The 700 home run club is one of the most exclusive in all of baseball. With Alex Rodriguez close to joining its ranks, let’s take a look back at the group’s members and their legacies.
Hitting a home run is arguably the most awe-inspiring feat that can be achieved in a game of baseball. Naturally, home run milestones are some of the most coveted and revered among players and fans alike. The 500-homer plateau, reached by 27 MLB players, is traditionally recognized as the premier benchmark for sluggers, and a ticket to the Hall of Fame more often than not.
The higher you climb up the ladder, the more impressive the company in which you find yourself. 600 home runs is an even more exclusive club, inhabited by only eight members headlined by legends of the game such as Ken Griffey Jr. and Willie Mays.
In the memories of baseball fans who grew up in the 90s or earlier, the 700 home run mark was a completely different animal, a distinction earned by just two men for whom even the term “legend” seemed insufficient. The group has grown by one since 2004, albeit controversially, as the subject of performance-enhancing substances has roiled the game in recent years and changed the debate concerning home run totals.
The 700-homer club is now on the verge on gaining a fourth member, as the New York Yankees’ Alex Rodriguez currently sits at 695 career home runs, only five shy of the landmark. Of course, A-Rod has courted controversy of his own after being connected to steroids throughout his big league lifetime.
Fans and media have generally come down harshly on PED users, so the legitimacy of Rodriguez’s accomplishments will continue to be argued as he nears the number 700. Regardless of how one feels about the event, it still presents a good opportunity to look back at A-Rod’s checkered yet fascinating legacy, along with those of the three sluggers he is on the verge of joining.
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