It might be tomorrow, or it might be today (and after a wild Tuesday of long balls, it's very likely to be today), but very soon, baseball's all-time home run record is going to be broken. Which record is that? It's a fair question, because in 2019, you can't throw a dart at a media guide without hitting a home run record that has fallen or is in jeopardy.
Here's a sampling, and remember, we've still got almost three weeks to go:
• Most home runs in a season, MLB: Record is 6,105, set in 2017. There were 6,084 homers hit through Tuesday's games.
• Most home runs in a season, American League: Record is 3,170, set in 2017. There were 3,119 homers hit in the AL through Tuesday's games.
• Most home runs in a season, National League: Record is 3,005, set in 2000. There were 2,965 homers hit in the NL through Tuesday's games.
• Most home runs in a season, MLB team: new record, set by both the Minnesota Twins and New York Yankees (276 through Tuesday).
• Most home runs in a season, AL team: new record, set by the Twins and Yankees (276 through Tuesday).
• Most home runs in a season, NL team: new record, set by the Los Angeles Dodgers (258 through Tuesday).
• Most road homers in a season, MLB team: new record, set by the Twins (152 through Tuesday).
• Most road homers in a season, AL team: new record, set by the Twins (152 though Tuesday).
• Most homers by NL rookie: Pete Alonso, New York Mets (47 homers through Tuesday).
That's a sampling, really. Alonso still has a shot at the overall rookie record. The Yankees and Dodgers both have a shot at home runs hit at home, both in their respective leagues and overall. Three teams have at least a chance at the NL record for road homers (Cubs, Diamondbacks, Dodgers). It's dizzying, really.
To capture a sense of the sheer scale of the number of home run records being broken in 2019, we thought we'd approach it at the franchise level. The MLB and league records get the headlines, but most teams are breaking franchise records as well. What follows is the most impressive home run record that has been set for each team, along with a number of quests that might or might not be completed by the end of the season. We also listed the single-season record for each team, along with its current pace. As of today, 16 teams are on pace to set a club record for homers in a season.
Some ground rules: We're not getting too fancy in grubbing up records. The record can be team- or player-oriented, but it can't go more than one split deep. In other words, homers by a right-handed hitter, or team homers on the road are fair play. Road homers by right-handed hitters are not. A number of sources were used to compile the list, including Baseball-Reference.com, Baseball-Almanac.com and Lee Sinins' Complete Baseball Encyclopedia.
(Statistics through Tuesday.)
Arizona Diamondbacks
Team record: 220 (2017)
Current homers: 208 (pace of 232)
Record status: very likely will be broken
Record quest (accomplished): Eduardo Escobar has already broken the Arizona record for homers by a switch-hitter (34). The old record holder was current Major League Baseball Players Association president Tony Clark, who had 30 for the Snakes in 2005. But Escobar's record is not safe: Fellow switch-hitter Ketel Marte is just two dingers behind him with 32. A NL wild-card slot isn't the only race going on in Phoenix.
Atlanta Braves
Team record: 235 (2003)
Current homers: 230 (pace of 255)
Record status: almost certain to be broken
Record quest: SunTrust Park hasn't been hung with a label such as "The Launching Pad" like onetime home Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium was, but the 2019 Braves have already set the club record for dingers hit at home. But the more exciting quest involves Freddie Freeman (38 homers), Ronald Acuna Jr. (38) and Josh Donaldson (37 homers and an unknown number of umbrellas), who very well might give the Braves their second 40-homer trio, joining the feat achieved by Davey Johnson, Hank Aaron and Darrell Evans in 1973. Colorado (1996 and 1997) is the only other team to have three 40-homer hitters in a season. Maybe STP really is the new Launching Pad.
Baltimore Orioles
Team record: 257 (1996)
Current homers: 183 (pace of 206)
Record status: will not be broken
Record quest (already tied): The 2019 season hasn't been an exciting one for the Orioles, and even in a season when everyone is breaking homer records, they aren't breaking theirs. They do have a lot of double-digit homer guys, so there's that. The O's already have 10 hitters who have hit at least 10 homers, matching the club record set in 1998. Chance Sisco has eight, so with two more, it's a new standard. Also, we probably should mention that while we're trying to keep things positive and focus on homers hit, not allowed, the 2019 Orioles will live in infamy for the gopher balls they've given up. Baltimore has already given up more homers than any team in history.
Boston Red Sox
Team record: 238 (2003)
Current homers: 226 (pace of 252)
Record status: very likely to be broken
Record quest: The Red Sox have six more games at Fenway Park to hit 11 homers and match the club record of 124 dingers at home, set in 1977. Boston's road record is also in play. The BoSox need 14 more homers to match the club mark of 127, set in 2003. But Boston has 11 more road games remaining so that is the more likely target.
