[Dr. Franklin]

The season was 154 games long when Babe Ruth hit his 60 home runs.
The season was 162 games long when Roger Maris hit 61 home runs. The season is still 162 games long.


For years, there was an asterisk next to Maris's record because he did it in 162 games and not 154. Judge got to 60 in 154 games. OK, but do note that the pitchers' mound has been lowered twice since 1968, AND the strike zone has been shrunk as well. The "high" strike at the letters is now called a ball. This helps muscle bound hitters who like to golf the low balls. Babe Ruth's 60 HR's is still the more impressive feat than Judge's 61.

[KC Burke]

I still like Ty Cobb in the “dead ball” era.

[Alberta's Child]

To illustrate how stupid the "asterisk" adopted for Roger Maris' record was ...

There was no real asterisk in the MLB record book after 1961. The league simply listed the home run records for a 154-game season and a 162-game season separately in the record book.

Before Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa came along with their PEDs in the late 1990s, the National League record for home runs in a 154-game season (Hack Wilson's 56 in 1930) was HIGHER than the record for a 162-game season.