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:
| The truth of the matter is I did not even know how many hits I had. A couple of years after I quit, [Senators owner] Clark Griffith told me about it, and asked me if I'd care to have a comeback with the Senators and pick up those 13 hits. But I was out of shape, and didn't want to go through all that would have been necessary to make the effort. Nowadays, with radio and television announcers spouting records every time a player comes to bat, I would have known about my hits and probably would have stayed to make 3,000 of them. | |||
| — King of the Diamonds, Lee Allen and Tom Meany | |||
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.
The 3,000 Hit Club | Online
Exhibits
National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum