Brett Reaches 1,500 Hits

On August 29, 1982 Hall of Famer and Kansas City Royals great George Brett gets career hit 1,500.

Over his 21 major league seasons, Brett, a lifetime .305 hitter, would go on to collect 3,154 hits, consisting of 665 doubles, 137 triples and 317 home runs. He also had 1,596 RBIs, 1,583 runs scored, 1096 walks and 201 stolen bases.

Three times Brett led the league in hits, with his highest single season total coming in 1976 with 215.
Brett is also one of only four players to hit for a .300 batting average, have 300 or more home runs and have over 3,000 hits in a career. The others include three more Hall of Famers, Hank Aaron, Willie Mays and Stan Musial.

Brett finished his career with 13 All-Star appearances, with 13 consecutive appearances from 1976-1988. He was a three-time Silver Slugger Award winner in 1980, 1985 and 1988. He was a three time American League Batting Champion in 1976, 1980 and 1990. He was a Gold Glove winner in 1985 and that same year he won the World Series with the Royals. On the way to winning the World Series, Brett was named the ALCS MVP.

In 1980 Brett won his only MVP Award, as well the Hutch Award, which is given annually to an active Major League Baseball (MLB) player who "best exemplifies the fighting spirit and competitive desire" of Fred Hutchinson, by persevering through adversity.

In 1986 Brett won the Lou Gehrig Memorial Award, which is given annually to a Major League Baseball (MLB) player who best exhibits the character and integrity of Lou Gehrig, both on the field and off it.

The Kansas City Royals retired his no. 5 jersey in 1994 and in 1999 he was inducted into Cooperstown Baseball Hall of Fame with 98.2 percent of the vote on the first ballot in which he appeared. It was the fourth highest percentage of the vote given to a player ever just behind Cal Ripken Jr., Nolan Ryan, and Tom Seaver.

In 2013 Brett joined the Royals in a different capacity as a hitting coach.