Joe DiMaggio, Jimmie Foxx, Mickey Mantle, Babe Ruth, Ted Williams these baseball immortals are unquestionably some of the greatest hitters to have ever stepped up to the plate. But none of these stellar performers managed to reach the coveted total of 3,000 career big league hits. That lofty plateau is only attained by those select few who have combined a consistently high level of hitting with a remarkably lengthy career. Indeed, only 33 men are members of the elite 3,000-Hit Club. A number of baseball's best hitters have come close to garnering 3,000 base hits over their major league careers. Hall of Famers Jake Beckley, Sam Crawford, Rogers Hornsby, Willie Keeler, Frank Robinson, and Al Simmons were all within 100 hits of the mark when they hung up their spikes. But, for better or worse, the Club is only open to those who have garnered 3,000 hits, not to those who have simply approached the magic number. Of the "close, but no cigar" players, none came closer to the mark than Sam Rice, the Hall of Fame outfielder with the Senators and Indians who ended his career with 2,987 hits. When asked why he didn't stick around for another 13 base hits, Sam responded:
Membership in the Club does not come easy. That is exactly what makes the 3,000-Hit Club so special. In recognition and celebration of the remarkable men who are members, we present the roll call for the 3,000-Hit Club. Click on a player's name to learn more about his historic hit. |
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Player | Date of 3,000th Hit | ||||||||||
Cap Anson | unknown | ||||||||||
Honus Wagner | June 9, 1914 | ||||||||||
Nap Lajoie | September 27, 1914 (first game) | ||||||||||
Ty Cobb | August 19, 1921 (second game) | ||||||||||
Tris Speaker | May 17, 1925 | ||||||||||
Eddie Collins | June 3, 1925 | ||||||||||
Paul Waner | June 19, 1942 | ||||||||||
Stan Musial | May 13, 1958 | ||||||||||
Hank Aaron | May 17, 1970 (second game) | ||||||||||
Willie Mays | July 18, 1970 | ||||||||||
Roberto Clemente | September 30, 1972 | ||||||||||
Al Kaline | September 24, 1974 | ||||||||||
Pete Rose | May 5, 1978 | ||||||||||
Lou Brock | August 13, 1979 | ||||||||||
Carl Yastrzemski | September 12, 1979 | ||||||||||
Rod Carew | August 4, 1985 | ||||||||||
Robin Yount | September 9, 1992 | ||||||||||
George Brett | September 30, 1992 | ||||||||||
Dave Winfield | September 16, 1993 | ||||||||||
Eddie Murray | June 30, 1995 | ||||||||||
Paul Molitor | September 16, 1996 | ||||||||||
Tony Gwynn | August 6, 1999 | ||||||||||
Wade Boggs | August 7, 1999 | ||||||||||
Cal Ripken Jr. | April 15, 2000 | ||||||||||
Rickey Henderson | October 7, 2001 | ||||||||||
Rafael Palmeiro | July 15, 2005 | ||||||||||
Craig Biggio | June 28, 2007 | ||||||||||
Derek Jeter | July 9, 2011 | ||||||||||
Álex Rodríguez | June 19, 2015 | ||||||||||
Ichiro Suzuki | August 7, 2016 | ||||||||||
Adrián Beltré | July 30, 2017 | ||||||||||
Albert Pujols | May 4, 2018 | ||||||||||
Miguel Cabrera | April 23, 2022 (first game) | ||||||||||
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