Salvador Pérez is now the Kansas City Royals’ all-time home run king. On July 25, 2026, in the seventh inning at Comerica Park, the Venezuelan catcher got into a Kyle Finnegan pitch and sent it 401 feet into left field at 105.3 mph off the bat — his 318th career home run, one more than George Brett. Just like that, Pérez moved past one of the greatest legends in franchise history and became the first Venezuelan-born player ever to hold an MLB team’s all-time home run record.
318 Home Runs in 902 Fewer Games Than Brett
George Brett needed 2,707 games to hit his 317 home runs as a Royal. Pérez reached 318 in 1,805 games. That gap says everything: Pérez didn’t just break the record, he broke it at a pace Brett — playing a far less physically demanding position — never matched.
The tie came on July 22 against the San Francisco Giants. Three days later in Detroit, Finnegan delivered, Pérez swung, and the ball left the bat at 105.3 mph and traveled 401 feet. Kansas City won 3-2, and Salvy put his name at the top of the franchise record books.
One of Only Three Active Players Holding Their Franchise’s All-Time HR Record
With this home run, Pérez joins an extremely short list. Mike Trout with the Angels and Manny Machado with the Padres are the only other active players who currently lead their respective franchises in all-time home runs. Three players in the entire league — Pérez is the third.
There’s another layer to this milestone: Pérez also surpassed Iván Rodríguez (311 home runs) as the Latino catcher with the most home runs in MLB history. Worth being precise here — this isn’t about the most home runs by a Latino player overall (Miguel Cabrera holds that with 511), but specifically the most by a Latino catcher. That distinction matters.
A Record Built Over 15 Years, Even on the Hard Days
At 36 years old and in his 15th season with the organization that signed him at 16, Pérez has 15 home runs in 2026. His offensive numbers this year are the lowest of his career — .210/.257/.361 — which actually makes this record more meaningful, not less. It wasn’t built on a hot streak. It was built across 15 years of showing up, including the difficult ones.
A Career That Didn’t Need This Record — But Has It Anyway
Nine All-Star selections. Five Gold Gloves. Five Silver Sluggers. The Roberto Clemente Award. The 2015 World Series MVP. Salvador Pérez didn’t need this record to cement his place in Royals history, but now he has it too.
Historically, he ranks seventh among all catchers in MLB history in home runs. He’s just seven home runs away from passing Lance Parrish on that list. At his current pace, that name is next.
