Home run

A home run is a four-base hit clearing the bases. It is abbreviated as HR. Every runner scores including the batter. A home run usually is hit out of the park, beyond the outfield fence, but it is also possible to hit an inside-the-park home run. A home run hit with the bases loaded is a grand slam.

There are a variety of ways to set records with home runs. The major league record for the most home runs in a single game is four (held by 18 players - see list below). The major league record for most home runs in a single inning is 2, achieved by many players. The major league record for the most consecutive games in which a home run has been hit by a player is eight (held by Ken Griffey Jr., Dale Long, and Don Mattingly). The major league record for the most home runs in a single season is 73 (Barry Bonds). The major league record for the most home runs in a single season in the American League is 61 (Roger Maris). The major league record for most seasons as the season home run champ is 12, held by Babe Ruth. The modern major league record for fewest home runs in a season by the league leader is 7 (held by several players). The major league record for most home runs in a season by a pitcher is 9 (Wes Ferrell). The major league record for most home runs in a season by a pinch hitter is 7 (Craig Wilson and Dave Hansen). The major league record for the most home runs in a single season against a single opponent is 14 (Lou Gehrig, against the 1936 Cleveland Indians).

All-Time Leaders

All Time Leaders
Span	Player	Total	Notes
Career	Barry Bonds	762
Season	Barry Bonds	73	2001
Game	17 - see below	4
Negro League Career	Mule Suttles	237
Negro League Season	Willie Wells	27
Negro League Season	Mule Suttles	27
NPB Career	Sadaharu Oh	868
NPB Season	Wladimir Balentien	60	2013
NPB Game	Yoshiyuki Iwamoto	4
NPB Game	Sadaharu Oh	4
NPB Game	Tony Solaita	4
NPB Game	Nigel Wilson	4
NPB Game	Atsuya Furuta	4
Minor League Career	Hector Espino	484
Minor League Season	Joe Bauman	72
Minor League Game	Nig Clarke	8
Cuban Season	Alfredo Despaigne	36	2011-2012
Cuban Game	Leonel Moa	4
Cuban Game	Alberto Díaz	4
Cuban Game	Omar Linares	4
KBO Career	Seung-yeop Lee	467
KBO Season	Seung-yeop Lee	56
KBO Game	Kyung-wan Park	4
KBO Game	Byung-ho Park	4
KBO Game	Jeong Choi	4
KBO Game	Wilin Rosario	4
KBO Game	Jae-il Oh	4
CPBL Career	Ngayaw Ake	301+
CPBL Season	Kuo-Hui Kao	39
CPBL Game	30	3
Hoofdklasse Career	Marcel Joost
Hoofdklasse Season	Jacky Jakoba	24
Serie A1 Season	Donald Mazzilli	33
AAGPBL Career	Eleanor Callow	55
AAGPBL Season	Joanne Weaver	29
AAGPBL Game	Many	2

Four home runs in one game

Player	Date	League	Team	Opponent	Score	Notes
Bobby Lowe	May 30, 1894	National League	Boston Beaneaters	Cincinnati Reds	20-11	two in 3rd inning
Ed Delahanty	July 13, 1896	National League	Philadelphia Phillies	Chicago Colts	8-9	first time in defeat
Lou Gehrig	June 3, 1932	American League	New York Yankees	Philadelphia Athletics	20-13
Chuck Klein	July 10, 1936	National League	Philadelphia Phillies	Pittsburgh Pirates	9-6	10 innings
Pat Seerey	July 18, 1948	American League	Chicago White Sox	Philadelphia Athletics	12-11	11 innings
Gil Hodges	August 31, 1950	National League	Brooklyn Dodgers	Boston Braves	19-3	also hit a single
Joe Adcock	July 31, 1954	National League	Milwaukee Braves	Brooklyn Dodgers	15-7	also hit a double
Rocky Colavito	June 10, 1959	American League	Cleveland Indians	Baltimore Orioles	11-8
Willie Mays	April 30, 1961	National League	San Francisco Giants	Milwaukee Braves	14-4
Mike Schmidt	April 17, 1976	National League	Philadelphia Phillies	Chicago Cubs	18-16	10 innings; also hit a single
Bob Horner	July 6, 1986	National League	Atlanta Braves	Montreal Expos	8-11	second time in defeat
Mark Whiten	September 7, 1993	National League	St. Louis Cardinals	Cincinnati Reds	15-2	includes a grand slam
Mike Cameron	May 2, 2002	American League	Seattle Mariners	Chicago White Sox	15-4	two in 1st inning
Shawn Green	May 23, 2002	National League	Los Angeles Dodgers	Milwaukee Brewers	16-3	also hit a single and a double
Carlos Delgado	September 25, 2003	American League	Toronto Blue Jays	Tampa Bay Devil Rays	10-8
Josh Hamilton	May 8, 2012	American League	Texas Rangers	Baltimore Orioles	10-3	also hit a double
Scooter Gennett	June 6, 2017	National League	Cincinnati Reds	St. Louis Cardinals	13-1	also hit a single
J.D. Martinez	September 4, 2017	National League	Arizona Diamondbacks	Los Angeles Dodgers	13-0

