Ortiz ties Gehrig, McGriff with 493rd HR
David Ortiz, one of the most popular players ever to pull on a Boston Red Sox uniform, tied one of history's most enduring New York Yankees on the all-time home run leaderboard Friday night.
Ortiz, a nine-time All-Star, collected the 493rd home run of his illustrious career Friday at Citi Field with a solo shot off Logan Verrett of the New York Mets, tying Lou Gehrig (and Fred McGriff) for 27th on the all-time leaderboard.
| Player | HR | G | AVG | OPS |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gehrig | 493 | 2164 | .340 | 1.080 |
| McGriff | 493 | 2460 | .284 | .886 |
| Ortiz | 493 | 2228 | .284 | .922 |
Ortiz's seventh-inning blast, a line drive that barely made it over the wall in left-center and beyond the outstretched glove of a leaping Juan Lagares, marked his first career homer at Citi Field. An 18-year veteran, Ortiz has now homered in 29 ballparks throughout his career – some of them, now defunct – but remains homerless in some of the newer National League stadiums, including PNC Park and Great American Ball Park.
Of his 493 career homers, Ortiz has hit all but 58 of them while sporting a Red Sox uniform, averaging about 33 per season since arriving in Boston ahead of the 2003 campaign. This season, Ortiz has tallied 27 home runs through 117 games while posting an .849 OPS, his lowest since 2009.