You can’t get into this fraternity with a secret handshake or a special password. Breaking a guitar to impress a senior member won’t even work. The only way you can get into this elite clique is with numbers … milestone numbers. This is MLB’s 3,000-hit/500-home run club: one of the hardest clubs in all of sports to secure a membership.
Both 3,000 hits and 500 home runs are benchmark stats in baseball. To achieve one usually makes you a Hall of Famer, but to achieve both is borderline baseball immortality. Only seven players in MLB history have entered this exclusive pantheon. Let’s briefly spotlight all of the members of this just-as-elite-as-Harvard fraternity.
The Members of MLB’s 3,000-Hit, 500-Home Run Club
Hank Aaron
The most telling Hank Aaron stat is almost unfathomable: if you eliminated all 755 of his career homers, he would still have over 3,000 hits. An all-around player, this MLB career leader in home runs for over 30 years had 20+ long balls in 20 of his 23 MLB seasons. Yet, he never hit more than 47 in any year. This consistent slugger for mostly the Milwaukee/Atlanta Braves and later the Milwaukee Brewers also won two batting titles and registered 12 top-9 or better MVP results, including the top prize in 1957. Besides being second all-time in homers and third all-time in hits, Hammerin’ Hank is the all-time leader in RBI (2,297) and total bases (6,856).
Willie Mays
The longtime Giants center fielder, both in New York and San Fran, often comes up in the conversation of the best ball player ever. In addition to being a 12-time Gold Glove winner, the Say Hey Kid slammed 660 homers out of his 3,293 career hits to the tune of a .301 career batting average. When you combine that with 24 All-Star nods, 4 home-run crowns, 2 National League MVPs, a Rookie of the Year, an NL batting title, and a World Series title, the greatest player of all time discussion makes a lot of sense for Willie Mays. Did I mention he also made maybe the most famous catch ever?
Eddie Murray
I actually caught a foul ball off the bat of this Hall of Famer, but that is neither here nor there. Eddie Murray was very sneakily and steadily one of the best hitters in baseball for almost 20 years. This dude hit .323 at the age of 39 in 1995. His best years came with the Baltimore Orioles, including winning the 1977 AL ROY and the 1983 Fall Classic. From 1978 to 1985, he never finished lower than 11th in MVP voting. 504 career dingers, 3,255 hits, and seven years of hitting .300+ gets you a lot of free dinners. Scan many of the all-time hitting stats, and you’ll find this switch-hitter’s name often.
Rafael Palmeiro
Yes, controversy surrounds this man, but we’re just looking at numbers. Rafael Palmeiro had 3,020 career knocks, and 569 of them were home runs. A lefty first baseman who had stints with the Chicago Cubs, Texas Rangers (twice), and Orioles (twice), he had 10 years with 30+ homers and 100+ ribbies. He also led the American League in hits in 1990. Another cigar for this Cuban is 585 career doubles (21st all-time). Because of his circumstances, Palmeiro may be dismissed at times, but you cannot dismiss that he is a member of one elite club.
Alex Rodriguez
A-Rod is no less controversial than the previous name mentioned, but his talent was undeniable. That talent helped him to 696 home runs, 3,115 hits, three AL MVPs, two Gold Gloves, a 40/40 season, and a World Series title. He was a very productive player for the Seattle Mariners, Rangers, and New York Yankees. His WAR numbers are really gaudy: a career mark of 117.4 (12th all-time) with eight seasons of 8.3+ WAR. It remains to be seen whether the HOF voters will put Alex Rodriguez in Cooperstown. However, he can always claim he is part of a more exclusive club.
Albert Pujols
When you’re nicknamed The Machine, you can produce 703 homers, 3,384 hits, 2,218 RBI (second all-time), and three MVPs (with 4 runner-ups). In MLB history, Albert Pujols and Hank Aaron are the only members of the 3,000/700 club; that’s like getting into Studio 54. Anyway, he led the NL in WAR from 2005 to 2010. Most of his damage was as a Cardinal and an Angel. Just to give you a taste of his artistry, Albert slugged .600+ in seven of his first nine seasons. This man will be a first-ballot Hall of Famer in the coming years, but he already resides in a very select fraternity.
ALBERT PUJOLS HITS NUMBER 700!
PUJOLS JOINS BARRY BONDS, HANK AARON AND BABE RUTH IN THE 700 CLUB! pic.twitter.com/bW7wqNN9py
— Jomboy Media (@JomboyMedia) September 24, 2022
Miguel Cabrera
Miggy is the most recent player to get his hand stamped in the 3,000-hit/500-home run club. Cabrera posted 3,174 hits, 512 homers, four batting titles, and the first Triple Crown since 1967. As a 20-year-old Florida Marlin, this Venezuelan hit a World Series home run off of Roger Clemens. He won back-to-back AL MVPs with the Detroit Tigers in 2012 and 2013. Known for being a master of the strike zone, Cabrera had 11 years with a .300+ batting average and six years with a .400+ OBP. Like Pujols, the bouncer will let Miguel Cabrera in the Hall whenever he is eligible.
Who’s Next?
Because this fraternity is so elite, it is hard to project who could possibly be next to enter this select group. For years, Mike Trout was on track, but injuries have really made that a long shot. Aaron Judge seems likely to hit 500 homers, but he isn’t even halfway to 3,000 hits. Now you see why the 3,000-hit/500-home run club is maybe MLB’s most elite fraternity.
Main Photo Credit: Focus on Sport/Getty Images
