Yankees star Aaron Judge hit his 61st home run of the season Wednesday night against the Blue Jays, tying Roger Maris' American League record.

It took Maris until Oct. 1, the final game of the 1961 season, to hit his 61st, which broke Babe Ruth's single-season mark of 60 home runs set in 1927.

Judge did it Sept. 28, in Game No. 155 for New York. A day after the Yankees clinched the American League East title, Judge, batting leadoff as the designated hitter, took Toronto's Tim Mayza deep in the seventh inning with a runner on base. Judge -- who walked in his first at-bat, popped out in his second and grounded out in his third -- had gone seven games without a home run.

As he was going through the postgame handshake line, Kyle Wright received a request from Braves manager Brian Snitker.

"I want him to authenticate my own personal scorecard because I want him to sign it for me," Snitker said. "To think of where he was a year ago to now is so awesome."

Wright, 26, became the first 20-game winner in the majors this season, and Atlanta beat the Philadelphia Phillies 6-3 on Saturday to stop a three-game losing streak.

Albert Pujols became the fourth member of the 700 home run club on Friday night, and he did so in emphatic fashion, launching two home runs in front of a packed Dodger Stadium crowd.

The first homer -- a 434-foot, two-run blast to left field -- came off Dodgers left-hander Andrew Heaney in the third inning. The second one was a three-run shot in the fourth off righty Phil Bickford. By that point the St. Louis Cardinals held a 5-0 lead, and Pujols had driven in all of his team's runs.

Los Angeles Angels catcher Kurt Suzuki said Tuesday he plans to retire at season's end following a 16-year career.

"I feel like it's time," Suzuki said, according to the Orange County Register. "I've had a great run, won a World Series, All-Star Game. Played 16 seasons. I've accomplished a lot of things I never would have dreamed of. I felt like it's time for the next chapter. My three kids, all they've known is baseball."

Only five players had hit 60 home runs in a single season in the history of the major leagues -- that is, until New York Yankees slugger Aaron Judge joined that exclusive club with a solo homer against the Pittsburgh Pirates on Tuesday night.

Judge turned on a sinker from right-hander Wil Crowe leading off the final frame and drove it 430 feet into the left-field bleachers, sparking a five-run, ninth-inning rally for a 9-8 win.

He took a rare curtain call, forced by his teammates.

"I really didn't want to do it, especially, we're losing. It's a solo shot," he said.

Working closely with Framber Valdez, Astros catcher Martin Maldonado has enjoyed a front-row seat for the journey that has turned the left-hander into one of baseball's top pitchers in his fifth season.

"It is a lot of calm, a lot of confidence and a lot of maturity from him," Maldonado said. "He knows what he can do good. Listening more and taking pride in the work, less emotional on the mound. So I've seen a lot of stuff going into (his growth).``

Valdez set a major league single-season record with his 25th straight quality start, and Yordan Alvarez and Maldonado had four RBIs apiece in the Astros' 11-2 victory over the Athletics on Sunday.

Aaron Judge hit the 58th and 59th home runs of his magical season Sunday afternoon, leaving himself two short of tying the American League single-season record.

In his second at-bat, Judge took a 92 mph sinker from the Milwaukee Brewers' Jason Alexander that leaked over the plate in the second inning and deposited it 414 feet away in the right-field stands. Then, in the seventh inning, he hit a 443-foot homer to left field off Luis Perdomo.

St. Louis Cardinals slugger Albert Pujols hit his 698th career home run Friday night in a 6-5 win over the Cincinnati Reds.

With one out in the sixth inning, Pujols, 42, swung at the first pitch from reliever Raynel Espinal, an 84 mph slider, and launched a 427-foot shot out to left field. The crowd was already on its feet in anticipation, and Pujols rounded the bases to a tremendous cheer.

St. Louis Cardinals slugger Albert Pujols hit his 697th home run and moved past Alex Rodriguez for fourth place on the career list, connecting Sunday against the Pittsburgh Pirates.

St. Louis Cardinals slugger Albert Pujols hit his 696th home run Saturday night, tying Alex Rodriguez for fourth place on the career list.

Pujols, 42, connected in the sixth inning of the Cardinals' 7-5 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates.