Adrian Beltre 3,000 hits thread

[Judge Jude]

just got to 2,999

most games at 3B by 3,000 hit guys, per bb-reference.com*

Beltre will be the 3rd "3B as my main position" member of the 3,000 hit club

others in the club with how many games they played there

ADRIAN BELTRE 2,664
Wade Boggs 2,215
George Brett 1,692

Alex Rodriguez 1,194
Paul Molitor 791
Cal Ripken 675
Pete Rose 634
Cap Anson 220
Honus Wagner 210
Carl Yastrzemski 33
Nap Lajoie 21
Hank Aaron 7
Eddie Murray 6
Rod Carew 2
Al Kaline 2
Dave Winfield 2
Eddie Collins 1
Roberto Clemente 1
Willie Mays 1
Ty Cobb 1

* - I played softball in the OF in Central Park alongside bb-ref founder Sean Forman a few weeks ago, so gotta go with that source!

active leaderboard entering tonight

Rank Player (yrs, age) Hits Bats
1. Ichiro Suzuki (17, 43) 3060 L
2. Adrian Beltre (20, 38) 2998 R
3. Albert Pujols (17, 37) 2911 R
4. Carlos Beltran (20, 40) 2694 B
5. Miguel Cabrera (15, 34) 2602 R
6. Robinson Cano (13, 34) 2309 L
7. Matt Holliday (14, 37) 2063 R
8. Jose Reyes (15, 34) 2050 B
9. Victor Martinez (15, 38) 2016 B
10. Adrian Gonzalez (14, 35) 1996 L
11. Nick Markakis (12, 33) 1992 L
12. Brandon Phillips (16, 36) 1963 R
13. Joe Mauer (14, 34) 1913 L
14. Chase Utley (15, 38) 1827 L
15. Dustin Pedroia (12, 33) 1786 R

[Sour Masher]

Dude is a 1st hall ballot guy all the way. A top 5 3bman of all time IMO. Underrated by a lot of folks.

[revo]

I remember many years ago in this forum mentioning Beltre as a possible member of the 3,000 hits club. Had to have been in 2008 or 2009, when he had under 2,000. Hard to believe he's just one away now!

Side note, I made one of the greatest trades in my fantasy career when I landed Beltre in my redraft league in early May, 2004!

[onejayhawk]

To think I grew up watching the other two.

Games played is one of the best indicators of excellence. -Bill James

J

[madducks]

Pujols, Miggy, and Cano will be the next three. Unless Carlos Beltran plays until he is 45 years old, he will fall short. Altuve and Trout stand out as the best bets among the players under age 30.

[DMT]

Dude is a 1st hall ballot guy all the way. A top 5 3bman of all time IMO. Underrated by a lot of folks.

Agreed. I got push back a couple years ago from leagemates when I declared he'd be 1st ballot. Not so anymore.

[revo]

Congrats Mr. Beltre!

[onejayhawk]

Great quip at the press conference, "I'm here so I won't be fined."

He does sort of favor Beast Mode, at least neck up.

J

[Sour Masher]

Beltre just tied Musial and Stargell on the all time homer list. I hope for the sake of the artists that make his bust for Cooperstown that they don't have to touch his head.

[onejayhawk]

There is talk of retirement after this season. I wonder how realistic it is. He turned down a chance to be traded to a contender.

J

[chancellor]

There is talk of retirement after this season. I wonder how realistic it is. He turned down a chance to be traded to a contender.

J

That’s not a big need for him anymore. He’s made it very clear he really likes where he is.

[onejayhawk]

There's good reason he loves Texas. He has always been treated like royalty, plus he hits well in the Ballpark.

It's going to be interesting where he ranks among the best 3B ever. Defensively, he's as good as anyone but Brooks and demonstrably better than Schmidt. Offensively he leads all 3B in games, PA, hits, doubles and RBI. He's top 5 in runs and HR. 3rd in career WAR, 4th in JAWS. He's in his 21st year and he's not yet 40.

J

[Sour Masher]

There's good reason he loves Texas. He has always been treated like royalty, plus he hits well in the Ballpark.

It's going to be interesting where he ranks among the best 3B ever. Defensively, he's as good as anyone but Brooks and demonstrably better than Schmidt. Offensively he leads all 3B in games, PA, hits, doubles and RBI. He's top 5 in runs and HR. 3rd in career WAR, 4th in JAWS. He's in his 21st year and he's not yet 40.

J

If you count AROIDs at SS, I think a strong case can be made Beltre is the top 3bman ever. Alex played 12 years at SS and 12 at 3b, so it is a coin flip. But he did play a few more games at SS, and generally, people get counted at their hardest defensive position, if they played half or more of their time there. So, who should be ranked ahead of Beltre at 3b? Schmidt is the only real argument, right? Or is Brett a contender for the top spot too?

Legit curious, cuz I feel like someone in history should be better, because as much as I admire Beltre's game and think he is a first ballot HOFer, I never got the vibe during his career "I am watching the GOAT at 3b, for sure." But I guess that is what he is, right? I got to what the GOAT of 3bmen in my lifetime, in a sport spanning back 150 years. That's cool, if also a little surprising. I mean, at his peak, I felt Scott Rolen was on par with Beltre, so it is weird to think of Beltre as the GOAT.

[mjl]

The only guys ahead of him on bbref WAR are Schmidt and Eddie Mathews, and he should pass Mathews by May next year. Schmidt's probably out of the question unless he plays three more years.

[onejayhawk]

Then you consider that the first 12 years of his career were in dreadful hitters parks. Prior to age 30, he hit 30 HR or .300 only once. After he hit 30 HR four times and .300 six times.

J