Last Tuesday’s rundown of pitching leaders was well-received, so you know what’s coming today.
It’s time to look at the Modern Era’s top 10 batters in several key categories.
I explained last week that I’ve collected a wide range of statistics for the seasons from 1961 to the present — byproducts of my research for the stories I write every Tuesday and Friday. I relied on this trove as I pulled together a series of top-10 lists for pitchers a week ago, and now I’ve done the same for hitters.
The first eight lists show the best career performances for runs, hits, doubles, triples, home runs, runs batted in, batting average, and bases per outs. The final two lists show the leaders in a pair of negative categories: strikeouts and groundouts into double plays.
Each batter’s name is followed by his big-league span in parentheses. All of these rankings are confined to the Modern Era. If a player was active in 1960 or prior to that — such as Willie Davis or Roberto Clemente — only his stats from 1961 to the present are shown here.
A new installment will arrive in your email each Tuesday and Friday morning
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1. Rickey Henderson (1979-2003), 2,295
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2. Barry Bonds (1986-2007), 2,227
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3. Pete Rose (1963-1986), 2,165
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4. Alex Rodriguez (1994-2016), 2,021
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5. Derek Jeter (1995-2014), 1,923
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6. Albert Pujols (2001-2021), 1,872
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7. Craig Biggio (1988-2007), 1,844
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8. Carl Yastrzemski (1961-1983), 1,816
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9. Paul Molitor (1978-1998), 1,782
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10. Dave Winfield (1973-1995), 1,669
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1. Pete Rose (1963-1986), 4,256
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2. Derek Jeter (1995-2014), 3,465
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3. Carl Yastrzemski (1961-1983), 3,419
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4. Paul Molitor (1978-1998), 3,319
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5. Albert Pujols (2001-2021), 3,301
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6. Eddie Murray (1977-1997), 3,255
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7. Cal Ripken Jr. (1981-2001), 3,184
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8. Adrian Beltre (1998-2018), 3,166
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9. George Brett (1973-1993), 3,154
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10. Robin Yount (1974-1993), 3,142
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1. Pete Rose (1963-1986), 746
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2. Albert Pujols (2001-2021), 672
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3. Craig Biggio (1988-2007), 668
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4. George Brett (1973-1993), 665
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5. Carl Yastrzemski (1961-1983), 646
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6. Adrian Beltre (1998-2018), 636
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7. David Ortiz (1997-2016), 632
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8. Paul Molitor (1978-1998), 605
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9. Cal Ripken Jr. (1981-2001), 603
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10. Barry Bonds (1986-2007), 601
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1. Willie Wilson (1976-1994), 147
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2. Lou Brock (1961-1979), 141
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3. George Brett (1973-1993), 137
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3. Willie Davis (1961-1979), 137
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5. Pete Rose (1963-1986), 135
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6. Jose Reyes (2003-2018), 131
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6. Brett Butler (1981-1997), 131
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8. Robin Yount (1974-1993), 126
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9. Steve Finley (1989-2007), 124
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10. Carl Crawford (2002-2016), 123
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1. Barry Bonds (1986-2007), 762
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2. Alex Rodriguez (1994-2016), 696
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3. Albert Pujols (2001-2021), 679
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4. Ken Griffey Jr. (1989-2010), 630
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5. Jim Thome (1991-2012), 612
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6. Sammy Sosa (1989-2007), 609
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7. Mark McGwire (1986-2001), 583
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8. Rafael Palmeiro (1986-2005), 569
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9. Reggie Jackson (1967-1987), 563
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10. Manny Ramirez (1993-2011), 555
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1. Albert Pujols (2001-2021), 2,150
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2. Alex Rodriguez (1994-2016), 2,086
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3. Barry Bonds (1986-2007), 1,996
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4. Eddie Murray (1977-1997), 1,917
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5. Carl Yastrzemski (1961-1983), 1,844
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6. Ken Griffey Jr. (1989-2010), 1,836
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7. Rafael Palmeiro (1986-2005), 1,835
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8. Dave Winfield (1973-1995), 1,833
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9. Manny Ramirez (1993-2011), 1,831
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10. Miguel Cabrera (2003-2021), 1,804
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1. Tony Gwynn (1982-2001), .338
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2. Roberto Clemente (1961-1972), .331
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3. Rod Carew (1967-1985), .328
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3. Wade Boggs (1982-1999), .328
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5. Vladimir Guerrero (1996-2011), .318
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5. Kirby Puckett (1984-1995), .318
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7. Todd Helton (1997-2013), .316
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8. Larry Walker (1989-2005), .313
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8. Nomar Garciaparra (1996-2009), .313
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10. Manny Ramirez (1993-2011), .312
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10. Edgar Martinez (1987-2004), .312
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1. Barry Bonds (1986-2007), 1.265
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2. Mike Trout (2011-2021), 1.159
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3. Mark McGwire (1986-2001), 1.068
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4. Manny Ramirez (1993-2011), 1.059
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5. Frank Thomas (1990-2008), 1.058
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6. Larry Walker (1989-2005), 1.041
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7. Jim Thome (1991-2012), 1.035
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8. Jeff Bagwell (1991-2005), 1.028
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9. Lance Berkman (1999-2013), 1.012
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10. Todd Helton (1997-2013), 1.011
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10. Joey Votto (2007-2021), 1.011
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1. Reggie Jackson (1967-1987), 2,597
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2. Jim Thome (1991-2012), 2,548
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3. Adam Dunn (2001-2014), 2,379
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4. Sammy Sosa (1989-2007), 2,306
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5. Alex Rodriguez (1994-2016), 2,287
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6. Andres Galarraga (1985-2004), 2,003
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7. Justin Upton (2007-2021), 1,948
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8. Jose Canseco (1985-2001), 1,942
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9. Willie Stargell (1962-1982), 1,936
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10. Miguel Cabrera (2003-2021), 1,930
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1. Albert Pujols (2001-2021), 413
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2. Cal Ripken Jr. (1981-2001), 350
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3. Miguel Cabrera (2003-2021), 342
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4. Ivan Rodriguez (1991-2011), 337
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5. Carl Yastrzemski (1961-1983), 323
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6. Dave Winfield (1973-1995), 319
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7. Eddie Murray (1977-1997), 315
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7. Jim Rice (1974-1989), 315
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9. Julio Franco (1982-2007), 312
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10. Harold Baines (1980-2001), 298
