Pete Alonso thrust his arms into the air as the ball descended toward the fans seated beyond the fence in right-center at Citi Field.
With an uppercut swing in Saturday night’s third inning, the Mets slugger stood alone as the all-time leader in homers for a rookie. Homer No. 53 moved Alonso ahead of Aaron Judge for the record.
The theme from “The Natural” blared as Alonso rounded the bases after blasting a 2-1 pitch from Braves right-hander Mike Foltynewicz in Alonso’s second plate appearance of the night. After touching home plate, Alonso stood outside the Mets dugout and saluted the crowd giving him a standing ovation. Hugs were waiting from teammates inside the dugout.
When Alonso returned to first base for the fourth inning, he was moved to tears.
“To be a part of major league baseball history, to be No. 1 out of every single guy that played the game, it’s humbling and it’s such a ridiculously awesome feeling,” Alonso said after the Mets beat the Braves 3-0. “That moment was pure magic.”
A night earlier Alonso homered to tie the record established by Judge in 2017. Earlier this season Alonso broke Cody Bellinger’s NL record for homers by a rookie. He also shattered the Mets’ single-season record for homers, shared by Todd Hundley and Carlos Beltran. The Mets have never had a single-season home run champion, but Alonso moved four ahead of the Reds’ Eugenio Suarez for the major league lead.
“The fans came here to see something historic, and they got what they wanted to see,” manager Mickey Callaway said. “It’s like he never lets you down. He’s a fantastic guy. You can see it in his face how genuine everything and every emotion he has is.”
Alonso was presented his historic home-run ball by the fan who caught it. Alonso met with the fan and his family, taking them on the field before he signed various items for them.
Alonso had to earn a spot on the Mets’ roster in spring training. After hitting his first major league homer in April, in Miami, he was stuffed into a laundry cart and doused with various ingredients before getting pushed into the shower.
“It felt like yesterday I was getting raw eggs put on my head, mustard, flour, soap, whatever anybody could find,” Alonso said. “And 52 later, this is crazy. That seems like forever ago and I’m just really thankful and the fans were absolutely electric tonight. To make that many people happy with one swing, it’s a real special feeling.”
Judge told reporters in Texas Friday that he wants to buy dinner for Alonso. When asked Saturday about Alonso setting the record, Judge said, “Pretty cool accomplishment. Good for him.”
The two met at the All-Star Game in Cleveland this season — where Alonso won the Home Run Derby — but have never socialized away from the field.
“Is he paying for it, but also is he picking where we’re eating or am I picking?” Alonso said. “I’ll talk to him, but if he’s picking the place, it��s probably McDonald’s or something because I eat a lot. But if I get to pick and it’s on him, then it may be Peter Luger’s or something.”
Only making the night sweeter for Alonso was the fact his family was present, including his mother, father and fiancée.
“He’s really passionate. He’s not moved to tears often,” Alonso’s mother Michelle told Fox. “He has a lot of fun, but he’s real serious about what he does. So for him to be moved to tears warms my heart because I was certainly bawling in my seat at the moment at the same time. It was a family cry fest.”
— Dan Martin contributed to this report