The New York Yankees‘ Aaron Judge hit his 61st home run of the year Wednesday, tying Roger Maris’s American League single-season record.
Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Jose Berrios threw the decisive pitch, an ironic twist given Berrios had also thrown the first home run pitch for Judge this season back in April. The historic moment comes 61 years after Maris set the record. Judge broke his tie with Babe Ruth, whose record was 60.
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Judge’s mother was sitting with Maris’s son in the stands to witness the historic event.
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Judge himself is a major fan of Maris.
“Just what I’ve seen from old videos and videos of games, the guy was a great teammate,” Judge said. “He never made it about himself. I know exactly the moment you’re talking about, the team pushing him out there for a curtain call. That just shows you what type of leader and what type of player he was,” he said, according to MLB.com.
Fellow baseball players were quick to congratulate the star.
“Yes!!!” former Yankees star Derek Jeter tweeted of the news.
On Tuesday, the Yankees clinched the AL East crown against the second-place Blue Jays, ensuring they will return to the postseason for the sixth season in a row.