Chicago Cubs
Team record: 235 (2004)
Current homers: 228 (pace of 257)
Record status: very likely to be broken
Record quest: He'd have to get really hot, but Kyle Schwarber has a small chance to break the Cubs' record for homers by a left-handed batter. He's at 35, which already ranks third in team history. The top two slots are both held by Hall of Famer Billy Williams, who hit 42 in 1970 and 37 in 1972. Even if Schwarber comes up short, the Cubs already have at least one new team homer record. With 126 dingers hit away from the Friendly Confines, Chicago has already hit 17 more road home runs than the previous franchise mark set in 2016.
Chicago White Sox
Team record: 242 (2004)
Current homers: 155 (pace of 174)
Record status: will not be broken
Record quest: Sadly, we got nothing, at least not without expanding the definitions we established. The White Sox have been outhomered by 58 runs, the fourth-worst differential in the majors. They are on pace to come up 70 homers short of the franchise record. Only Detroit is on pace to finish with a bigger shortfall.
Cincinnati Reds
Team record: 222 (2005)
Current homers: 207 (pace of 231)
Record status: good chance to be broken
Record quest: This might be too much of a long shot to list, but it is a biggie, so we'll go with it. Eugenio Suarez has gone deep 44 times and is on pace to reach 50 homers. The Reds' record is 52, set by George Foster during his stunning breakout season in 1977. Foster is the only Cincinnati hitter to reach the 50 mark. Suarez has hit 24 home runs since the All-Star break, five more than any other player in the majors.
Cleveland Indians
Team record: 221 (2000)
Current homers: 203 (pace of 225)
Record status: It's going to be close
Record quest: The Indians' top hitters in recent seasons have been switch-hitters. Last year, Jose Ramirez set a club record with 39 homers by a switcher, winning a tight race with Francisco Lindor, who had 38. Both surpassed the previous club mark of then-former Indian Carlos Santana, who had 34 in 2016. Well, Santana is back and he wants his record. It'll take a big finish, but Santana is at 33 and is on pace to reach 37.
Colorado Rockies
Team record: 239 (1997)
Current homers: 188 (pace of 210)
Record status: not gonna do it
Record quest: The Rockies' team record for homers is now 22 years old, which makes it the longest-standing team mark in the National League. Call it the Curse of the Humidor. There isn't much that is exciting on the record trail. Nolan Arenado has 38 homers so it's possible that if he gets scorching hot, he could still make a run at the franchise record (49, set by Larry Walker and tied by Todd Helton). If Ian Desmond (16) or David Dahl (15) can get to 20, it would give Colorado a team-record-tying five hitters to reach that number. Obviously if they both got there, it would set a new mark.
Detroit Tigers
Team record: 225 (1987)
Current homers: 134 (pace of 152)
Record status: snooze
Record quest: There have been 106 players to crack the 20-homer barrier this season. That's 11 shy of the record, and there are currently 54 players with between 16 and 19 dingers. They won't all reach 20, but let's pretend they did. That would be 160, an average of more than five per team. At present, Brandon Dixon leads the Tigers with 15 homers. He has hit one since the beginning of August. That's about when Detroit traded Nicholas Castellanos to the Cubs. Castellanos has since hit 14 home runs.
Houston Astros
Current record: 252, hit this year (pace of 280)
Old record: 249 (2000)
Record status: broken
Record quest (accomplished): Yordan Alvarez has already broken the Astros' rookie record with 24 homers, two more than Carlos Correa's 22 taters in 2015. Every chance we get, we have to tally Alvarez's overall numbers including Triple-A. Here they are: 47 homers, 143 RBIs in 137 games.
Kansas City Royals
Team record: 193 (2017)
Current homers: 147 (pace of 164)
Record status: not going to get there
Record quest (accomplished): Jorge Soler has already set the Royals standard with 41, and in doing so has become the first K.C. hitter to reach 40. Kansas City has never had a home run champion, either. Soler trails Mike Trout by four in the AL, but Trout has a bad foot and his availability is tenuous.
Los Angeles Angels
Team record: 236 (2000)
Current homers: 206 (pace of 229)
Record status: could still happen
Record quest: The Angels have a shot at the franchise record, but Trout's injury woes aren't helping matters. However, Trout needs only two more homers to tie the individual franchise single-season record set by Troy Glaus in 2000. Surely he can hobble his way to two or three more dingers, right? Knowing Trout, he'll probably hit 10.
Los Angeles Dodgers
Team record: 258 (this season, on pace for 286)
Old record: 235 (2018)
Record status: broken
Record quest: Cody Bellinger has 44 and is on pace for 49. That would tie the Dodgers' record, set by Shawn Green in 2001. Hard to believe, but even in their Brooklyn days, the Dodgers never had a 50-homer hitter. Bellinger has homered only twice so far in September, so he needs to pick up the pace.
