List of Major League Baseball single-inning home run leaders

A man, wearing a baseball cap with an interlocking "SF" logo, clutches a baseball bat and prepares to swing.
A man, wearing a baseball cap with the Chicago Cubs "red C" logo in the center and a blue baseball uniform with the Cubs logo to his left, faces forward.
A man in a grey baseball uniform with a navy helmet prepares to swing at a pitch.
Willie McCovey (left), Andre Dawson (center), and Alex Rodriguez (right) are three of the only five players to hit two home runs in one inning on two separate occasions.

In baseball, a home run is credited to a batter when he hits a fair ball and reaches home safely on the same play, without the benefit of an error.[1] Sixty-two different players have hit two home runs in an inning of a Major League Baseball (MLB) game to date, the most recent being Brent Rooker of the Oakland Athletics on May 4, 2024. Regarded as a notable achievement, five players have accomplished the feat more than once in their career; no player has ever hit more than two home runs in an inning. Charley Jones was the first player to hit two home runs in one inning,[2][3] doing so for the Boston Red Stockings against the Buffalo Bisons on June 10, 1880.[4][5]

These innings have resulted in other single-inning and single-game MLB records being set due to the prodigious offensive performance. Bobby Lowe and Mike Cameron finished their respective games with a total of four home runs, equaling the record for most home runs in one game.[6] Both of the home runs hit by Fernando Tatís in the third inning for the St. Louis Cardinals on April 23, 1999, were grand slams. Not only did he tie the record for most grand slams in one game,[7] Tatís became the only player to hit two grand slams in the same inning and established a new major league record with eight runs batted in (RBI) in a single inning.[8][9] A decade later, Alex Rodriguez set the single-inning American League record for RBIs with seven when he hit a three-run home run and a grand slam in the sixth inning for the New York Yankees on October 4, 2009.[9][10]

Bret Boone and Cameron are the only players to each hit two home runs in one inning on the same day (May 2, 2002), in the same game, in the same inning (the first), in a pair of back-to-back at bats, and as teammates (playing for the Seattle Mariners).[3][11][12] Carlos Baerga, Mark Bellhorn, and Kendrys Morales hit their home runs from both sides of the plate.[13][14] Jeff King is the sole player to accomplish the feat in consecutive seasons.[3] Bill Regan has the fewest career home runs among players who have two home runs in one inning with 18,[15] while Alex Rodriguez, with 696, hit more home runs than any other player in this group and amassed the fifth most in major league history.[16] Willie McCovey, Mark McGwire, David Ortiz, Rodriguez, Gary Sheffield, and Sammy Sosa are also members of the 500 home run club.[16]

Of the 45 players eligible for the Baseball Hall of Fame who have hit two home runs in an inning, eight have been elected, four on the first ballot.[17] Players are eligible for the Hall of Fame if they have played in at least 10 MLB seasons, and have either been retired for five seasons or deceased for at least six months.[18] These requirements leave three players ineligible who are active, three players ineligible who are living and have played in the past five seasons, and six players ineligible who did not play in 10 seasons.

  1. ^ "What is a Home Run (HR)?". MLB.com. MLB Advanced Media. Archived from the original on December 15, 2019. Retrieved December 14, 2019.
  2. ^ Sessions, Dave. "A Short History of the Single-Season Home Run Record – Charley Jones". Online Exhibits. National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum. Archived from the original on May 26, 2018. Retrieved January 26, 2019.
  3. ^ a b c Dorsey, Patrick (July 31, 2012). "Morales inspires multihomer inning quiz". ESPN. ESPN Internet Ventures. Archived from the original on January 25, 2019. Retrieved January 26, 2019.
  4. ^ Light, Jonathan Fraser (March 25, 2016). The Cultural Encyclopedia of Baseball (2nd ed.). McFarland. p. 438. ISBN 9781476617442.
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference 1880 BRS schedule was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ Stark, Jayson (May 8, 2002). "Useless information department". ESPN. ESPN Internet Ventures. Archived from the original on December 31, 2019. Retrieved January 1, 2020.
  7. ^ Eagle, Ed (March 8, 2018). "Players with two grand slams in a game". MLB.com. MLB Advanced Media. Archived from the original on December 31, 2019. Retrieved January 1, 2020.
  8. ^ "Tatis hits record two slams in one inning". The Register-Guard. Eugene. Associated Press. April 24, 1999. p. 3D. Archived from the original on May 1, 2023. Retrieved January 1, 2020.
  9. ^ a b Goodall, Fred (October 19, 2009). "A-Rod sets RBI record in win". Stamford Advocate. Associated Press. Archived from the original on December 31, 2019. Retrieved January 1, 2020.
  10. ^ "Rodriguez Does the Math, and It Adds Up to 2 Records". The New York Times. October 4, 2009. Archived from the original on January 1, 2020. Retrieved January 1, 2020.
  11. ^ "Cameron Crazy: 4 HRs". Los Angeles Times. Associated Press. May 3, 2002. Archived from the original on January 4, 2020. Retrieved January 5, 2020.
  12. ^ "Baseball; Cameron Homers In 4 Straight At-Bats For the Mariners". The New York Times. May 3, 2002. Archived from the original on January 4, 2020. Retrieved January 5, 2020.
  13. ^ "Morales homers from both sides of plate in same inning". Chicago Tribune. Reuters. July 31, 2012. Archived from the original on May 28, 2024. Retrieved January 1, 2020.
  14. ^ Plunkett, Bill (July 31, 2012). "Morales-led Angels slug Rangers". Orange County Register. Archived from the original on December 31, 2019. Retrieved January 1, 2020.
  15. ^ "Bill Regan Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on May 10, 2020. Retrieved December 14, 2019.
  16. ^ a b "Career Leaders & Records for Home Runs". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on February 8, 2010. Retrieved December 14, 2019.
  17. ^ "Baseball Hall of Fame Inductees". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on November 27, 2020. Retrieved November 7, 2016.
  18. ^ "Rules for Election". National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum. Archived from the original on May 30, 2010. Retrieved October 8, 2016.