Last Updated on December 27, 2023 by Matt Musico
If you’ve ever wondered which players are among the Giants single season HR leaders at each position, then you’re in the right place. Outside of pitcher and designated hitter, each player had to man their position for at least 100 games (or 75% of games played) for the season in question.
After you’re done checking this out, head over to our Giants all-time and single-season home run leaderboards.
Want to see the Giants slug dingers in person? Grab tickets from our friends at Vivid Seats. And before you get to the stadium, make sure you’re decked out in the right gear. Get official Giants merch from the MLB Shop or a ‘Big Dinger Energy’ shirt from our apparel store.
Giants Single Season HR Leaders
Catcher: Walker Cooper, 35 Home Runs in 1947
In the seven years leading up to his offensive outburst, Walker Cooper slugged 38 home runs across 1,930 plate appearances. But then, 1947 came around and he needed just 547 trips to the plate to hit 35 home runs with 122 RBI. The only other time he got close to those numbers in the same season was in 1949. Cooper hit 20 homers with 83 RBI that year for the Giants and Reds.
The backstop enjoyed being a visiting player in ’47, which is evidenced by his home/road splits. He posted a .777 OPS with 12 homers and 44 RBI in 254 plate appearances at home. Once the Giants hit the road, though, those numbers jumped up to 1.057, 23, and 78, respectively, in 293 trips to the plate.
Pitcher: Hal Schumacher, 6 Home Runs in 1934
The 1934 season was a banner year for Hal Schumacher, and not just because of his franchise-leading six pitcher dingers. It was the only time he eclipsed the 20-win plateau while on the mound. He went 23-10 with a 3.18 ERA and 112 strikeouts in 297 innings pitched.
Schumacher hit 15 career home runs, but 1934 was the only time he slugged more than two in a single campaign. It was also accompanied by 15 RBI and a .711 OPS. That number never finished higher than .635 in one year for the remainder of his MLB career.
First Base: Johnny Mize, 51 Home Runs in 1947
Johnny Mize built himself into a perennial MVP candidate before heading off to fight in World War II like so many other MLB stars. He didn’t play at all between 1943 and 1945. Upon returning in 1946, he only suited up for 101 games. He didn’t miss a beat, though, slugging 22 homers with 70 RBI to go along with a .337/.437/.576 line. Oh, and then he followed it up with those 51 taters the next year.
Mize led the league in homers in 1947. He also was at the top of the heap when it came to RBI (138) and runs scored (137). This performance, which included a .998 OPS, resulted in a third-place finish in MVP Award voting. It was the fourth and final time he finished within the top five.
The slugging first baseman didn’t hit fewer than seven homers in a month in 1947. However, a two-month span from July to August is what put him over the top. He hit 24 homers and collected 61 of his RBI in just 273 plate appearances.
Second Base: Jeff Kent, 37 Home Runs in 2002
Jeff Kent‘s 2002 performance for the Giants was right in the middle of one of the better power peaks we’ve ever seen from a second baseman. Those 37 homers were accompanied by 108 RBI. It was the sixth straight year he slugged at least 20 homers with 100-plus RBI. From 1997 through 2005, he did it a total of eight times.
Kent was having himself a solid year heading into the 2002 All-Star break. It included a .885 OPS with 14 home runs and 55 RBI through 365 plate appearances. But over his final 317 trips to the plate, those numbers rose to .989, 23, and 53, respectively. It was all made possible because of a torrid August. He hit .316/.381/.772 with 14 home runs, 10 doubles, 34 RBI, and 23 runs scored.
Shortstop: Rich Aurilia, 37 Home Runs in 2001
While Barry Bonds was busy lighting the baseball world on fire (more on that in a minute), Rich Aurilia also enjoyed a career year at the dish. His 206 total hits led the league, while the 37 homers and 97 RBI he racked up were both single-season career-high marks. It was the only time he was selected to an All-Star Game. It was also the only time he earned down-ballot MVP votes (he finished 12th) while also winning a Silver Slugger Award.
