Chicago Cubs' Ryne Sandberg Sets MLB Record

On Aug. 28, 1990, Ryan Sandberg of the Chicago Cubs hit his 30th home of the season to help the Cubs beat the Houston Astros at the Astrodome.

It was the second year in a row the future Hall of Famer hit at least 30 home runs, becoming the first Major League second baseman to do that. Sandberg wasn't done in 1990 either. He ended up with 40 home runs. He hit an even 30 in 1989.

Ryne Sandberg played 16 years in the major leagues, his first with the Philadelphia Phillies, but as a result of a classic ill-advised trade on the part of Philadelphia, was sent to the Cubs in year two and played the next 15 seasons on the North side of Chicago.

Sandberg was a career. 285 hitter, appeared in 10 All-Star games, was National League Most Valuable Player in 1984, and elected into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2005.

  

Since Sandberg retired second base has still been a position with limited power but a few players after him have completed the feat.

Jeff Kent hit 30 home runs in three consecutive seasons.

Alfonso Soriano hit 30 home runs in three consecutive seasons.

Chase Utley also hit 30 home runs in three consecutive seasons.

Dan Uggla is the current record holder with five consecutive seasons with 30 or more home runs.

Major League Baseball Suspends Pete Rose For Life

On August 24, 1989, former Major League Baseball player and manager Pete Rose is suspended from baseball for life for gambling on the sport.

Rose had a long and storied career, which saw stints playing and coaching on the Cincinnati Reds, Montreal Expos and the Philadelphia Phillies.

Rose would total 4,256 hits in his career with 3,215 singles.

Rose finished his career with a .303 batting average, 4,256 hits, 746 doubles, 135 triples, 160 home runs, 1,314 RBIs, 2,165 runs scored, 198 stolen bases and 1,566 walks.

Rose has 67 more hits than Ty Cobb who is the second ranked player on the list, and nearly 500 more hits than Hank Aaron who is ranked third all-time. Rose would also earn 17 more Major League records during his career, th

e most notable behind the hits record is most career games played, 3,562, which is 254 more than Carl Yastrzemski of the Boston Red Sox who played in 3,308 games between 1961 and 1983. 

Over the course of his career Rose played every single game of the season eight times, and five times led the league in games played. Rose led the league in batting average three times, with his highest single season average being .348 in 1969. He led the league in hits seven times with his highest single season hit total 230, coming in 1973. He also led the league in runs scored four times. His highest single season total of runs scored came in 1976 with 130 runs scored.

Rose would win the National League Most Valuable Player (MVP) Award in 1973 and was in the top 10 in MVP voting 10 times over his career. 1973 also was a season Rose was the National League batting champion. Rose was a three time World Series Champion in 1975, 1976 with the Reds and 1980 with the Phillies.

Rose won the Rookie of the Year award in 1963, was a Gold Glove winner twice, and a Silver Slugger once.

Rose would be selected to 17 All-Star games in his 24-season career. The most famous occurrence of Rose in an All-Star game came in 1970, when Rose smashed into then Cleveland Indians catcher Ray Fosse on a play at the plate. Rose would give Fosse a separated shoulder with the incident, but scored the winning run in the process.

Rose even though the all-time hit leader in MLB, and owner of over 17 Major League records has not been elected into Cooperstown the baseball Hall of Fame because of gambling on baseball.

Philadelphia Phillies' Eric Bruntlett Turns Unassisted Triple Play

On Aug. 23, 2009, tensions rose on Sunday as it looked like the Phillies would take their second game in a row going into the ninth inning. 

That’s when things got interesting.

With the Mets at bat, down 9-6, no outs and Angel Pagan on third base, Luis Castillo grounded a ball to second, but Eric Bruntlett couldn’t handle it and Castillo would beat out a late throw. Daniel Murphy stepped to the plate next and it was deja vu all over again. A grounder to Bruntlett which he once again could not handle. The tying run was now on base and a nightmare was unfolding right in front of the Phillies' fanbase eyes, but it didn’t seem as though he could do anything about it.

Then it happened.

A line drive off the bat of Jeff Francoeur which was headed to Bruntlett at second base.  

With the runners going, he made the catch for one out, touched second for another, and tagged Murphy who was caught in a hit-and-run. One man, three outs. It was only the 15th unassisted triple play in Major League history.

Check out the video below of Bruntlett's unassisted triple play:

Philadelphia Phillies' Pete Rose Breaks Stan Musial's Hit Record

On August 10, 1981, Philadelphia Phillies great Pete Rose collects career hit number 3,631, breaking Stan Musial's National League hit record of 3,630 hits.

Rose would total 4,256 hits in his career with 3,215 singles.

Rose finished his career with a .303 batting average, 4,256 hits, 746 doubles, 135 triples, 160 home runs, 1,314 RBIs, 2,165 runs scored, 198 stolen bases and 1,566 walks.

Rose has 67 more hits than Ty Cobb who is the second ranked player on the list, and nearly 500 more hits than Hank Aaron who is ranked third all-time. Rose would also earn 17 more Major League records during his career, the most notable behind the hits record is most career games played, 3,562, which is 254 more than Carl Yastrzemski of the Boston Red Sox who played in 3,308 games between 1961 and 1983.

Over the course of his career Rose played every single game of the season eight times, and five times led the league in games played. Rose led the league in batting average three times, with his highest single season average being .348 in 1969. He led the league in hits seven times with his highest single season hit total 230, coming in 1973. He also led the league in runs scored four times. His highest single season total of runs scored came in 1976 with 130 runs scored.

Rose would win the National League Most Valuable Player (MVP) Award in 1973 and was in the top 10 in MVP voting 10 times over his career. 1973 also was a season Rose was the National League batting champion. Rose was a three time World Series Champion in 1975, 1976 with the Reds and 1980 with the Phillies.

Rose won the Rookie of the Year award in 1963, was a Gold Glove winner twice, and a Silver Slugger once.

Rose would be selected to 17 All-Star games in his 24-season career. The most famous occurrence of Rose in an All-Star game came in 1970, when Rose smashed into then Cleveland Indians catcher Ray Fosse on a play at the plate. Rose would give Fosse a separated shoulder with the incident, but scored the winning run in the process.

Rose even though the all-time hit leader in MLB, and owner of over 17 Major League records has not been elected into Cooperstown the baseball Hall of Fame because of gambling on baseball.

Boston Red Sox Legend Carlton Fisk Ties MLB Record

On Aug. 8, 1990, Boston Red Sox legend Carlton Fisk ties Johnny Bench for hitting the home most home runs by a catcher with home run number 327, albeit with the Chicago White Sox.

Fisk would go on to pass Bench for home runs hit by a catcher, finishing his career with 351 home runs in line up as a catcher, and with 376 total. However he would not pass the total amount of home runs Bench hit, 389; he would also be passed by Mike Piazza who hit 396 as a catcher and 427 in his career.

Fisk was known by the nickname "Pudge" due to his six foot two inch, 220 lb. frame, was the first player to be unanimously voted American League Rookie of the Year, in 1972.

Fisk is best known for "waving fair" his game-winning home run in the twelfth inning of Game 6 of the 1975 World Series.

Fisk held the record for most games played at the position of catcher with 2,226 games behind the plate, until June 17, 2009 when he was surpassed by another "Pudge", Iván Rodríguez.

Fisk still holds the American League record for most years served behind the plate with 24 seasons under his belt. As well several other records including being the oldest catcher in Major League history to hit 20 home runs in 1987. Being the oldest player to record a hit in an All-Star game in 1991. Holding the record for most home runs hit after the age of 40, 72.

Fisk is one of only seven players in history who have caught more than 150 games in a season multiple times (Jim Sundberg, Randy Hundley, Ted Simmons, Frankie Hayes and Gary Carter).

Fisk is one of only sixteen catchers elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame. Among those, Fisk has the most hits with 2,356, and runs scored with 1,276.

Over his 24-year career Fisk totaled 11 All-Star appearances, including three consecutive appearances from 1972-1974, 1976-1978 and 1980-1982. He would earn three Silver Slugger Awards in 1981, 1985 and 1988. He was a Gold Glove Winner in 1972.

Fisk finished his career with a .269 batting average with 2,356 hits with 421 doubles, 47 triples, and 375 home runs. He has 849 walks to go along with 1,330 RBIs and 1,276 runs scored. He struck out 1,386 times.

Seven times over his career Fisk was in the MVP conversation, and four times was in the top 10 in voting.

