Everyone is actually rising up.
New York Yankees star Aaron Judge became the fastest player in Major League Baseball history to hit 300 career home runs. Since Sunday’s game against the Texas Rangers, the hitter had hit 299 home runs.
On Wednesday, he hit the historic home run, a three-run bat into left field at Guaranteed Rate Field in Chicago, in the eighth inning against White Sox pitcher Chad Kuhl.
Judge has hit 43 home runs this season, making him the most hitter in Major League Baseball. Only 162 players have hit 300 home runs in their careers. His teammate Anthony Rizzo was the last to enter the 300-run club before Judge, doing so on April 28 of this year.
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Hall of Famer Ralph Kiner hit his 300th home run in his 1,087th career game in May 1953. Judge has played just 955 games since his debut in 2016.
Kiner, who retired after the 1955 season, finished his career with 369 home runs in 10 seasons with the Pittsburgh Pirates, Chicago Cubs and Cleveland Indians, playing his last game at age 32.
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Judge is currently 32 years old, but is under contract with the Yankees until 2031. If he’s healthy, he should stay in the Bronx long enough and hit a few more home run milestones along the way.
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It’s just the latest chapter in a potential Hall of Fame career for the American League MVP favorite.
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Judge is a six-time All-Star and on pace to win his second MVP award in three seasons. In addition to his 43 home runs, Judge began the day with a .332 batting average. His on-base percentage of .466 and slugging percentage of .699 led the entire MLB through Tuesday. The same goes for his OPS+ of 221 — indicating that his OPS of 1.165 is a remarkable 121 percent better than the league average.
Judge already holds the record for most home runs in a season in the American League. His 62 home runs in 2022 secured him the MVP award that year; that year he also led the AL in RBIs (131) and runs (133), both career highs.
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Earlier this year, Judge set the Yankees record for most home runs in a season before July 1. With 31 home runs by that date, he surpassed the record previously held by Babe Ruth.
