Top 5 players with the most recorded home runs in MLB history

Baseball has been around for a long time, and as one of the oldest American sports out there, there have been a bunch of players notorious with hitting home runs. Since the creation of the MLB, only a handful of players have knocked it out of the park on an unprecedented scale. In this article, we’ll outline the top 5 players with the most recorded home runs in the MLB, including who they were, what team(s) they played for, how long their career lasted, and how many overall home runs they hit before retiring.

5. Alex Rodriguez, 696 Home Runs

Beginning our prestigious list of top 5 players with the most home runs in Alex “A-Rod” Rodriguez with a career-high of 696 home runs. The .295 batting average legend began his career in 1994 for the Seattle Mariners before heading to the Texas Rangers in 2001. He is most well known for joining the New York Yankees in 2004, playing there until the end of his career in 2016. In total, with 3,115 hits to his name, A-Rod would bat-in 2,086 runs to make the MLB All-Stars 14 separate times as well as win the World Series in 2009 with the Yankees.

4. Albert Pujols, 703 Home Runs

Up next on the list is Jose Alberto Pujols Alcantara, a Dominican baseball player who racked up 703 out-of-the-park hits to make #4 on the all-time home run record charts. The first-baseman legend boasted a .296 batting average after playing for three separate teams, the Cardinals from 2001-2011, the LA Angels from 2012-2021, the LA Dodgers for a portion of 2021, and the St. Louis Cardinals once again in 2022 to finish his career. With 3,384 hits under his belt, he’d bat-in 2,218 runs, achieving MLB All-Star status on 11 occasions in addition to winning the World Series twice, in 2006 and 2011 with the Cardinals.

3. Babe Ruth, 714 Home Runs

Following up Pujols is a longtime legend you’ve surely heard of, Babe Ruth. Nicknamed “the Bambino”, Ruth would accumulate a whopping 714 home runs in his career, starting at the Boston Red Sox in 1914 before heading to the New York Yankees in 1920, playing with them for 15 straight seasons. He finished his career at the Boston Braves in 1935, boasting a .342 batting average (one of the top BA’s of all-time), with 2,873 hits at-bat and 2,214 bat-in runs. Batting wasn’t his only profession though, as he’d strike out opposing batters 488 total times as a pitcher, earning All-Star status twice in 1933 and 1934, while winning the World Series Championship 7 times with the Red Sox (1915, 1916, and 1918), and the Yankees (1923, 1927, 1928, and 1932).

2. Hank Aaron, 755 Home Runs

Achieving #2 on the list of most home runs ever recorded in MLB history is baseball legend Hank Aaron with 755 total home runs. “Hammerin’ Hank” played for just two teams in his career, the Milwaukee/Atlanta Braves from 1954-1974 before seeing out his career for the Brewers in 1975-1976. While his .305 batting average was slightly lower than Ruth’s, he’d make 3,771 hits with 2,297 runs batted-in, being the only player in MLB history to achieve 25 All-Star awards (the most in MLB history), and the most career total bases in history (6,956) along with winning the World Series one time with the Braves in 1957 to solidify his legacy.

1. Barry Bonds 762 Home Runs

Finally, the #1 MLB player with the most record home runs in the history of the game is Barry Bonds with an incredible 762 career out-of-the-park hits to his name. He’d begin his legendary career with the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1986 before being traded to the San Francisco Giants in 1993, where he’d see out the rest of his career until 2007. While he was a topic of controversy due to the use of undetectable steroids, Bonds repped a .298 batting average with 2,935 hits and 1,996 run-ins batted. On top of those stats, he’d earn MLB All-Star awards 14 different times and while he’d never claim a World Series Championship, he’d record the highest number of home runs in a single season (73 home runs) as well as the most bases on balls in history (2,558) making him one of the best batters the game has ever seen to date.