The Chicago White Sox retired his no. 72 jersey in 1997.

The Boston Red Sox retired his no. 27 jersey in September of 2000.

Also in 2000 Fisk was inducted into Cooperstown Major League Baseball Hall of Fame with 79.6 percent of the vote.

Two Philadelphia Phillies Get Inducted Into Hall of Fame

On July 30, 1995, two Philadelphia Phillies Richie Ashburn and Mike Schmidt get inducted into Cooperstown Major League Baseball Hall of Fame.

Don Richard "Richie" Ashburn also known by the nicknames, "Putt-Putt", "The Tilden Flash", and "Whitey" due to his light-blond hair, was a center fielder, which played 15 seasons in the MLB between 1948 and 1962 for the Philadelphia Phillies, Chicago Cubs and the New York Mets.

Ashburn was of the famous "Whiz Kids" of the National League champion 1950 Phillies.

Ashburn finished his career with a .308 batting average with 2,574 hits, which included 317 doubles, 109 triples and 29 home runs. He also had 1,198 walks 1,322 runs scored, 586 RBIs and 234 steals while only striking out 571 times.

Ashburn was a six-time All-Star, including twice in 1962, when the MLB held two All-Star Games during the season. He was also a two-time National League Batting Title champion. Twice during his career Ashburn was in the top 10 in Most Valuable Player (MVP) voting.

The Philadelphia Phillies retired his No. 1 jersey in 1979.

Ashburn was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame by the Hall's Veterans Committee in 1995 after a long fan campaign to induct him, which included bumper stickers that read, "Richie Ashburn: Why The Hall Not?"

Ashburn was inducted into The Broadcast Pioneers of Philadelphia Hall of Fame in 1997.

Ashburn was also inducted into the inaugural class of the Philadelphia Sports Hall of Fame in 2004.

Each year the Phillies present the Richie Ashburn Special Achievement Award to "a member of the organization who has demonstrated loyalty, dedication and passion for the game."

The center-field entertainment area at the Phillies current stadium, Citizens Bank Park, is named Ashburn Alley in his honor in response to the demand of numerous fans requesting that the Phillies name the stadium in Ashburn's honor (due to Ashburn's 47 seasons of service to the Phillies organization, which was second in length in Philadelphia baseball history only to Connie Mack, who was so honored with the renaming of Shibe Park in 1953).

At Citizens Bank Park the Phillies' radio-broadcast booth is named "The Richie 'Whitey' Ashburn Broadcast Booth". It is directly next to the TV-broadcast booth, which was renamed "The Harry Kalas Broadcast Booth" after Kalas's death in 2009.

As for Mike Schmidt, he is widely considered as one of the greatest third baseman in the history of Major League Baseball. He played his entire 18-year career with the Philadelphia Phillies.

Schmidt finish his career with a .267 batting average, 2,234 hits, which included 408 doubles, 59 triples and 548 home runs. He also compiled 1,595 RBIs, 1,506 runs scored, 1,507 walks and 174 steals while striking out 1,883 times.

Schmidt led the league in walks four times, including three consecutive years from 1981-1983. He also led the league in runs once, 1981 when he scored 78 runs.

Schmidt was a 12-time All-Star including six consecutive selections from 1979-1984. He was a three-time National League MVP, including back-to-back awards in 1980-1981. He was in the top 10 in MVP voting in nine times, including five consecutive years from 1980-1984.

He was a 10-time Gold Glove winner including nine-consecutive awards from 1976-1984. He was an eight-time National League home run champion including three-consecutive years from 1974-1976. He was a six-time Silver Slugger Award winner including five-consecutive awards from 1980-1984. He was a four-time National League RBI Champion, including back-to-back awards in 1980-1981.

Schmidt was a member of the 1980 Philadelphia Phillies who won the World Series, and was named the World Series MVP.

In 1983 Schmidt was awarded the Lou Gehrig Memorial Award.

In 1990 the Philadelphia Phillies retired his No. 20 jersey.

In 1995 he was inducted into the Cooperstown MLB Hall of Fame with 96.5 percent of the vote on the first ballot in which he was on.

In 1997 he was named to the MLB All-Time Team and in 1999 he named to the MLB All-Century Team.

