NEW YORK — Mets slugger Pete Alonso hit his 52nd homer of the season, tying Yankees star Aaron Judge‘s total from 2017 for most by a rookie.
Alonso lined an 0-1 fastball from Atlanta left-hander Dallas Keuchel narrowly over the wall in left field in the first inning Friday night. He hurried around the bases after the solo homer, did handshakes with teammates outside the dugout and took a curtain call on the top step to big cheers from the crowd at Citi Field.
Alonso’s 52nd homer came in his 587th at-bat this season; Judge achieved his total in 541 at-bats in 2017.
Alonso has already set franchise records for homers, total bases (343) and extra-base hits (84). He has 119 RBIs and 100 runs, becoming the first Mets rookie to reach triple digits in both categories. No Mets player had reached those totals in any season since David Wright and Carlos Beltran in 2008.
The 119 RBIs put Alonso just five away from matching Wright’s all-time single-season franchise record.
Alonso’s 52nd homer also tied him for second-most all time in a player’s first season with a team, just two behind Babe Ruth, who hit 54 in 1920 after he was traded from the Boston Red Sox to the Yankees.
New York trailed the National League East-champion Braves 2-1 after Alonso’s homer.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.