Detroit’s Miguel Cabrera won the American League’s batting title in 2011 with a .344 average. He did it again (.330) on his way to a Triple Crown in 2012. And again in 2013 (.348). And one more time in 2015 (.338).
Is it any wonder that my new half-decade rankings pegged Cabrera as the AL’s best hitter for the period from 2011 through 2015?
The ratings for the National League weren’t as clear-cut. The winner was the only player who exceeded .305 in batting average and .530 in slugging average for the five-year period, Colorado’s Troy Tulowitzki.
I’ve devoted my Friday stories this summer to an examination of the Modern Era’s best hitters, broken down into five-year chunks. I started the series on June 17 with a analysis of the period from 1961 to 1965, and I’ve rolled through the half-decades ever since.
The ratings are based on my Five-Year Test, which ranks hitters in these categories:
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Batting average
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Slugging average
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Runs scored per 500 plate appearances
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Runs batted in per 500 plate appearances
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Wins above replacement (WAR) per 500 plate appearances
The 2011-2015 rankings covered every batter who made a minimum of two plate appearances per game, spread out over the full five-year period. That would translate to a threshold of 1,620 appearances over a normal schedule.
A total of 91 batters qualified for today’s American League rankings, as did 86 in the National League. The collective batting average for the AL hitters in the half-decade was .266 and the ratio of bases per out (BPO) was .733. The corresponding figures for the NL were a .270 BA and a .739 BPO.
Right behind Cabrera in the American League’s rankings for 2011-2015 were Mike Trout and Jose Bautista. Following Tulowitzki on the National League side were Paul Goldschmidt and Ryan Braun.
Scroll down to find lists of both leagues’ 20 best hitters in the period. Each batter is followed by a breakdown of his 2011-2015 statistics: games, hits, home runs, batting average, and bases per out. The first three stats were not part of the Five-Year Test, but I’ve included them here to fill out the picture.
Next Friday’s installment will wrap up the series with a look at the best hitters of 2016-2020. You can see the previous standings through these links:
A new installment will arrive in your email each Tuesday and Friday morning
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1. Miguel Cabrera, G 748, H 931, HR 161, BA .334, BPO 1.035
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2. Mike Trout, G 652, H 744, HR 139, BA .304, BPO 1.067
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3. Jose Bautista, G 667, H 646, HR 173, BA .270, BPO 1.000
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4. David Ortiz, G 661, H 705, HR 154, BA .292, BPO .954
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5. Adrian Beltre, G 732, H 878, HR 135, BA .309, BPO .837
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6. Edwin Encarnacion, G 701, H 701, HR 168, BA .274, BPO .913
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7. Robinson Cano, G 793, H 940, HR 123, BA .306, BPO .832
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8. Josh Donaldson, G 549, H 579, HR 103, BA .278, BPO .845
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9. Curtis Granderson, G 377, H 340, HR 91, BA .244, BPO .877
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10. Chris Davis, G 645, H 597, HR 164, BA .257, BPO .868
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11. Nelson Cruz, G 703, H 731, HR 164, BA .273, BPO .824
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12. Josh Hamilton, G 559, H 581, HR 107, BA .272, BPO .803
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13. Adam Jones, G 769, H 859, HR 146, BA .281, BPO .748
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14. Yoenis Cespedes, G 518, H 543, HR 89, BA .269, BPO .745
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15. Prince Fielder, G 524, H 580, HR 81, BA .295, BPO .841
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16. Alex Gordon, G 728, H 788, HR 89, BA .281, BPO .802
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17. Evan Longoria, G 689, H 683, HR 123, BA .263, BPO .776
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18. Mike Napoli, G 612, H 521, HR 112, BA .255, BPO .844
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19. Jacoby Ellsbury, G 626, H 738, HR 68, BA .287, BPO .795
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20. Victor Martinez, G 575, H 656, HR 69, BA .306, BPO .774
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1. Troy Tulowitzki, G 494, H 557, HR 96, BA .309, BPO .925
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2. Paul Goldschmidt, G 621, H 672, HR 116, BA .299, BPO .991
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3. Ryan Braun, G 640, H 730, HR 127, BA .301, BPO .934
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4. Joey Votto, G 654, H 715, HR 102, BA .308, BPO 1.060
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5. Andrew McCutchen, G 775, H 864, HR 123, BA .302, BPO .970
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6. Giancarlo Stanton, G 608, H 600, HR 159, BA .272, BPO .956
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7. Bryce Harper, G 510, H 528, HR 97, BA .289, BPO .945
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8. Carlos Gonzalez, G 595, H 629, HR 125, BA .285, BPO .886
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9. Buster Posey, G 638, H 724, HR 84, BA .313, BPO .841
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10. Matt Kemp, G 644, H 701, HR 116, BA .291, BPO .853
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11. Carlos Beltran, G 438, H 467, HR 78, BA .288, BPO .846
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12. Matt Holliday, G 651, H 685, HR 95, BA .289, BPO .850
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13. Nolan Arenado, G 401, H 431, HR 70, BA .281, BPO .753
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14. Matt Carpenter, G 590, H 605, HR 53, BA .287, BPO .837
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15. Carlos Gomez, G 600, H 550, HR 82, BA .269, BPO .819
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16. Justin Upton, G 762, H 762, HR 130, BA .271, BPO .836
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17. Hanley Ramirez, G 463, H 469, HR 67, BA .277, BPO .816
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18. Allen Craig, G 425, H 454, HR 53, BA .294, BPO .758
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19. Freddie Freeman, G 731, H 767, HR 103, BA .286, BPO .823
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20. Adrian Gonzalez, G 508, H 534, HR 80, BA .283, BPO .773