Philadelphia Phillies Retire Steve Carlton's Jersey

On July 29, 1989, the Philadelphia Phillies retire the No. 32 formerly worn by Steve Carlton.  

Carlton spent 15 seasons as a member of the Phillies and joined Richie Ashburn (No. 1), Jim Bunning (No. 14), Mike Schmidt (No. 20) and Robin Roberts (No. 36) as the only men to have their numbers retired by Philadelphia.

Steve Carlton enjoyed the best years of his career while playing for the Philadelphia Phillies.  He joined the club in 1972 and made seven all-star appearances.  

He also led Philadelphia to a World Series title in 1980 and in that same season he won his third of four career Cy Young awards.

Along with the five men that have their numbers retired by the Phillies, there is also Jackie Robinson’s No. 42 that is retired by every team in Major League Baseball.  

Also, Grover Cleveland played in the era before MLB used uniform numbers, so he is honored with the letter “P”, along with Chuck Klein, who wore a variety of numbers with the Phillies throughout his career.

Cincinnati Reds' Pete Rose Breaks Singles Record

On July 27, 1984, Cincinnati Reds Pete Rose collects his record-breaking career single 3,053 versus the Philadelphia Phillies, a team in which he played on for five years during the middle of his career.

Rose would total 4,256 hits in his career with 3,215 singles.

Rose finished his career with a .303 batting average, 4,256 hits, 746 doubles, 135 triples, 160 home runs, 1,314 RBIs, 2,165 runs scored, 198 stolen bases and 1,566 walks.

Rose has 67 more hits than Ty Cobb who is the second ranked player on the list, and nearly 500 more hits than Hank Aaron who is ranked third all-time. Rose would also earn 17 more Major League records during his career, the most notable behind the hits record is most career games played, 3,562, which is 254 more than Carl Yastrzemski of the Boston Red Sox who played in 3,308 games between 1961 and 1983.

Over the course of his career Rose played every single game of the season eight times, and five times led the league in games played. Rose led the league in batting average three times, with his highest single season average being .348 in 1969. He led the league in hits seven times with his highest single season hit total 230, coming in 1973. He also led the league in runs scored four times. His highest single season total of runs scored came in 1976 with 130 runs scored.

Rose would win the National League Most Valuable Player (MVP) Award in 1973 and was in the top 10 in MVP voting 10 times over his career. 1973 also was a season Rose was the National League batting champion. Rose was a three time World Series Champion in 1975, 1976 with the Reds and 1980 with the Phillies.

Rose won the Rookie of the Year award in 1963, was a Gold Glove winner twice, and a Silver Slugger once.

Rose would be selected to 17 All-Star games in his 24-season career. The most famous occurrence of Rose in an All-Star game came in 1970, when Rose smashed into then Cleveland Indians catcher Ray Fosse on a play at the plate. Rose would give Fosse a separated shoulder with the incident, but scored the winning run in the process.

Rose even though the all-time hit leader in MLB, and owner of over 17 Major League records has not been elected into Cooperstown the baseball Hall of Fame because of gambling on baseball.

Detroit Tigers' Ty Cobb Reaches 4,000 Hits

On July 18, 1927, Hall of Famer and Detroit Tigers great Ty Cobb collects career hit 4,000.

At the time Cobb was the only player in Major League Baseball to reach 4,000 hits. Since Cobb only one player has hit more than 4,000 hits and that is former Cincinnati Reds, Philadelphia Phillies and Montreal Expos great Pete Rose.

Cobb, nicknamed "The Georgia Peach," was an American Major League Baseball outfielder. He was born in The Narrows, Georgia, a small rural community of farmers that was not an official city or village at the time.

Cobb spent 22 seasons with the Detroit Tigers, the last six as the team's player-manager, and finished his career with the Philadelphia Athletics. In 1936 Cobb received the most votes of any player on the inaugural Baseball Hall of Fame ballot, receiving 222 out of a possible 226 votes.

At the end of his playing career Cobb was credited with breaking 90 MLB records including ending his career with a .366 batting average, still the highest ever, 54 career steals of home, still the most of all time, 892 stolen bases, which has since been surpassed by three players including current stolen base champion Oakland Athletics great Rickey Henderson. Most runs scored with 2,245, which has since been surpassed only by Henderson. Most career hits with 4,191, which has since been surpassed only by Rose.

Cobb finished his career as a one time American League MVP in 1911, the winner of 12 batting titles, including nine in a row from 1907-1915, both of which are the most of all time. He batted over .400 three times, which is tied for an MLB record and only batted under .320 once in his career. He also led the American League with a .350 batting average at age 20, second youngest in MLB history to do so.

Cobb’s career numbers include a .366 batting average, a .433 on-base percentage, a .512 slugging percentage, 4,189 hits, 724 doubles, 295 triples, 117 home runs, 1,249 walks, 1,938 RBIs, 2,246 runs scored, 897 stolen bases in 3,034 games played.

Cobb was named to the Major League Baseball All-Century Team, and Cooperstown Hall of Fame in 1936 with 98.23 percent of the vote. Cobb received the most votes of any player on the inaugural Baseball Hall of Fame ballot, receiving 222 out of a possible 226 votes.

Since the inception of the Major League Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York there have been 300 members elected with only three members with a higher percentage of the vote being inducted after Cobb including in this order of percentage; New York Mets great Tom Seaver 98.84 percent, Texas Rangers, Houston Astros and California Angels great Nolan Ryan 98.79 percent and Baltimore Orioles great Cal Ripken Jr. with 98.53 percent.

Only Kansas City Royals George Brett has topped 98 percent of the vote without surpassing Cobb, with 98.19 percent.

Philadelphia Phillies Reach 10,000 Losses

July 15, 2007, the St. Louis Cardinals crush the Philadelphia Phillies, 10-2, making the Phillies the first team in sports history to reach 10,000 franchise losses. The Phillies had been a terrible organization for decades and once went 98 years without a championship. At the moment, the city of Philadelphia was in a winless streak of its own, having not won a title since 1983. 

However, the Philadelphia fans appeared to embrace the lackluster distinction; they chanted "10,000" throughout the game and gave the club a standing ovation when they finally lost.

The Phillies' accomplishment had been 125 years in the making. They began play in 1883 as the Philadelphia Quakers and inauspiciously lost the first eight games of the season; in 1904, they became the first team to ever lose 100 games in a year; from 1918 to 1948, the Phillies had just one winning season and placed among the bottom three teams in the National League 28 times; in 1961, they lost a big league record 23 games in a row; in 1964, they blew a six-and-a-half game lead with 12 games to go in the season; in 1993, they lost the World Series on a game-winning home run to Joe Carter. They had even started a pitcher in 1940's (Hugh Mulcahy) who was so bad that he earned the nickname "Losing Pitcher."

But as they say, it's always darkest before the dawn. Philly fans basked in the sorrow that came with their 10,000 loss, but just one year later, they defeated the Tampa Bay Rays to win their second World Series in franchise history. As Ed Barkowitz of the Philadelphia Daily News wrote after the title, "Phillies' 10,000 losses are a distant memory."

Check out a fan's view from the Phillies franchise loss 10,000: 

Philadelphia Phillies' Ed Delahanty Hits Four Home Runs

On July 13, 1896, Philadelphia Phillies Hall of Famer Ed Delahanty, becomes just the second major leaguer to hit four home runs in a game.

The feat now has been reached 16 times, with Josh Hamilton being the last to do so on May 8, 2012.

In chronological order of players hitting four home runs in a game: Bobby Lowe (1894), Delahanty (1896), Lou Gehrig (1932), Chuck Klein (1936), Pat Seerey (1948), Gil Hodges (1950), Joe Adcock (1954), Rocky Colavito (1959), Willie Mays (1961), Mike Schmidt (1976), Bob Horner (1986), Mark Whiten (1993), Mike Cameron (May 2, 2002), Shawn Green (May 23, 2002), Carlos Delgado (2003) and Hamilton (2012).

Of the players who hit four home runs in one game Delahanty, Gehrig, Klein, Mays and Schmidt are in the Hall of Fame, and only Hamilton is still an active player.

The gap of time between Cameron’s four home run day and Green’s four home run day is the shortest being only 21 days apart, while the gap between Delahanty and Gehrig, 36 years is the longest between such feats.

Almost every player who hit four home runs in one game on this list helped their team win except for Delahanty, as his Phillies lost to the Chicago Colts 9-8, and Homer’s Atlanta Braves lost to the Montreal Expos 11-8.

