The History of the American League Home Run Record

Image credit: Socks Seybold, AL HR record holder (Getty Images)

Editor’s Note: Updated with Aaron Judge’s 62nd home run.

With his 62nd home run, Aaron Judge has surplanted Roger Maris as the single-season AL home run record holder.

Judge has become only the fifth player to ever hold the AL single-season home run record. And he is the third consecutive Yankee to hold the record.

But did you know that Judge is also only the fifth person to ever hold the American League home run record?

Roger Maris has held the AL home run record from 1961-2021 with 61 home runs. Babe Ruth, as you all know, held the record with 60 home runs from 1927-1960. Ruth broke his own record of 59, which he set in 1921, which broke his own record of 54 he set in 1920 in his first year with the Yankees.

The last non-Yankee to hold the home run record? Babe Ruth. He hit 29 home runs in his final year with the Red Sox in 1919. The rest of that Red Sox team hit four home runs.

Ruth broke the record of Socks Seybold, who hit 16 home runs in 1902 with the Philadelphia A’s. Seybold had taken away the record held by Nap Lajoie, who hit 14 home runs for the A’s in the first year of the American League in 1901.

So over 121 years, only three teams have had the AL home run record holder: the A’s, the Red Sox and the Yankees. And the Yankees have had the record holder for 102 of the 121 years of the American League.

AL Single Season HR Record Holder
Year	Player	Team	HR
2022	Aaron Judge	Yankees	62
1961-2021	Roger Maris	Yankees	61
1927-1960	Babe Ruth	Yankees	60
1921-1926	Babe Ruth	Yankees	59
1920	Babe Ruth	Yankees	54
1919	Babe Ruth	Yankees	29
1902-1918	Socks Seybold	Athletics	16
1901	Nap Lajoie	Athletics	14