From a man who used hot dogs and beer to enhance his performance to a few guys who juiced up to help them achieve their lofty stats here’s the 13 Greatest Hitters in Baseball History.
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5. Stan Musial
Today the St. Louis Cardinals are a powerhouse franchise in Major League Baseball that is a contender to win the championship nearly every year. A big reason why is Stan “The Man” Musial. He came up as a pitcher before his manager, Dickie Kerr suggested he turn to hitting. In his first year as the Cardinal’s every day left fielder in 1942 he would hit .315, an excellent mark but for Musial it was only the beginning. Over the next 11 seasons he would only bat under .320 one more time. In his career he would win 3 MVP awards and be a model of consistency. He recorded 3,630 hits 1,815 at home and 1,815 on the road.
Career Stats: BA .331 Hits 3630 Home Runs 475 RBI 1951 BB 1599 SO 696 SLG .559
4. Lou Gehrig
His farewell speech after being diagnosed with ALS on July 4, 1939 is one of the most famous speeches in history. Everyone remembers his line, “Today I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of the earth.” Tragically the Iron Horse would pass away less than two years later from the malady. His stellar seventeen year career prior to the diagnosis made him a legend. He along with Babe Ruth assembled the meat of Murder’s Row, the nickname given to the Yankees incredibly potent offenses of the late 20’s. Despite playing alongside the Babe Gehrig managed to rack up three seasons where he was tops in the league in home runs. He also won two MVP awards. He hit over 170 RBI’s a ridiculous three times, including 185 in 1931.
Career Stats: BA .340 Hits 2721 Home Runs 493 RBI 1995 BB 1508 SO 790 SLG .632
3. Hank Aaron
While Barry Bonds had a sudden surge of artificial power late in his career to capture the home run record, Hank Aaron’s path to the all time home run crown was steady and consistent. His highest single season home run total was 47 followed by 44, a total he would land on in 4 seasons scattered throughout his 23 year career. While he lost the home run title to Barry Bonds he still holds the record for most extra base hits and total bases. Big Papi and Aaron met up in late 2016 after Ortiz won an award bearing Aaron’s name. Ortiz was a great hitter in his own right, though not nearly good enough to crack this list.
Career Stats: BA .305 Hits 3771 Home Runs 755 RBI 2297 BB 1402 SO 1383 SLG .555
2. Ted Williams
Williams wanted to walk down the street and have people say of him, “There goes the greatest hitter who ever lived.” The quote shows the confidence, sometimes bordering on arrogance of Ted Williams. It’s also a statement that many argue to be true. His smooth, left handed swing is along with Ken Griffey Jr.’s one of the best looking to ever be seen. Raised in San Diego, Williams joined the Red Sox in 1939 and immediately became one of the game’s premier players. In 1941 he posted a .406 batting average, making him the last hitter to hit over .400 in a season. His surly often unapproachable demeanor with the media likely cost him accolades as he only won one MVP, though looking back it could be argued that he should have won at least two more. Perhaps no hitter in baseball history has combined average and power with more success than the Splendid Splinter. Even Ty Cobb thought that Williams would break his all time batting average mark of .363. Many say he would have had he pulled the ball more against the defensive shifts put in place exclusively for his sake.
Career Stats: BA .344 Hits 2654 Home Runs 521 RBI 1839 BB 2021 SO 709 SLG .634
Who did we miss? Anyone mad we didn’t include current players like Albert Pujols or Miguel Cabrera? Does someone on here not belong? Let us know in the comments section and thanks for watching.
1. Babe Ruth
Babe Ruth was a gargantuan figure in the 1920’s and changed the way the game of baseball was played for all time. His Major League career spanned 22 years and started on the mound with the Boston Red Sox. He was a great pitcher and won 67 percent of his games during the last half of the 1910’s. He was traded to the Yankees in 1920 and would begin a string of dominance as a hitter that would last over a decade. He popularized the home run and hit deep flies the likes of which had never been seen before. His stats speak for themselves but what’s hard to grasp was the effect his larger than life personality had not only on Major League Baseball but on the entire United States. He became a superstar known as much for his fun loving nature off the field as he was for his remarkable performances on it. He boozed and ate foods like hot dogs and burgers in excess, though it didn’t seem to affect his play until later in his career. Sent to an orphanage as a child, Ruth had an affinity for children, especially orphans.