Alex Rodriguez Becomes the Youngest Player to Hit 400 Home Runs

On June 8, 2005, Alex Rodriguez hit his 400th career home run in an interleague game at Miller Park in Milwaukee, becoming the youngest player in major league history to reach the milestone. He was 29 years and 316 days old. No other player had reached 400 home runs before turning 30. Ken Griffey Jr., the next youngest, did not get there until he was 30 years and 141 days old.

Rodriguez hit two home runs that night. His first, a two-run shot off Milwaukee starter Chris Capuano in the first inning, gave the Yankees an early lead. His second, a solo drive off reliever Jorge De La Rosa in the eighth, was the milestone blast. The Yankees won 12-3, and Rodriguez finished the night 3-for-5 with five RBIs.

The accomplishment was staggering in its pace. Rodriguez had hit his first major league home run at age 18 as a Seattle Mariner. By 25, he had 189. After signing the richest contract in sports history with the Texas Rangers in 2001, he hit 52 home runs in his first season in Arlington, then 57 the next year. A trade to the Yankees before the 2004 season moved him from shortstop to third base, but his power numbers stayed intact.

At the time, the trajectory pointed toward all-time records. Rodriguez was on pace to challenge both Hank Aaron's 755 and Barry Bonds's 762. He would eventually hit 696 career home runs, fourth on the all-time list. But the steroid revelations that surfaced in 2009, when Rodriguez admitted to using performance-enhancing drugs during his years with the Rangers, cast a permanent shadow over the numbers. He served a season-long suspension in 2014 and retired in 2016.

On that June night in Milwaukee, though, the 400th home run was a clean celebration. Rodriguez was the 40th player to reach the mark, and he had done it faster than anyone before him.