Miami Marlins
Team record: 208 (2008)
Current homers: 125 (pace of 141)
Record status: just a little short
Record quest: Was it really only two years ago that Giancarlo Stanton hit 59 home runs for this team?
Milwaukee Brewers
Team record: 231 (2007)
Current homers: 224 (pace of 252)
Record status: very likely to break the record
Record quest: Before his season-ending injury on Tuesday, Christian Yelich was in a similar spot to another MVP front-runner in Bellinger. He also has 44 homers, though because the Brewers have played two fewer games than L.A., Yelich's pace came out to 50, not 49. But while 49 would earn Bellinger a tie atop the Dodgers' single-season homer leaderboard, it would have taken 50 for Yelich to tie Milwaukee's record. That mark is held by Prince Fielder, who hit 50 in 2007.
Minnesota Twins
Team record: 276 (this season, on pace for 311)
Old record: 225 (1963)
Record status: shattered
Record quest (accomplished, for now): The Twins' old single-season team record was by far the longest-standing mark in baseball at 55 years. The Tigers' soon-to-be 32 years is the new standard. Most of Minnesota's homer quests are at the MLB level (most road homers, etc.), but perhaps nothing encapsulates the Twins' historic season better than the fact that they've already set a record by having eight different hitters reach the 20-homer mark. Unfortunately, the injuries that have plagued Marwin Gonzalez the past few weeks has killed the Twins' chances of fielding an entire lineup of 20-homer hitters. Of course, for all they've done, if the Twins want to earn the top spot in the next offseason record book (Elias puts out a handy print version), their main remaining quest is to fend off the Yankees for most homers in the majors. By the way, the Twins have outhomered their opponents by a staggering 87 dingers this season; the Yankees' edge of 35 is second in the AL but pales in comparison.
New York Mets
Team record: 224 (2017)
Current homers: 206 (pace of 232)
Record status: good chance of breaking it
Record quest: Pete Alonso has already raced past the Mets' franchise record with 47 dingers. He's on pace for 53. At 47, he's already third on the all-time rookie list behind Aaron Judge (52, 2017) and Mark McGwire (49, 1987). Alonso is showing no signs of slowing down, and even if the Mets fall completely out of the wild-card race, his run at Judge's record will keep plenty of eyeballs on the team down the stretch.
New York Yankees
Team record: 276 (this season, on pace for 306)
Old record: 267 (2018)
Record status: done and done
Record quest (accomplished): The Yankees would surely like to chase down the Twins and retain the status as the single-season home run champs that they held coming into the season. What's truly remarkable is that they are on pace to reach 300 homers, and at present, they've gotten a combined 22 homers from Judge and Stanton, including a lone dinger by the latter. How is that possible? The Yankees have already set an MLB record by having 13 players reach at least 10 homers. Thirteen!
Oakland Athletics
Team record: 243 (1996)
Current homers: 230 (pace of 257)
Record status: likely to be broken
Record quest: The A's rank third in the AL in homers and are on target to break a franchise record that has stood for 23 years. Yet there isn't a lot in terms of sub-quests. This is a franchise that had righty Jimmie Foxx hit 58 homers, lefty Reggie Jackson hit 47 and rookie Mark McGwire hit 49. Those are tough nuts to crack. As with so many of this year's teams, it's the volume of home run hitters rather than any one or two individual breakouts. Oakland has seven players who have reached the 20-homer mark, which is a franchise record. The A's literally just got there Tuesday night when Khris Davis finally hit his 20th of the season. Think about that: The 2019 Athletics had six players who topped 20 homers before Khris Davis.
Philadelphia Phillies
Team record: 224 (2009)
Current homers: 191 (pace of 215)
Record status: would have to pick up the pace
Record quest: The Phillies have hit 35 more homers at home than on the road, the largest disparity in the majors. (Eleven of their final 18 games are on the road.) With 113 home runs at Citizens Bank Park, Philadelphia is positioned to break the franchise mark of home taters. With seven more home games slated, they're in great position to surpass the 2009 Phillies' record of 116 hit at home.
Pittsburgh Pirates
Team record: 171 (191)
Current homers: 158 (pace of 177)
Record status: have a decent chance to break it
Record quest (accomplished): Entering the season, the Bucs' team record (171) was 18 fewer than the second-lowest team standard, which was 189 by the Padres. But this year's Padres have blown past their team record, and that makes Pittsburgh's mark even more of an outlier. The Pirates could break their record, but even at their current pace of 177, they would still be well short of the new second-lowest standard, which is Kansas City's 193. Those are the only two remaining franchises with single-season homer records under 200. As for individual quests, the Pirates already have a record breaker: Josh Bell's 37 dingers are five more than the 32 Bobby Bonilla hit in 1990 for the most by a switch-hitter in Pirates history.
