The 3,000-hit club is the group of 33 batters who have collected 3,000 or more regular-season hits in their careers in Major League Baseball (MLB). Reaching 3,000 hits has been "long considered the greatest measure of superior bat handling" and is often described as a guarantee of eventual entry into the Baseball Hall of Fame. [1] [2] [3] [4]
Cap Anson was the first MLB player to reach 3,000 hits, although his precise career hit total is unclear. [5] [lower-alpha 1] Two players—Nap Lajoie and Honus Wagner—reached 3,000 hits during the 1914 season. Ty Cobb did so in 1921 and became the first player in MLB history to reach 4,000 hits in 1927, ultimately finishing his career with 4,189. [13] [lower-alpha 2] Pete Rose, the current hit leader, became the second player to reach 4,000 hits on April 13, 1984, and surpassed Cobb in September 1985, finishing his career with 4,256. [18] [19] Roberto Clemente's career ended with precisely 3,000 hits, which he reached in the last at bat of his career on September 30, 1972. [20] [21] [lower-alpha 3]
Of the 33 members, 18 were right-handed batters, 13 were left-handed, and two were switch hitters. The Cleveland Guardians and Detroit Tigers are the only franchises to see three players reach 3,000 hits while on their roster: for Cleveland, Lajoie, while the team was the Naps, Tris Speaker, and most recently Eddie Murray, both when the franchise was known as the Indians, and, for the Tigers, Cobb, Al Kaline, and most recently Miguel Cabrera. Ten of these players have played for only one major league team. Seven players—Hank Aaron, Willie Mays, Eddie Murray, Rafael Palmeiro, Albert Pujols, Alex Rodriguez, and Miguel Cabrera—are also members of the 500 home run club. Cobb holds the highest career batting average at .366, while Cal Ripken Jr. holds the lowest at .276. Derek Jeter, Wade Boggs, and Alex Rodriguez are the only players to hit a home run for their 3,000th hit, and Paul Molitor and Ichiro Suzuki are the only players to hit a triple for their 3,000th; all others hit a single or double. Stan Musial was the first to collect an extra-base hit for his 3,000th hit, and is also the only one to have done so as a pinch-hitter. Craig Biggio is the only player to be thrown out for his 3,000th hit, while attempting to stretch the hit into a double. [24] Biggio and Jeter are the only players whose 3,000th hit came in a game where they had five hits; Jeter reached base safely in all of his at bats. [25] The most recent player to reach 3,000 hits is Cabrera, who did so on April 23, 2022, while playing for the Detroit Tigers. [26]
All eligible players with 3,000 or more career hits have been elected to the Hall except Palmeiro and Rodriguez, whose careers have been tainted by steroid allegations, and since 1962 all except Biggio were elected on the first ballot. Rose is ineligible for the Hall of Fame because he was permanently banned from baseball in 1989. [27] [28] [29] After four years on the ballot, Palmeiro failed to be named on 5% of ballots in 2014, after which his name was removed from the Baseball Writers' Association of America ballots, although it is possible that the Veterans Committee could select him. [30] Rodriguez garnered 34.3% of the vote during his first year of eligibility in 2022. [29] Twenty-one different teams have had a player reach 3,000 hits. [12] Cabrera, Pujols, and Suzuki are not yet eligible for the Hall because they haven't been retired for 5 years.
Player | Name of the player |
---|---|
Hits | Career hits |
Average | Career batting average |
Date | Date of the player's 3,000th hit |
Team | The batter's team for his 3,000th hit |
Seasons | The seasons this player played in the major leagues |
3,000th hit | The type of hit the batter recorded for his 3,000th hit |
* | Elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame |
‡ | Player is active |
† | Also hit 500 home runs |
Player | Hits | Average | Date | Team | Seasons | 3,000th hit | Ref |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Pete Rose [lower-alpha 4] | 4,256 | .303 | May 5, 1978 | Cincinnati Reds | 1963–1986 | Single | [31] |
Ty Cobb * | 4,189 [lower-alpha 2] | .366 | August 19, 1921 | Detroit Tigers | 1905–1928 | [32] | |
Hank Aaron †* | 3,771 | .305 | May 17, 1970 | Atlanta Braves | 1954–1976 | [33] | |
