Coming into Sunday, only 27 players in Major League Baseball history had ever hit at least 500 home runs in their career. You can make it 28 now that Detroit Tigers slugger Miguel Cabrera has joined the exclusive club.
The two-time American League MVP came into Sunday with 499 home runs as the Tigers took on the Toronto Blue Jays. In the top of the sixth, Cabrera took a 1-1 pitch off the outside corner and rocked it into right-centerfield where it just barely cleared the wall and put him in the pantheon.
The 28th player in MLB history to hit 500 home runs.
Congrats, @MiguelCabrera! pic.twitter.com/ajmOAbVeZg
— Detroit Tigers (@tigers) August 22, 2021
As MLB Stats notes, Cabrera is only the sixth foreign-born player to reach 500 home runs (joining Albert Pujols, Sammy Sosa, Rafael Palmeiro, Manny Ramirez, and David Ortiz) and the first from Venezuela.
.@MiguelCabrera becomes the 6th foreign-born player, and first from Venezuela, to reach the 500 HR club. pic.twitter.com/YjhUezfdOk
— MLB Stats (@MLBStats) August 22, 2021
The fact that Cabrera still has a batting average over .300 also puts him in very rare company (he’s currently at .311).
Few players have been able to maintain such a high average and reach the 500 HR mark.
.@MiguelCabrera is one of them. pic.twitter.com/0lPYMC6OoO
— MLB Stats (@MLBStats) August 22, 2021
Not that there was too much doubt about Miguel’s spot in the Hall of Fame, this accolade seals the deal. Cabrera can couple it with two AL MVP awards, four AL batting titles, 11 All-Star appearances. And of course, Cabrera became the 17th player to record a Triple Crown in 2012, becoming the first player to accomplish that in 45 seasons. Miggy also hit 30 or more home runs in ten separate seasons, which is a large part of the reason he was able to reach the point he got to today.