St. Louis Cardinals
Team record: 235 (2000)
Current homers: 177 (pace of 199)
Record status: not going to be broken
Record quest: The Cardinals have done considerably more damage with the long ball on the road in recent seasons than they have at Busch Stadium. Last season, the Redbirds' 122 road homers were a franchise record. They had 121 in 2016 and 106 in 2017. This season, they're at 104, with nine road games left. The pace is 117, so it's doable. St. Louis' remaining road series are at Coors Field, Wrigley Field and Chase Field. Depending on how the wind is blowing in Chicago, those are some favorable home run environments.
San Diego Padres
Team record: 203 (this season, on pace for 228)
Old record: 189 (2017)
Record status: broken, like the collective will of 2019 big league pitchers
Record quest (accomplished): Sigh. Fernando Tatis Jr. ended his season with 22 homers, four shy of Hunter Renfroe's franchise record for rookies. So that's done. Franmil Reyes hit 17 homers at Petco Park before being traded to Cleveland, or else he would have challenged the San Diego record of 23 home dingers, set by Gary Sheffield and tied by Greg Vaughn. That leaves it to the team as whole: San Diego's 97 homers at Petco are eight more than it has ever hit at home. The 2017 Pads hit 89 at Petco.
San Francisco Giants
Team record: 235 (2001)
Current homers: 156 (pace of 174)
Record status: not going to get close
Record quest: Nothing here. Between Barry Bonds and the Polo Grounds years, it's tough to get near any of the major Giants' home run records.
Seattle Mariners
Team record: 264 (1997)
Current homers: 223 (pace of 249)
Record status: very unlikely to be broken
Record quest: Early in the season, the Mariners looked as if they were on the path the Twins ended up taking. They've slowed since, though Seattle is looking at nearly 250 home runs during a rebuilding season. Some search engines have Daniel Vogelbach breaking the Mariners' rookie record -- he has 30, three more than Alvin Davis in 1984 -- but Vogey doesn't actually have rookie eligibility. Seattle does have eight players with at least 15 homers, which is a club record and one shy of the MLB mark. Jay Bruce had 14 when the Mariners traded him, or else they would at least have that going for them.
Tampa Bay Rays
Team record: 228 (2017)
Current homers: 192 (pace of 213)
Record status: very unlikely to be broken
Record quest: Like the Cardinals, the Rays could break their record for away home runs with a big finish. The existing mark is 122, set in 2017. The Rays are at 104 and have 10 road dates left. As with most of this year's teams, it has been a matter of plurality. Tampa Bay has had nine double-digit homer hitters this season, one shy of the franchise mark set in 2006. Mike Zunino needs one more dinger to make it 10.
Texas Rangers
Team record: 260 (2005)
Current homers: 199 (pace of 221)
Record status: not going to be broken
Record quest: The Rangers are yet another club whose biggest home run feat is having a lot of players hitting them. Nine Rangers have already reached double digits, one shy of the team record set in 2004. There are two players close enough that Texas might reach a franchise-best 11: Ronald Guzman has nine and Logan Forsythe seven.
Toronto Blue Jays
Team record: 257 (2010)
Current homers: 217 (pace of 242)
Record status: would have to get exceptionally hot
Record quest: Well, we hate to go there again, but the Blue Jays have yet another franchise homer mark born of plurality. In their case, it's a little more exciting: Toronto has had 12 players reach double-digit homers. That's a franchise record and one shy of the MLB mark -- currently held by this year's Yankees. The Blue Jays can add to their total: Billy McKinney has nine, though he hasn't gone deep since Aug. 13. Also, this isn't a category we've checked for other teams, but for the Blue Jays, it seems pertinent: Toronto has 83 homers from rookies this season, 24 more than any other campaign in franchise history. It's also 26 more than any other team in the majors. Only four teams have ever had more rookie dingers, led by the 2006 Marlins (Dan Uggla, Josh Willingham, Mike Jacobs, etc.).
Washington Nationals
Team record: 215 (2017)
Current homers: 206 (pace of 233)
Record status: very likely to be broken
Record quest: The Nats have 11 home games left. If Anthony Rendon can go deep five times in those contests, he'll tie Vladimir Guerrero's franchise record of 25 home taters. The record since the club moved to Washington is 24, by Alfonso Soriano in 2006. With every homer the Nationals hit at home, they'll set a new franchise standard. They've already hit nine more long balls at Nationals Park than the 107 hit out by the 2017 team. Of course it has been a group effort: Washington already has nine players who have hit at least 13 home runs. That's baseball in 2019.