Pete Rose is the all-time MLB hits leader with 4,256 hits
In Major League Baseball (MLB), the 3,000 hit club is the group of batters who have collected 3,000 or more regular-season hits in their careers. Cap Anson was the first to join the club on July 18, 1897, although his precise career hit total is unclear.[1] Two players—Nap Lajoie and Honus Wagner—reached 3,000 hits during the 1914 season. Ty Cobb became the club's fourth member in 1921 and became the first player in MLB history to reach 4,000 hits in 1927, ultimately finishing his career with more than 4,100.[7][2] Cobb, also MLB's all-time career batting average leader, remained the MLB hit leader until September 11, 1985, when Pete Rose collected his 4,192nd hit.[11] Rose, the current record holder, finished his career with 4,256 hits, an achievement that on its own would have qualified him for the Hall of Fame had Major League Baseball not banned him for life due to Rose's having gambled on games as a manager. Roberto Clemente's career ended with precisely 3,000 hits, reaching the mark in the last at bat of his career.[12][13][3] Alex Rodriguez is the most recent player to reach the milestone, achieving the feat on June 19, 2015.
In total, 29 players have reached the 3,000 hit mark in MLB history. Of these, 15 were right-handed batters, 12 were left-handed, and two were switch hitters, meaning they could bat from either side of the plate. Ten of these players have played for only one major league team. The Cleveland Indians are the only franchise to see three players reach the milestone while on their roster: Lajoie (while the franchise was known as the "Naps"), Tris Speaker, and Eddie Murray. Five players—Hank Aaron, Willie Mays, Murray, Rafael Palmeiro, and Rodriguez—are also members of the 500 home run club. At .367, Cobb holds the highest career batting average among club members, while Cal Ripken, Jr. holds the lowest at .276. Rodriguez, Derek Jeter, and Wade Boggs are the only players to hit a home run for their 3,000th hit and Paul Molitor is the only player to hit a triple for his 3,000th; all others hit a single or double. Craig Biggio was thrown out at second base attempting to stretch his 3,000th hit, a single, into a double.[16] Biggio and Jeter are the only players to join the club in a game where they had five hits; Jeter reached base safely in all of his at bats.[17]
Baseball writer Josh Pahigian wrote that the club has been "long considered the greatest measure of superior bat handling."[18] Reaching 3,000 hits is often described as a guarantee of eventual entry into the Baseball Hall of Fame.[19][20][21] All eligible club members, with the exception of Palmeiro, have been elected to the Hall, and since 1962 all club members who have been inducted were elected on the first ballot, except for Biggio. Rose is ineligible for the Hall of Fame because he was permanently banned from baseball in 1989.[22][23] Palmeiro failed to be named on 5% of ballots and his name will be off the ballot for future elections.[24] The only active player on this list is Alex Rodriguez, who is the active leader in hits with 3,070.
Contents
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Key 1
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Members 2
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See also 3
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Notes 4
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References 5
Key
Ty Cobb reached 4,000 hits during the 1928 season and was the only player to reach this mark until Rose joined him in 1985.
Paul Molitor is the only player to hit a triple for his 3,000th hit.
Derek Jeter
(left) and
Dave Winfield (right) are both members of the club
Player
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Name of the player
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Hits
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Career hits
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Average
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Career batting average
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Date
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Date of the player's 3,000th hit
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Team
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The batter's team for his 3,000th hit
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Seasons
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The seasons this player played in the major leagues
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3,000th hit
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The type of hit the batter recorded for his 3,000th hit
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Elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame
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Player is active
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Members
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The statistics are updated through October 3, 2015.
See also
Notes
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^ a b c Two major factors have confused Anson's precise hit total. First, a rule which existed for only the 1887 MLB season counted walks as hits.[1] Additionally, Anson played five seasons in the National Association (NA), which is not always recognized as an official "major league".[1][2] MLB.com credits Anson with 3,011 career hits, not including his time in the NA or his walks in 1887.[3] Baseball-Reference credits him with 3,435 hits, including his time in the NA, not including his walks in 1887, and differing with MLB.com over his hit total in 1894.[4] The Hall of Fame shows 3,081 hits for Anson, including his walks in 1887 (for a total of 224 hits that season) but not including NA playing time.[5]Major League Baseball credits him with 3,081 hits which is verified by Elias Sports Bureau.[6]The date listed comes from MLB.com, using their hit totals for Anson.
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^ a b MLB.com and the Hall of Fame credit Cobb with 4,191 hits,[8][9] while Baseball-Reference lists 4,189.[10]
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^ This was not Clemente's last game, however, as he entered his next and final game as a defensive substitution and did not bat.[12][14] Clemente died in a plane crash on December 31, 1972.[15]
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^ MLB.com credits Lajoie with 3,252 hits,[36] while Baseball-Reference and the 3,000 hit club page on MLB.com list 3,243 and 3,242, respectively.[37][38]
References
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General
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"Career Leaders & Records for Hits". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved July 4, 2010.
