in an MLB season. The all-time MLB record holder for home runs hit 73 home runs with the San Francisco Giants in 2001, surpassing Mark McGwire’s record of 70 set in the 1998 season.

McGwire and Sammy Sosa engaged in a historic home run race in 1998. McGwire was the first of the two to surpass Maris’ 61 home run mark, which was the MLB record at the time, finishing the season with 70. Sosa’s 66 was the second-best home run total ever for an MLB season until Bonds hit his 73 in 2001.

Here’s a look at the players with the most home runs in a season in MLB history:

1. Barry Bonds, 2001: 73

2. Mark McGwire, 1998: 70

3. Sammy Sosa, 1998: 66

4. Mark McGwire, 1999: 65

5. Sammy Sosa, 2001: 64

6. Sammy Sosa, 1999: 63

7. Aaron Judge, 2022: 62

8. Roger Maris, 1961: 61

9.Babe Ruth, 1927: 60

T-10. Babe Ruth, 1921: 59

T-10. Giancarlo Stanton, 2017: 59

Most home runs in MLB history

Judge isn’t even half as successful as Bonds when it comes to the most home runs ever. The Yankees slugger has hit 308 home runs in his career, a whopping 454 fewer than Bonds’ MLB record for home runs.

Bonds is joined on the home run Mount Rushmore by Hank Aaron, Babe Ruth and Albert Pujols as the only four players in MLB history to hit more than 700 home runs.

Here’s how Bonds compares to the other top 10 home runs in MLB history:

1. Barry Bonds: 762

2. Hank Aarons: 755

3. Baby Ruth: 714

4. Albert Pujols: 703

5. Alex Rodriguez: 696

6. Willie Mays: 660

7. Ken Griffey Jr.: 630

8. Jim Thome: 612

9. Sammy Sosa: 609

10. Frank Robinson: 586