In Major League Baseball (MLB), the 50 home run club is the group of batters who have hit 50 or more home runs in a single season. [1] [2] [3] Babe Ruth was the first to achieve this, doing so in 1920. By reaching the milestone, he also became the first player to hit 30 and then 40 home runs in a single season, breaking his own record of 29 from the 1919 season. [4] Ruth subsequently became the first player to reach the 50 home run club on four occasions, repeating the achievement in 1921, 1927, and 1928. [5] [6] He remained the only player to accomplish this until Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa matched his feat in 1999 and 2001, respectively. In doing so, they became the only players to have achieved 50 home runs in four consecutive seasons. [6] Barry Bonds hit the most home runs to join the club, collecting 73 in 2001. [6] The most recent player to hit 50 home runs in three seasons is Aaron Judge, who did so in 2024.
In total, 32 players have reached the 50 home run club in MLB history and ten have done so more than once. [6] Of these, seventeen were right-handed batters, fourteen were left-handed, and one was a switch hitter, meaning he could bat from either side of the plate. Four of these players (including two active members of the 50 home run club) [7] have played for only one major league team. The New York Yankees are the only franchise to have five players reach the milestone while on their roster: Ruth, Mickey Mantle, Roger Maris, Alex Rodriguez, and Aaron Judge. Ten players are also members of the 500 home run club [8] and two of them (Willie Mays and Rodriguez) are also members of the 3,000 hit club. [9] Ten players won the Most Valuable Player (MVP) Award in the same year as their 50 home run season. [10] Mantle is the only player to have earned the Major League Triple Crown alongside achieving 50 home runs, leading both leagues in batting average, home runs and runs batted in (RBI). [11] [12] [13] Mantle and Maris—collectively known as the M&M Boys—are the only teammates to reach the 50 home run club in the same season, hitting a combined 115 home runs in 1961 and breaking the single-season record for home runs by a pair of teammates. [14] [15] Albert Belle is the only player to amass 50 or more doubles in addition to attaining 50 home runs. [16] [17] Prince Fielder, at 23 years and 139 days, was the youngest player to reach the milestone while Bonds, at age 37, was the oldest. [18] [19] Pete Alonso and Aaron Judge are the only players to hit 50 home runs in their rookie seasons.
Due to the infrequent addition of members into the 50 home run club, Baseball Digest called it "a restrictive fraternity comprising slugging elite" [20] in 1954, when there were only six members. Of the seventeen members eligible for the Baseball Hall of Fame, eight have been elected and three were elected on the first ballot. Eligibility requires that a player has "been retired five seasons" or deceased for at least six months, [21] disqualifying four active players and two players who have been retired for less than five seasons. Some believe the milestone has become less important with the large number of new members; [22] [23] fifteen players joined the club on a total of 24 occasions from 1995 to 2010. [6] Additionally, several of these recent members have had ties to performance-enhancing drugs. [24] [25] [26] [27]
Year | The year the player's 50 home run season occurred |
---|---|
Player (X) | Name of the player and number of 50 home run seasons they had accomplished at that point |
Team | The player's team for his 50 home run season |
HR | Number of home runs in that season |
Career | The number of home runs the player hit in his MLB career |
^ | Denotes single-season home run record progression |
† | Elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame |
‡ | Player is active |
* | Ongoing season |
Roger Eugene Maris was an American professional baseball right fielder who played 12 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). He is best known for setting a new MLB single-season home run record with 61 home runs in 1961.
Vladimir Guerrero Alvino, nicknamed "Vlad the Impaler", is a Dominican former professional baseball player who spent 16 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a right fielder and designated hitter. He played for the Montreal Expos (1996–2003), Anaheim Angels / Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim (2004–2009), Texas Rangers (2010), and Baltimore Orioles (2011).
