Mets' Pete Alonso Hits 53rd HR to Break Aaron Judge's Rookie Record

Pete Alonso was already an All-Star and Home Run Derby champion in his debut season. Now, the New York Mets first baseman has written his name into the MLB record book.

Alonso hit his 53rd home run of the year Saturday against the Atlanta Braves' Mike Foltynewicz, surpassing New York Yankees right fielder Aaron Judge for the most homers ever by a rookie.

The 24-year-old already owned the Mets' single-season home run mark after he went yard for the 42nd time in August, jumping ahead of Carlos Beltran and Todd Hundley.

Beltran reached out to personally congratulate Alonso on the achievement.

"Talking to him was awesome, because growing up, watching him play, it's like, I respect the hell out of him because what he was able to do in the game of baseball," Alonso said to the New York Post's Greg Joyce. "To have a guy like that call me, a rookie, that's really cool."

There's no question Alonso is benefiting from the general surge across the majors. The Minnesota Twins already hit the most home runs by one team in a season, and the 6,686 total homers in MLB entering Saturday are the most ever, per FanGraphs.

But Alonso's reputation preceded him prior to starting 2019 on the Mets' Opening Day roster.

As a junior at Florida, he had 14 homers, 60 RBI and a .659 slugging percentage in 2016, giving MLB teams a taste of his prodigious power. Things really came together in his second year in the pro ranks in 2018. Between Double-A and Triple-A, Alonso hit 36 home runs with 119 RBI.

Still, few expected him to have this kind of success right out of the gate.

A red-hot run through July and the middle of August had some fans believing in the Mets as a wild-card contender again. They've since fallen back to earth, with their 11-10 defeat to the Washington Nationals on Sept. 3 a particularly cruel blow.

Through it all, Alonso has been one of New York's biggest bright spots. He appears poised to be the Mets' everyday first baseman and an almost nightly source of highlights for years to come.