Of the players to hit four home runs in a single game Lowe has the lowest career total for home runs with 71, follower by Seerey, 86, and Delahanty 101. The most home runs on the list for a player to hit four home runs in one game is Mays with 660, followed by Schmidt with 548, and Gehrig with 493.

While Delahanty was not the first player to complete the feat he was just the second, and had a Hall of Fame career in doing so. Delahanty, nicknamed "Big Ed", was a Major League Baseball player from 1888 to 1903 for the Philadelphia Phillies, Cleveland Infants and Washington Senators, and was known as one of the game's early power hitters. Delahanty won a batting title, batted over .400 three times, and has the fifth-highest batting average in MLB history with a .346 average, behind only Ty Cobb (.366), Rogers Hornsby (.359), Joe Jackson (.356). and Lefty O'Doul (.349).

Delahanty led the league in batting average twice in 1899 with a .410 average, and in 1902 with a .376 average. He led the league in home runs twice, in 1893 with 19 home runs, and in 1896 with 13 home runs. Of those 13 home runs, four of those came in a single game. He led the league in RBIs three times, 1893 with 146, 1896 with 126 and 1899 with 137. Delahanty also led the league in stolen bases once with 56 in 1898.

Delahanty finished his career with a life time .346 batting average, 2,597 hits, 522 doubles, 186 triples, 101 home runs, 741 walks, 1464 RBIs, 1600 runs, 455 stolen bases, and a career on base percentage of .411.

He was elected to the Cooperstown Major League Baseball Hall of Fame in 1945 by

A fun fact in Delahanty’s career was that he was also the victim behind one of "The Most Shameful Home Runs of All Time" according to the third edition of Bruce Nash and Allan Zullo's series, "The Baseball Hall of Shame."

In July 1892, when Delahanty's Phillies hosted Cap Anson's Chicago White Stockings at Philadelphia's Huntingdon Street Grounds (aka National League Park), Anson hit a fly ball to center in the top of the eighth inning. The ball hit a pole and landed right in the "doghouse," a feature unbeknownst to everyone then until that moment; it was used to store numbers for the manually run scoreboard.

Delahanty tried to get the ball (it was still in play) by first reaching over the doghouse, then crawling down into it, but on the latter attempt, he got stuck, and by the time teammate Sam Thompson had freed Delahanty from the area, Anson crossed home plate on what the "Baseball Hall of Shame" book calls an "inside-the-doghouse home run."

MLB Investigates Pete Rose

On March 20, 1989, Major League Baseball’s Pete Rose, who was then the manager of the Cincinnati Reds, announced by the MLB will be under investigation for gambling on baseball.

Pete Rose as a manager of the Cincinnati Red in 1989.

A few months later on, May 9, 1989, Special Investigator John Dowd delivers his report to Baseball Commissioner Bart Giamatti. A few months after that on August 24, 1989, Pete Rose voluntarily agrees to a lifetime ban from baseball. The agreement Rose signs with Giamatti contains no formal findings, but Giamatti states he believes Rose bet on baseball. Later that same day, Rose denies the claim.

Eight years later in September, of 1997, Rose applies for reinstatement to baseball.

Seven years after his application for reinstatement, as baseball is set to announce the election of Paul Molitar and Dennis Eckersley into the Hall of Fame, Rose admits he bet on baseball.

Rose, most likely the best hitter of his time, and maybe of all time accumulated 4,256 hits in his career, which still marks first all-time. He played in 3,562, the most all-time. Rose also racked up the most at-bats for any player all-time with 14,053, singles with 3,215 and times on base with 5,929.

Pete Rose doing one of his iconic head first dives as a member of the Philadelphia Phillies in 1975.

Some of Rose’s other accomplishments include, 1963 NL Rookie of the Year award, 1973 NL MVP, 1975 World Series MVP, two gold gloves, one silver slugger award and 17 All-Star Game nominations.

Rose, who will most likely never be elected into the Hall of Fame, has earned his place in the Hall of Fame statistically, but because of his gambling issues, their might be a chance he will never dawn the tan jacket.

DiMaggio Wins MVP

On Nov. 27, 1941, Martinez Native Joe DiMaggio beats Ted Williams to win the American League MVP.

