JUNE 21, 2004 | ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI – Ken Griffey, Jr. hit his 500th home run on this date in 2004. Being Father’s Day, it was fitting that Ken Griffey, Sr., a former player himself, was in the stands. The younger Griffey was the 20th major leaguer to join the 500-home run club. At 34-years old Griffey was the 6th youngest player to do it.
Hitting 500 home runs in a career has always been a right of passage into the Baseball Fall of Fame. Will it continue to be? It’s not as remarkable an achievement as it once was.
Up to 1950, the first 74 years of major league baseball, 3 players had reached 500 home runs. In the 78 years since, 24 players have reached the 500-home run mark.
Players who reached 500 home runs from 1876 – 1950
1. Babe Ruth
2. Jimmie Foxx
3. Mel Ott
Players who reached 500 home runs from 1950 – 2017
1. Willie Mays
2. Ted Williams
3. Hank Aaron
4. Mickey Mantle
5. Eddie Matthews
6. Frank Robinson
7. Willie McCovey
8. Ernie Banks
9. Harmon Killebrew
10. Mike Schmidt
11. Reggie Jackson
12. Mark McGwire
13. Eddie Murray
14. Barry Bonds
15. Ken Griffey, JR.
16. Rafael Palmeiro
17. Sammy Sosa
18. Frank Thomas
19. Alex Rodriguez
20. Jim Thome
21. Manny Ramirez
22. Gary Sheffield
23. David Ortiz
24. Albert Pujols
The last player to hit 500-home runs was David Ortiz. Albert Pujols is the only member of the 500-club still active (as of June 2018).
CONTRIBUTING SOURCES:
500-home run club
BASEBALL-ALMANAC milestones