Mets breakout star Pete Alonso made the last weekend of the 2019 season a remarkable one, tying Aaron Judge’s 52-home run record for the most homers hit by a rookie in MLB history.
The record-tying blast came in the first inning of the Mets-Braves game, on an 0-1 cutter from Dallas Keuchel that pinged off of the left field wall to put the Mets on the board. It was the sixth home run the rookie first baseman had hit off of a Braves pitcher so far this year.
Alonso, 24, is on the cusp of wrapping a very successful debut with the team this fall. Entering Friday’s opener, the All-Star was batting a robust .259/.358/.578 with a league-leading 51 homers, 118 RBI, a .937 OPS, and 4.7 fWAR through 681 plate appearances. Friday’s 361-foot shot marked his 10th home run in September alone, and with approximately 25 innings still left in the regular season, it may not be his last, either.