Yankees' Anthony Rizzo relishes hitting milestone of 300 career home runs

BALTIMORE — Anthony Rizzo didn’t try to downplay the milestone.

Neither did any of his teammates.

“It’s amazing. It’s awesome,” the Yankees first baseman said of hitting his 300th career homer.

Rizzo reached that number — becoming the 161st player in MLB history to do so — during Sunday’s 15-5 victory over the Brewers with a two-run shot to rightfield off righthander Jansen Junk in the eighth inning.

“It speaks volumes,” said Aaron Judge, who quickly became close with Rizzo after the former Cub became a Yankee at the 2021 trade deadline, with the pair more or less sharing clubhouse leadership duties among the position players in that time.

“Getting the chance to play with him, I watched him from afar for so many years. To get him here in pinstripes and watch the way he works, how he controls the room, how he keeps guys loose on and off the field and competes every single day. For him to be a part of that list and counting is pretty special.”

Rizzo entered Monday night’s game against the Orioles, who were one game behind the AL East-leading Yankees going into the four-game series, in 12th place on the active home run list. Judge, coincidently, was next with 263. (The active home run leader was Giancarlo Stanton with 408, with Mike Trout next with 378.)

“It’s a lot of homers,” manager Aaron Boone, who hit 126 home runs in his 12-year career, said of the 300-homer plateau. “It’s nothing to sneeze at . . . 300 homers, it’s something to be proud of.”

Gerrit Cole, not with the team on this trip as he continues his throwing program while rehabbing the inflammation in his right elbow, weighed in from afar.

“If it wasn’t for me, you’d still have 299,” Cole posted on an Instagram story that included a Yankees graphic celebrating the achievement. “Glad to be a part of it!”

Rizzo, then with the Cubs, hit No. 206 off Cole on May 27, 2019, at Houston’s Minute Maid Park when Cole was with the Astros.

“Three-hundred homers . . . this game is incredibly tough,” Marcus Stroman said. “It’s historic, it’s something he should be extremely proud of. Definitely, an incredibly hard AB facing him. You feel like he’s kind of all over everything. He crowds the plate, he takes away kind of the inner half. Just a great hitter. Has a great approach. He’s been doing it for so long. Great to be a part of it and to be here to witness it.”

Rizzo, named the AL Player of the Week on Monday after going 11-for-27 (.407) with four homers, two doubles, seven RBIs and a .926 slugging percentage in seven games last week, entered Monday as a .264 career hitter with a .364 on-base percentage and .837 OPS.

“Milestones like this, you kind of reflect back and take time to just appreciate how hard it is and how much fun it’s been along the way,” said Rizzo, who debuted with the Padres in 2011 before establishing himself as an All-Star with the Cubs, with whom he played from 2012-21. “It’s a great feeling. It comes after a good two days offensively as a team. To bust out, it’s a better feeling.”

Bust out, indeed.

The Yankees had a season-high 19 hits in a 15-3 victory Saturday, then tallied 18 more Sunday and finished with seven homers in the two games. Rizzo went 7-for-8 with two homers, two doubles, four RBIs and a walk.

“[Not] a lot of people are fortunate enough to put on a big-league uniform; a very small percentage do it at the level Rizz has done it in his career,” Boone said. “Three-hundred is a pretty special milestone in what’s been a pretty special career.”

Notes & quotes: Leftfielder Alex Verdugo, hitting .321 with two homers, five doubles and a .930 OPS in his last 16 games, was placed on the paternity list Monday. Before Monday’s game, Boone said he wasn’t sure how long Verdugo will be away. Catcher Carlos Narvaez was recalled from Triple-A Scranton/ Wilkes-Barre as the corresponding roster move . . . With Boone wanting to get centerfielder Trent Grisham some more playing time, Judge got his first career start in leftfield Monday (he did some work in left during spring training). “I feel like he feels pretty comfortable out there,” Boone said of Camden Yards’ big leftfield. “Obviously, very spacious out there, but it shouldn’t change how he necessarily plays it.”