The Seattle Mariners have a superstar on their hands. Cal Raleigh has thrust his way into the American League MVP race and could even beat Aaron Judge out this season as the New York Yankees outfielder struggles to return from an arm injury. Raleigh won the Home Run Derby but has been red-hot in the regular season as well. In fact, he leads Major League Baseball with 45 home runs, and we're not even through the month of August yet.
The all-time single season record belongs to Barry Bonds, who hit 73 bombs in 2001. The chances of Raleigh breaking that record are slim to none. But Aaron Judge's 62 home runs in 2022 is the current American League record.
We'll take a look at some of the top home run hitters in AL history and see if Raleigh actually has a chance to do it.
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Can 'Big Dumper' break AL home run record?
The record holder prior to Judge was fellow New York Yankees legend Roger Maris, who hit 61 homers back in 1961. Below is a table featuring the top 15 single -season home run totals in AL history.
Player/Year | Home Run Total |
|---|---|
Aaron Judge (2022) | 62 |
Roger Maris (1961) | 61 |
Babe Ruth (1927) | 60 |
Babe Ruth (1921) | 59 |
Jimmie Foxx (1932) | 58 |
Hank Greenberg (1938) | 58 |
Aaron Judge (2024) | 58 |
Alex Rodriguez (2002) | 57 |
Ken Griffey Jr. (1997) | 56 |
Ken Griffey Jr, (1998) | 56 |
Jose Bautista (2010) | 54 |
Mickey Mantle (1949) | 54 |
David Ortiz (2006) | 54 |
Alex Rodriguez (2007) | 54 |
Babe Ruth (1920) | 54 |
As you can see, a lot of players are tied on the list. Raleigh needs to hit 18 home runs in the final 43 games of the regular season to catch and eclipse Judge. It certainly isn't out of the realm of possibility; the way Raleigh has been swatting home runs would seem to indicate that he's got a chance to do just that.
You can't write him off as he tries to chase history. However, if we're thinking logically here, it probably is a bit of a stretch. He's got the power to get the job done, but even at 45 home runs, it's going to take a lot. There just isn't much time left in the 2025 regular season: 18 homers in 43 games is a 67-homer pace over a 162-game season.
Now, whether he breaks or not is irrelevant in regards to the AL MVP race. It's basically a two-horse race between him and Aaron Judge. Raleigh has the most home runs in all of baseball, so he definitely has a shot to win the MVP award, and he brings a ton of defensive value as a catcher.
But there isn't much time left for him to break the all-time record. It will be fun to see him chase history, though. And if he helps carry the Mariners to an AL West title, fans won't much care.