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A tribute to Jim Rice and Rickey Henderson
Posted by John Dewan on Dec 16th 2015
July 28, 2009
The Hall of Fame Class of 2009 includes two of the greatest left fielders of all time: Jim Rice and Rickey Henderson.
During his prime, Rice was known as one of the most feared hitters in the league, and for good reason. Rice became the third player in history to lead the league in triples, home runs, and RBI during the same season, and he was the first to have the outright lead in all three categories.
| Players Who Led the League in Triples, Home Runs, and RBI (*tied for league lead) | |||||
| Player | Season | League | Triples | Home Runs | RBI |
| Tip O'Neill | 1887 | AA | 19* | 14 | 123 |
| Jim Bottomley | 1928 | NL | 20 | 31* | 136 |
| Jim Rice | 1978 | AL | 15 | 46 | 139 |
Henderson, of course, is the most prolific base stealer of all time, and the best lead-off hitter to ever play the game. Over 25 seasons with nine different teams, Henderson stole a record 1406 bases, a full 468 more than the previous record (Lou Brock’s 938). He stole at an above-average efficiency as well, posting a career 81% success rate. Along the way, Rickey managed to lead the league twelve times, the most ever.
| Stolen Base League Leaders | |
| Player | # Times Led League |
| Rickey Henderson | 12 |
| Max Carey | 10 |
| Luis Aparicio | 9 |
| Lou Brock | 8 |
| Five players tied | 6 |
Congratulations to Jim Rice and Rickey Henderson on their induction to Baseball's Hall of Fame.