Who Is Leading The MLB in Home Runs?

Posted on by Matt Musico
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Last Updated on June 22, 2022 by Matt Musico

What’s one of the most common questions that get asked every single baseball season? Well, you probably know what we’re going to say. In our eyes, it’s definitely the following: Who is leading the MLB in home runs?

And, it’s not like this question only pertains to the current season. Sure, people are interested in who has blasted the most home runs in 2022 so far, but what about 2021? What about before then? While it’ll still get built out more, we’ve taken an in-depth look at who has hit the most home runs in a season in each league going back to 2013 (more will be done for it soon, I promise).

So, the purpose of this article will be to see who has hit the most home runs in the big leagues over the course of multiple seasons. First, we’ll talk about who is leading the MLB in home runs in 2022, along with who else is in the top five. Then we’ll see who is leading the MLB in home runs since the start of the 2021 season, followed by 2020, and so on until we reach 2000.

Since this will take a bit of upkeep throughout the year, we’ll update the numbers every week during the regular season. Also, all of the home run totals below have been made possible thanks to the search function at FanGraphs.

Editor’s Note: This article was last updated on 6/13/2022.

Who Is Leading the MLB in Home Runs This Season?

Not only was Aaron Judge the first MLB player to 10 homers, but he was also the first MLB to 20 homers this season. It certainly seems like him betting on himself during the final year before hitting free agency is going to pay off handsomely.

Read: How to Bet on Baseball: Common Betting Types

Who’s Hit the Most Home Runs Since 2021?

It’s no surprise to see Vlad Jr. and Perez here since they lead the AL in home runs during the 2021 campaign. Semien had hung around on this list for a while, but his slow start in 2022 finally caught up to him. Meanwhile, this list is dominated by a majority of sluggers from both the AL and NL East divisions.

Related: April 2022 MLB Home Run Recap

Who Is Leading the MLB in Home Runs Since 2020?

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By the beginning of June, Jose Ramirez had already surpassed the 3.0 fWAR mark for the season. As long as he stays above that number for the remainder of the season, it’ll be the seventh year in a row he’s done so. The Guardians are getting incredible value on the contract Ramirez just signed.  He’s under contract through 2028 to the tune of $141 million.

Who’s Hit the Most Home Runs Since 2019?

Pete Alonso has a comfortable lead in this category thanks to his record-breaking rookie season. Not only did he bring home Rookie of the Year honors, the Home Run Derby title, and the single-season home run crown, but he also set MLB’s rookie record for homers in one year. Now that’s a way to make an entrance.

Who Is Leading the MLB in Home Runs Since 2018?

This is quite a diverse group of sluggers, and it might be surprising to see Suárez leading them, but his home run progression was quite interesting during the beginning of his career. After hitting four as a rookie in 2014, he set a new single-season career-high each year until hitting 49 in 2019, which was among the most powerful in Reds history.

Who’s Hit the Most Home Runs Since 2017?

Get used to seeing Nelson Cruz at the top of this list, because after seeing him here in 2017, you’re going to see him in the driver’s seat for the next 10 years, too. That’s what late-career power surges will do. Between 2005 and 2013, Cruz slugged 157 home runs in 3,182 plate appearances. Between 2014 and 2021 (4,555 plate appearances), he’s slugged 292 home runs, and he’s still going strong with the Washington Nationals in 2022.

Who Is Leading the MLB in Home Runs Since 2016?

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After a couple of ho-hum power seasons to start his career, Nolan Arenado just went off. In 2013 and 2014, he combined to hit 28 home runs. He then proceeded to rattle off five straight years of at least 37 dingers. This included three campaigns of 40-plus homers, all while leading the league in home runs three times.

Who’s Hit the Most Home Runs Since 2015?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5YKXoPEMzY8

Manny Machado really came into his own during the 2015 season, which was his age-22 campaign. After hitting 33 homers through his first three years in the big leagues, he hit 35 dingers in 2015. It was his first of five straight seasons with at least 30 home runs.

Who’s Hit the Most Home Runs Since 2014?

Remember when J.D. Martinez was a roster casualty despite playing for one of baseball’s worst teams? It happened in 2014 with the Houston Astros, but the right-handed slugger saved his career with the Tigers. He slashed .315/.358/.553 with 23 home runs and 76 RBI in 480 plate appearances that year, and then followed it up with another 38 dingers and 102 RBI the next year.

Who’s Hit the Most Home Runs Since 2013?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WGoMSXCW9fc

Would any list of top position players from this millennium be complete with Mike Trout? Absolutely not. The 2013 season was his second of five straight top-two finishes in AL MVP voting, and with 27 homers and 33 stolen bases, it was nearly his second consecutive 30-30 effort.

Who Is Leading the MLB in Home Runs Since 2012?

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This is the first time Encarnación makes an appearance on this list, and it certainly won’t be his last. He never led the league in home runs during his career but did enjoy eight straight years with 30-plus homers from 2012 through 2019.

Who’s Hit the Most Home Runs Since 2011?

Do you remember when Giancarlo Stanton was known as Mike Stanton? Well, it was a thing when he first made it to the big leagues with the Marlins. One thing that hasn’t changed since then, though, is his ability to hit tanks. He only needed 100 games to slug 22 homers as a rookie in 2010, and then he followed it up with his first 30-homer campaign in 2011, when he slugged 34 in 150 games played.