Stan Musial * | 3,630 | .331 | May 13, 1958 | St. Louis Cardinals | 1941–1944, 1946–1963 | Double | [34] |
Tris Speaker * | 3,514 | .345 | May 17, 1925 | Cleveland Indians | 1907–1928 | Single | [35] |
Derek Jeter * | 3,465 | .310 | July 9, 2011 | New York Yankees | 1995–2014 | Home run | [36] |
Honus Wagner * | 3,430 | .329 | June 9, 1914 | Pittsburgh Pirates | 1897–1917 | Double | [37] |
Carl Yastrzemski * | 3,419 | .285 | September 12, 1979 | Boston Red Sox | 1961–1983 | Single | [38] |
Albert Pujols † | 3,384 | .296 | May 4, 2018 | Los Angeles Angels | 2001–2022 | [39] | |
Paul Molitor * | 3,319 | .306 | September 16, 1996 | Minnesota Twins | 1978–1998 | Triple | [40] |
Eddie Collins * | 3,314 | .333 | June 3, 1925 | Chicago White Sox | 1906–1930 | Single | [41] |
Willie Mays †* | 3,293 | .301 | July 18, 1970 | San Francisco Giants | 1948, 1951–1952, 1954–1973 | [42] | |
Eddie Murray †* | 3,255 | .287 | June 30, 1995 | Cleveland Indians | 1977–1997 | [43] | |
Nap Lajoie * | 3,252 [lower-alpha 5] | .339 | September 27, 1914 | Cleveland Naps | 1896–1916 | Double | [47] |
Cal Ripken Jr. * | 3,184 | .276 | April 15, 2000 | Baltimore Orioles | 1981–2001 | Single | [48] |
Miguel Cabrera † | 3,174 | .307 | April 23, 2022 | Detroit Tigers | 2003–2023 | [49] | |
Adrián Beltré * | 3,166 | .286 | July 30, 2017 | Texas Rangers | 1998–2018 | Double | [50] |
George Brett * | 3,154 | .305 | September 30, 1992 | Kansas City Royals | 1973–1993 | Single | [51] |
Paul Waner * | 3,152 | .333 | June 19, 1942 | Boston Braves | 1926–1945 | [52] | |
Robin Yount * | 3,142 | .285 | September 9, 1992 | Milwaukee Brewers | 1974–1993 | [53] | |
Tony Gwynn * | 3,141 | .338 | August 6, 1999 | San Diego Padres | 1982–2001 | [54] | |
Alex Rodriguez † | 3,115 | .295 | June 19, 2015 | New York Yankees | 1994–2013, 2015–2016 | Home run | [55] |
Dave Winfield * | 3,110 | .283 | September 16, 1993 | Minnesota Twins | 1973–1995 | Single | [56] |
Ichiro Suzuki | 3,089 | .311 | August 7, 2016 | Miami Marlins | 2001–2019 | Triple | [57] |
Craig Biggio * | 3,060 | .281 | June 28, 2007 | Houston Astros | 1988–2007 | Single [lower-alpha 6] | [58] |
Rickey Henderson * | 3,055 | .279 | October 7, 2001 | San Diego Padres | 1979–2003 | Double | [59] |
Rod Carew * | 3,053 | .328 | August 4, 1985 | California Angels | 1967–1985 | Single | [60] |
Lou Brock * | 3,023 | .293 | August 13, 1979 | St. Louis Cardinals | 1961–1979 | [61] | |
Rafael Palmeiro † | 3,020 | .288 | July 15, 2005 | Baltimore Orioles | 1986–2005 | Double | [62] |
Cap Anson * | 3,011 [lower-alpha 1] | .331 | July 18, 1897 [lower-alpha 1] | Chicago Colts | 1871–1897 | Single | [12] |
Wade Boggs * | 3,010 | .328 | August 7, 1999 | Tampa Bay Devil Rays | 1982–1999 | Home run | [63] |
Al Kaline * | 3,007 | .297 | September 24, 1974 | Detroit Tigers | 1953–1974 | Double | [64] |
Roberto Clemente * | 3,000 | .317 | September 30, 1972 | Pittsburgh Pirates | 1955–1972 | [65] |
Tyrus Raymond Cobb, nicknamed "the Georgia Peach", was an American professional baseball center fielder. A native of rural Narrows, Georgia, Cobb played 24 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). He spent 22 years with the Detroit Tigers and served as the team's player-manager for the last six, and he finished his career with the Philadelphia Athletics. In 1936, Cobb received the most votes of any player on the inaugural ballot for the National Baseball Hall of Fame, receiving 222 out of a possible 226 votes (98.2%); no other player received a higher percentage of votes until Tom Seaver in 1992. In 1999, the Sporting News ranked Cobb third on its list of "Baseball's 100 Greatest Players."
Paul Leo Molitor, nicknamed "Molly" and "the Ignitor", is an American former professional baseball player and manager. During his 21-year playing career in Major League Baseball (MLB), he played for the Milwaukee Brewers (1978–1992), Toronto Blue Jays (1993–1995), and Minnesota Twins (1996–1998). He was known for his exceptional hitting and speed. He made seven All-Star Game appearances, and was the World Series Most Valuable Player in 1993. Molitor currently ranks tenth on the all-time MLB career hits list with 3,319. He is one of only five players in history with 3,000+ hits, a lifetime .300+ batting average, and 500+ career stolen bases.
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