Similar to his middle-infield partner, Aurilia’s power was more prevalent after the All-Star break. That’ll happen when you hit 25 homers in the second half. But, it’s not like his first half was all that bad. Let’s not forget that he was selected to appear in the midsummer classic. He “only” had 12 homers at the break, but it was accompanied by a .356/.398/.558 triple slash.
Third Base: Matt Williams, 43 Home Runs in 1994
Who knows how many homers Matt Williams would’ve finished with in 1994 if there was no MLB Strike? He set a career-high mark the year prior with 38 homers in 145 games played, yet needed just 110 contests to reach 43 the following season. Williams finished second to Jeff Bagwell in NL MVP Award voting, but he at least took home both a Gold Glove Award and a Silver Slugger Award.
In the four full months he played, Williams never hit fewer than nine homers and reached double digits on three occasions. July was some of his best work overall, too. It was the only time his OPS crested over 1.000 (it was 1.081) while his 11 homers and 32 RBI were also single-month highs.
Giants Single Season Home Run Leaders
Left Field: Barry Bonds, 73 Home Runs in 2001
Even after all these years, Barry Bonds’ 73 home runs is an insane number. This is still the MLB single-season record, and it was the start of a four-year stretch where he won the NL MVP Award every season. His legacy is complicated because of performance-enhancing drugs and the steroid era itself, but that doesn’t mean the numbers aren’t impressive.
Bonds had no problem displaying power in San Francisco, evidenced by his 37 home runs. He also slugged at least 11 in a month five times in 2001. The only time he didn’t was in July when he hit six. He made up for that with two months of 16-plus taters (17 in May, 16 in September/October).
The outfielder slugged double-digit homers against two clubs, both of which reside in the NL West. He hit 11 against the San Diego Padres and 10 against the Colorado Rockies.
Center Field: Willie Mays, 52 Home Runs in 1965
Bonds may have the Giants’ single-season home run record on lock, but his godfather has a stranglehold of the franchise’s all-time home run record. The 1965 season was the fourth and final time he led baseball in homers. It was also the second time he surpassed the 50-homer plateau, with the first occurrence coming 10 years prior. And with 112 RBI, it was also the seventh straight year he slugged at least 29 dingers with 100-plus rib-eye steaks.
Mays did the majority of his yardwork over the season’s final two months in ’65, slugging a combined 28 home runs. Mays also loved starting games fast during this campaign. In the first inning of games, he slugged 12 homers with 34 RBI to go along with a .385/.439/.761 line.
Right Field: Mel Ott, 42 Home Runs in 1929
If you want to talk about making a statement early in your career, look no further than Mel Ott‘s 1929 performance for the Giants. He didn’t lead the league in homers (42) or RBI (151) that year, but both those numbers were single-season career-high marks. Oh, and they came in his age-20 campaign. The rest of his career was pretty good, too — Ott went to 12 All-Star Games and hit a total of 511 home runs before getting enshrined in the Hall of Fame.
He posted an OPS of at least 1.000 five times in six months in 1929, with July being the only outlier (.883). His best overall month was June. That’s when he posted his highest single-month OPS (1.211) to go along with his best home run (11) and RBI (47) totals. Ott’s favorite inning of games was the sixth. He hit eight dingers during that particular frame.
Designated Hitter: Joc Pederson, 14 Home Runs in 2023
After hitting 23 homers with 70 RBI during his first year with the Giants in 2022, Joc Pederson ran it back with San Francisco in 2023 by accepting the one-year qualifying offer. It resulted in another 15 homers and 51 RBI, 14 of which came as the squad’s designated hitter.
The majority of Pederson’s homers came with no outs. He slugged seven in that situation, compared to eight with one out or two outs (four in each scenario). He only hit more than one homer against three clubs in 2023: the Diamondbacks (two), Cubs (two), and Nationals (three).
Want to see some homers in person this season? Of course you do. Grab MLB tickets from our friends at Vivid Seats. And before you get to the stadium, make sure you’re decked out in the right gear. Get your favorite team’s official merch from the MLB Shop or a ‘Big Dinger Energy’ shirt from our apparel store.