Who Is Leading the MLB in Home Runs Since 2010?

The only time Nelson Cruz hit 30-plus homers in his career prior to 2014 came in 2009. He hit another 22 in 2010, but that year began his power surge in October. He hit six homers during the 2010 playoffs, followed by another eight in 2012, which is among the most home runs in a postseason ever. His 18 total dingers during this time of year are also among the most postseason home runs for a career.

Who’s Hit the Most Home Runs Since 2009?

Miguel Cabrera is one of those dudes who wasn’t just a slugger during his prime — he was a complete hitter, and he proved it by joining this exclusive home run list. Although he led the league with 37 home runs in 2008, his 2009 performance was the start of an incredibly dominant stretch for the Tigers. He slugged 34 homers with 103 RBI and paired it with a .324/.396/.547 line. After hitting .292 in 2008, it was his first of eight straight years with a batting average of at least .313. On four of those occasions, he was above .330, and he took home the batting title in each of those years.

Who Is Leading the MLB in Home Runs Since 2008?

It’s always a good time to look back on Albert Pujols‘ first tour with the St. Louis Cardinals and be in awe of his production. The 2008 season is a perfect example of that. He won his second of three NL MVP awards and did so off the strength of a .347/.462/.653 line, including 37 homers and 116 RBI. It was the eighth straight year he hit at least 30 dingers with 100 RBI, a streak that would continue for two more years after this specific campaign.

Who’s Hit the Most Home Runs Since 2007?

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Ryan Braun‘s career will always be tarnished because of his involvement with performance-enhancing drugs. However, he’s still the Brewers’ all-time home run leader and the beginning of his career was quite impressive. In addition to winning the NL MVP in 2011, Braun also finished second the following year. In both of these seasons, he enjoyed 30-30 efforts (33 homers and 33 steals in ’11, 41 homers and 30 steals in ’12).

Who Is Leading the MLB in Home Runs Since 2006?

Big Papi put together a ton of memorable campaigns during his MLB career — you don’t become a first-ballot Hall of Famer for no reason — but 2004-06 were definitely his most powerful. This three-year span includes his only 40-homer performances, which ended with him setting the Red Sox single-season home run record in 2006. He slashed .296/.397/.614 during this time while averaging 47 homers and 141 RBI.

Who’s Hit the Most Home Runs Since 2005?

The 2005 season was Pujols’ first MVP performance, and it included all the typical terrifying stats he’d put together annually. In an even 700 plate appearances, he hit .330/.430/.609 with 41 home runs and 117 RBI. It was his third of four straight 40-homer seasons, and he slashed an incredible .338/.429/.651 during that time.

Who Is Leading the MLB in Home Runs Since 2004?

Everyone remembers 2004 because of the Red Sox coming back from a 3-0 ALCS deficit against the New York Yankees and how David Ortiz played a role in that. However, they had to get to the postseason first before any of that could take place. Despite hitting 31 homers with 101 RBI the year before for Boston, 2004 was when Papi really established himself as a serious threat. Before breaking many the following year, Ortiz set single-season career-high marks in almost every important offensive category, including OPS (.983), homers (41), RBI (139), runs scored (94), doubles (47), and hits (175), to name a few.

Who’s Hit the Most Home Runs Since 2003?

Is there any better way to begin your MLB career with a walk-off home run? I’m not quite sure, but that’s exactly what Miguel Cabrera did. It’s like the Baseball Gods were telling us he was destined to be one of this era’s most dominant right-handed hitters. He’d hit 12 homers in 87 games for the Marlins as a rookie in 2003, and the next time he’d hit fewer than 26 in a season would be 2015 when he hit 18 in 119 games played.

Who Is Leading the MLB in Home Runs Since 2002?

Alex Rodriguez only spent three years in Texas, but he made them as powerful as possible. He’s still featured heavily on the Rangers’ single-season home run leaderboard, as 156 of his 696 career taters came with the organization. Nobody hit more homers than A-Rod during that three-year span, as he led the league in dingers during each campaign.

Who’s Hit the Most Home Runs Since 2001?

Adam Dunn placed fourth in NL Rookie of the Year voting during 2001, and it was mostly engineered by the ridiculous power he’d eventually display over the duration of his 14-year MLB career. He needed just 66 games to slug 19 dingers, and although his power took a step back in 2002 (.454 slugging percentage) and 2003 (.465 slugging percentage), he made up for it afterward. He’d rip off seven straight years with at least 38 home runs between 2004 and 2010. This included hitting exactly 40 each year from 2005 through 2008.

Who Is Leading the MLB in Home Runs Since 2000?

What’s left to say about Pujols at this point? There’s a reason why he’s heavily featured on the Cardinals’ single-season home run leaderboard: consistency. It didn’t really matter what happened from year to year — we got used to expecting 30 homers, 100 RBI, and an OPS greater than .900 and were almost never disappointed. The only time Pujols didn’t hit all three of those benchmarks was in 2011. He still hit 37 homers with a .906 OPS but fell just shy in the RBI category with 99.

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