In Major League Baseball (MLB), the 40–40 club is the group of batters, currently six, who have collected 40 home runs and 40 stolen bases in a single season. Few professional baseball players have possessed both the power and speed to reach this level, and no players have done so more than once. The six players with a 40–40 season are Jose Canseco, Barry Bonds, Alex Rodriguez, Alfonso Soriano, Ronald Acuña Jr., and Shohei Ohtani. Ohtani is the only player to achieve a 50–50 season, having done so in 2024.
Edwin Lee Mathews was an American professional baseball third baseman. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for 17 seasons for the Boston / Milwaukee / Atlanta Braves (1952–1966); Houston Astros (1967) and Detroit Tigers (1967–68). Inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1978, he is the only player to have represented the Braves in the three cities they have called home. He played 1,944 games for the Braves during their 13-season tenure in Milwaukee—the prime of Mathews' career.
Cecil Grant Fielder is an American former professional baseball designated hitter and first baseman in Major League Baseball (MLB). Fielder was a power hitter in the 1980s and 1990s. He attended college at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV). He played in MLB for the Toronto Blue Jays (1985–1988), in Japan's Central League for the Hanshin Tigers (1989), and then in MLB for the Detroit Tigers (1990–1996), New York Yankees (1996–97), Anaheim Angels in 1998, and Cleveland Indians in 1998. With the Yankees, he won the 1996 World Series over the Atlanta Braves. In 1990, he became the first player to reach the 50–home run mark since George Foster hit 52 for the Cincinnati Reds in 1977 and the first American League player to do so since Mickey Mantle and Roger Maris famously hit 54 and 61 in 1961.
James Howard Thome is an American former professional baseball corner infielder and designated hitter, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for 22 seasons (1991–2012). A prolific power hitter, Thome hit 612 home runs during his career—the eighth-most all time. He amassed a total of 2,328 hits and 1,699 runs batted in (RBIs). His career batting average was .276. He was a member of five All-Star teams and won a Silver Slugger Award in 1996.
The 3,000-hit club is the group of 33 batters who have collected 3,000 or more regular-season hits in their careers in Major League Baseball (MLB). Reaching 3,000 hits has been "long considered the greatest measure of superior bat handling" and is often described as a guarantee of eventual entry into the Baseball Hall of Fame.
Prince Semien Fielder is an American former professional baseball first baseman and designated hitter, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Milwaukee Brewers, Detroit Tigers, and Texas Rangers. He was selected in the first round of the 2002 Major League Baseball draft by the Brewers out of Eau Gallie High School in Melbourne, Florida, and spent the first seven years of his MLB career with the Brewers before signing with the Tigers, in January 2012. In November 2013, Fielder was traded to the Rangers, where he played the remainder of his career.
Raúl Javier Ibañez is an American former professional baseball left fielder in Major League Baseball (MLB) now serving as vice president of baseball development and special projects for the Los Angeles Dodgers. He played 11 of his 19 big league seasons for the Seattle Mariners, while also playing for the Kansas City Royals, Philadelphia Phillies, New York Yankees, and Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. While primarily a left fielder, Ibañez often saw considerable time as a designated hitter (DH), throughout his career.
Ryan James Howard, nicknamed "the Big Piece", is an American former professional baseball first baseman. Howard spent his entire Major League Baseball (MLB) career playing for the Philadelphia Phillies, from 2004 to 2016. He is known for being the fastest player in baseball history to reach both 100 home runs and 200 home runs. Howard holds numerous Phillies franchise records.
The "M&M Boys" were the duo of New York Yankees baseball players Mickey Mantle and Roger Maris, who were teammates from 1960 to 1966. They gained prominence during the 1961 season, when Maris and Mantle, batting third and cleanup (fourth) in the Yankee lineup respectively, both challenged Babe Ruth's 34-year-old single-season record of 60 home runs. The home run lead would change hands between the two teammates numerous times throughout the summer and fueled intense scrutiny of the players by the press. Maris eventually broke the record when he hit his 61st home run on the final day of the season, while Mantle hit 54 before he was forced to pull out of the lineup in September because of an abscessed hip.