Two home runs in one inning

The first player to hit two home runs in one inning was Charley Jones of the Boston Red Caps on June 10, 1880. The feat has since been reproduced many times, but never topped. Willie McCovey was the first player to accomplish the feat twice, doing so on April 12, 1973 and again on June 27, 1977, both times with the San Francisco Giants. He has since been joined by Andre Dawson and Jeff King in the National League, and Alex Rodriguez and Edwin Encarnacion in the American League. No one has done it three times, or done it in two different leagues. Fernando Tatis is the only player to have hit two grand slams in the same inning, doing so on April 23, 1999, with the St. Louis Cardinals.

There have 64 instances of this feat in major league history, including once each in the American Association and in the Players League. A complete list of occurrences can be found at the Baseball Almanac [1].

Other terms

There are many slang terms for home run, including homer, dinger, tater, round tripper, four bagger, circuit clout, and moon shot. A home run hit with the bases loaded is known as a grand slam.

For a full list, see List of nicknames for a home run.

Further Reading

• Jared Diamond: Swing Kings: The Inside Story of Baseball's Home Run Revolution, William Morrow Publisher, HarperCollins, New York, NY, 2020. ISBN 9780062872104
• Ed Eagle: "Players with 4 home runs in a game", mlb.com, September 5, 2018. [2]
• Christopher D. Green: "Baseball's First Power Surge: Home Runs in the Late 19th-Century Major Leagues", The Baseball Research Journal, SABR, Volume 40, Number 2 (Fall 2011), pp. 99-103.
• Thomas Harrigan: "This is each position's top home run hitter", mlb.com, December 11, 2020. [3]
• Bill Jenkinson: Baseball's Ultimate Power: Ranking the All-Time Greatest Distance Home Run Hitters, Lyons Press, Guilford, CT, 2010. ISBN 1599215446
• Bob McConnell and David Vincent: SABR Presents the Home Run Encyclopedia: The Who, What, and Where of Every Home Run Hit Since 1876, SABR, Macmillan, New York, NY, 1996. ISBN 002860816X
• Sweeny Murti: "Is this the most unbreakable HR record?", mlb.com, January 28, 2024. [4]
• Mike Petriello: "Everything you didn't know about home runs", mlb.com, April 30, 2023. [5]
• Joshua Shifrin and Tommy Shea: Dingers: The 101 Most Memorable Home Runs in Baseball History, Sports Publishing LLC, New York, NY, 2016. ISBN 978-1-6132-1831-0
• Christian Trudeau: "Out of Here: Home Runs in Canada", The Baseball Research Journal, SABR, Volume 40, Number 2 (Fall 2011), pp. 73-78. [6]
• David Vincent: Home Run: the Definitive History of Baseball's Ultimate Weapon, Potomac Books, Inc., Dulles, VA, 2007.
• David Vincent: Home Run's Most Wanted: The Top 10 Book of Monumental Dingers, Prodigious Swingers, and Everything Long-Ball, Potomac Books, Inc., Dulles, VA, 2009.
• David Vincent: "Pitchers Dig the Long ball (At Least When They Are Hitting)", The Baseball Research Journal, SABR, Volume 41, Number 1 (Spring 2012), pp. 7-11. [7]
• Steven K. Wagner: The Four Home Runs Club: Sluggers Who Achieved Baseball's Rarest Feat, Rowman & Littlefield, Lanham, MD, 2018. ISBN 978-1-5381-1542-8

See Also

• Career Leaders for Home Runs
• Members of the 500 Home Run Club
• Minor Leaguers with 4 or more Home Runs in a game
• John Henry Holder