Though the numbers would suggest Wiilliams might have had a superior season hitting than DiMaggio, as Williams hit for a .406 batting average, while clubbing 37 home runs and bringing in 120 RBI’s. However it was DiMaggio who had done something no man had ever done before, and has equaled to this date. While hitting for a very respectable .357 batting average with 30 home runs and bringing in 125 RBI’s, DiMaggio hit safely in 56-consecutive games.

DiMaggio would be the first and only hitter to hit safely in over 50 games, breaking the pervious record which is still held in the National League by Willie Keeler who played for the Baltimore Orioles.

Since DiMaggio hit safely in 56-consecutive games only four players have come within 20-games, and only a single player has come within 15.

In 1945 Tommy Holmes of the Boston Braves, was the first player who had a sizeable shot at catching DiMaggio’s record, as he hit in 37-consecutive games.

Over the 2005 and 2006 seasons a Bay Area native in Alameda’s Jimmy Rollins hit safely in 38-consecutive games.

In 1987 Paul Molitor of the Milwaukee Brewers hit safely in 39-consecutive games.

But no player since DiMaggio has hit in over 40-consecutive games besides Pete Rose, who hit safely in 44-consecutive games during his 1978 season with the Cincinnati Reds.

To me I think DiMaggio’s consecutive game hit-streak is one of the last of the untouchable records in baseball, with the others being Barry Bonds’ home run record for a single season and a career, along with Rickey Henderson’s stolen base record.

Joe Carter Hits Walk-Off Home Run

On Oct. 23, 1993, Hall of Famer Joe Carter's home run crushes Phillies in 1993 World Series.

The Philadelphia Phillies were picked to finish last by most experts. 

However, they reached the World Series and faced the defending champion Toronto Blue Jays. 

The Blue Jays ended the Phillies dreams of a World Series championship in 1993. 

Trailing 6-5 in the bottom of the ninth in Game 6, Toronto's Joe Carter hit a three-run shot to give the Blue Jays their second title in a row. Carter was given the World Series MVP.

Rose Gets Another 200 Hit Season

On Sept. 24, 1979, in his first year with the Philadelphia Phillies, Pete Rose reaches 200 hits in a season. It was the tenth time in his career he reached that mark.

Rose, most likely the best hitter of his time, and maybe of all time, accumulated 4,256 hits in his career, which still marks first all-time. He played in 3,562, the most all-time. Rose also racked up the most at-bats for any player all-time with 14,053, singles with 3,215 and times on base with 5,929.

Rose finished his career with a .303 batting average, 4,256 hits, 746 doubles, 135 triples, 160 home runs, 1,314 RBIs, 2,165 runs scored, 198 stolen bases and 1,566 walks.

Rose has 67 more hits than Ty Cobb who is the second ranked player on the list, and nearly 500 more hits than Hank Aaron who is ranked third all-time. Rose would also earn 17 more Major League records during his career, the most notable behind the hits record is most career games played, 3,562, which is 254 more than Carl Yastrzemski of the Boston Red Sox who played in 3,308 games between 1961 and 1983.

Over the course of his career Rose played every single game of the season eight times, and five times led the league in games played. Rose led the league in batting average three times, with his highest single season average being .348 in 1969. He led the league in hits seven times with his highest single season hit total 230, coming in 1973. He also led the league in runs scored four times. His highest single season total of runs scored came in 1976 with 130 runs scored.

Rose would win the National League Most Valuable Player (MVP) Award in 1973 and was in the top 10 in MVP voting 10 times over his career. 1973 also was a season Rose was the National League batting champion. Rose was a three time World Series Champion in 1975, 1976 with the Reds and 1980 with the Phillies.

Some of Rose’s other accomplishments include, 1963 NL Rookie of the Year award, 1973 NL MVP, 1975 World Series MVP, two gold gloves, and one silver slugger award.

Rose would be selected to 17 All-Star games in his 24-season career. The most famous occurrence of Rose in an All-Star game came in 1970, when Rose smashed into then Cleveland Indians catcher Ray Fosse on a play at the plate. Rose would give Fosse a separated shoulder from the incident, but scored the winning run in the process.

Rose even though the all-time hit leader in MLB, and owner of over 17 Major League records has not been elected into Cooperstown the baseball Hall of Fame because of his gambling issues, and there might be a chance he will never dawn the tan jacket.