John Edgar Clapp, nicknamed "Honest John", was an American professional baseball player-manager whose career spanned 12 seasons, 11 of which were spent with the Major League Baseball (MLB) Middletown Mansfields (1872), Philadelphia Athletics (1873–75), St. Louis Brown Stockings (1876–77), Indianapolis Blues (1878), Buffalo Bisons (1879), Cincinnati Stars (1880), Cleveland Blues (1881), and New York Gothams (1883). Clapp, who predominately played as a catcher, also played as an outfielder. Over his career, Clapp compiled a career batting average of .283 with 459 runs scored, 713 hits, 92 doubles, 35 triples, 7 home runs, and 834 runs batted in (RBI). Over 1,188 games played, Clapp struck out 51 times. Although the majority of his career was spent in the major leagues, Clapp also played two seasons of minor league baseball. He made his MLB debut at the age of 21 and was listed as standing 5 feet 7 inches (170 cm) and weighing 194 pounds (88 kg). His brother, Aaron Clapp, also played one season of MLB for the Troy Trojans.
Andrew Stefan McCutchen is an American professional baseball outfielder and designated hitter for the Pittsburgh Pirates of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the San Francisco Giants, New York Yankees, Philadelphia Phillies, and Milwaukee Brewers.
Gerald Dempsey "Buster" Posey III is an American former professional baseball catcher and is currently the president of baseball operations for the San Francisco Giants of Major League Baseball (MLB). He spent his entire 12-year Major League Baseball (MLB) career with the Giants, from 2009 until his retirement at the conclusion of the 2021 season.
Giancarlo Cruz Stanton, formerly known as Mike Stanton, is an American professional baseball designated hitter and outfielder for the New York Yankees. He has previously played in MLB for the Florida/Miami Marlins. Stanton stands 6 feet 6 inches (1.98 m) tall and weighs 245 pounds (111 kg). He bats and throws right-handed. Stanton is the Marlins' all-time home run leader and the only active player with over 400 home runs.
Michael Nelson Trout is an American professional baseball center fielder for the Los Angeles Angels of Major League Baseball (MLB). Trout is an 11-time MLB All-Star, three-time American League (AL) Most Valuable Player (MVP), and nine-time winner of the Silver Slugger Award. He also captained the United States national team during the 2023 World Baseball Classic. He is often regarded as the best player of his generation and one of the greatest baseball players of all time.
Aaron James Judge is an American professional baseball outfielder for the New York Yankees of Major League Baseball (MLB). A six-time MLB All-Star, Judge was unanimously selected as the American League (AL) Rookie of the Year in 2017. In 2022, he won the AL Most Valuable Player Award and set the AL record for most home runs in a season with 62, breaking the 61-year-old record held by Roger Maris. Judge stands 6 feet 7 inches (2.01 m) tall and weighs 282 pounds (128 kg), making him one of the tallest and largest players in MLB.
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Larry Walker...missed joining McGwire and Griffey in the 50 home run club (49).
Bautista['s]...next blast will put him in the 50 home run club.
Mantle took the triple crown in 1956 when he batted .353 with 52 home runs and 130 runs batted in.
Mantle, who won the triple batting crown..., became the eighth man in history to win the batting, home run and runs batted in titles in one season. [He] led the league, both leagues in fact, with a .353 batting average, 52 homers and 130 runs batted in.[ permanent dead link ]
[T]heir combined total of 115 still stands as the benchmark for teammates.
[Maris] and Mantle...broke the record for most single-season home runs by a pair of teammates.
In 1995,...he became the first player to amass 50 doubles and 50 homers in the same year.
[H]e became the first player to hit 50 homers and 50 doubles in 1995.
Not as exclusive as the "Four Homers in One Game Club" but, nevertheless, a restrictive sort of fraternity is that comprising batters who have blasted 50—or more—home runs in one season. This group of slugging elite...[ permanent dead link ]
I think it takes some of the luster off the numbers that some of the best players established...
Where 50 home runs in a season once meant something (just 18 players did it before 1995), 16 have since...
McGwire has admitted to using steroids during his career and Sosa and Bonds have been dogged by allegations.