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"3,000 Hits Club – Milestones".
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"The 3,000 Hit Club". National Baseball Hall of Fame. Retrieved July 4, 2010.
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Specific
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^ a b Fleitz, David L. (2005). Cap Anson: The Grand Old Man of Baseball. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company. p. 346.
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^ "Complete Baseball Team and Baseball Team Encyclopedias". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference. Archived from the original on August 8, 2010. Retrieved July 4, 2010.
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^ "Cap Anson – Historical Player Stats".
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^ "Cap Anson Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference. Retrieved July 4, 2010.
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^ "Anson, Cap". baseballhall.org. Baseball Hall of Fame. Archived from the original on June 22, 2010. Retrieved July 4, 2010.
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^ "Anson, Cap Hall of fame". Baseball Hall of Fame.
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^ "Progressive Leaders & Records for Hits". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved July 4, 2010.
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^ "Ty Cobb Stats, Bio, Photos, Highlights".
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^ "Cobb, Ty". baseballhall.org. Baseball Hall of Fame. Retrieved July 4, 2010.
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^ a b "Ty Cobb Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference. Retrieved July 4, 2010.
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^ Boswell, Thomas (September 12, 1985). "'Charlie Hustle' gets hit 4,192 to surpass Cobb, then another".
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^ a b "Roberto Clemente 1972 Batting Gamelogs". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved July 4, 2010.
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^ "September 30, 1972 New York Mets at Pittsburgh Pirates Play by Play and Box Score". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved July 4, 2010.
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^ "October 3, 1972 St. Louis Cardinals at Pittsburgh Pirates Play by Play and Box Score". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved July 4, 2010.
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^ Schwartz, Larry. "Clemente quietly grew in stature".
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^ "'"Houston's Biggio lashes 3,000th: 'Tonight is the best.
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^ Marchand, Andrew (July 9, 2011). "Derek Jeter gets 3,000th hit". ESPN.com. Retrieved July 9, 2011.
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^
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^ Bloom, Barry M. (April 27, 2005). "Hoffman definitely Hall of Fame caliber".
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^ Haudricourt, Tom (November 1999). "Hall of Fame File". Baseball Digest: 75. Retrieved July 4, 2010.
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^
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^ "Rules for Election". National Baseball Hall of Fame. Archived from the original on May 30, 2010. Retrieved July 4, 2010.
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^ Erardi, John (August 23, 2009). "What is Pete Rose's true legacy?".
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^ "2014 Hall of Fame voting". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference. Retrieved February 17, 2014.
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^ "Pete Rose Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference. Retrieved July 4, 2010.
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^ "Hank Aaron Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference. Retrieved July 4, 2010.
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^ "Stan Musial Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference. Retrieved July 4, 2010.
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^ "Tris Speaker Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference. Retrieved July 14, 2010.
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^ "Derek Jeter Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference. Archived from the original on June 29, 2011. Retrieved July 9, 2011.
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^ "Honus Wagner Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference. Retrieved July 4, 2010.
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^ "Carl Yastrzemski Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference. Retrieved July 4, 2010.
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^ "Paul Molitor Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference. Retrieved July 4, 2010.
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^ "Eddie Collins Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference. Retrieved July 4, 2010.
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^ "Willie Mays Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference. Retrieved July 4, 2010.
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^ "Eddie Murray Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference. Retrieved July 4, 2010.
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^ "Nap Lajoie Stats, Bio, Photos, Highlights".
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^ a b "Nap Lajoie Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference. Retrieved July 4, 2010.
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^ "3,000 Hits Club – Milestones".
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^ "Cal Ripken Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference. Retrieved July 4, 2010.
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^ "George Brett Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference. Retrieved July 4, 2010.
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^ "Paul Waner Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference. Retrieved July 4, 2010.
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^ "Robin Yount Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference. Retrieved July 4, 2010.
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^ "Tony Gwynn Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference. Retrieved July 4, 2010.
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^ "Dave Winfield Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference. Retrieved July 4, 2010.
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^ "Alex Rodriguez Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference. Retrieved June 19, 2015.
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^ "Craig Biggio Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference. Retrieved July 4, 2010.
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^ "Rickey Henderson Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference. Retrieved July 4, 2010.
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^ "Rod Carew Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference. Retrieved July 4, 2010.
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^ "Lou Brock Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference. Retrieved July 4, 2010.
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^ "Rafael Palmeiro Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference. Retrieved July 4, 2010.
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^ "The 3,000 Hit Club — Cap Anson". National Baseball Hall of Fame.
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^ "Wade Boggs Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference. Retrieved July 4, 2010.
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^ "Al Kaline Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference. Retrieved July 4, 2010.
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^ "Roberto Clemente Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference. Retrieved July 4, 2010.
3,000 hit club
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General
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Batting leaders
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Career
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Annual
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Season
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Misc
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Baserunning leaders
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Pitching leaders
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Managing records
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