Four Dodgers on Tough 'Triple-Triple' List

John Brattain, writing in Hardball Times, used a non-traditional way to measure batting/on base/slugging average, runs and RBI. He calls it “The 300 Club” or the “triple-triple.” It is a season in which a batter hits triple digits in three offensive statistics: runs, RBI and base on balls.

That is why it's the 300 Club: You need at least 100 in each of those categories. To have such a season generally requires that you get on base and hit with power. This is why it's best suited to examine a team's 3-4-5 hitters.

As he says, "It requires a beast of a season offensively to accomplish it." A lot of baseball legends never enjoyed such a year -- Hank Aaron, Willie Mays, Joe DiMaggio, Ty Cobb, Rogers Hornsby, Honus Wagner and Frank Robinson are among them. A number of current greats like Ken Griffey Jr., Albert Pujols, Manny Ramirez and Vladmir Guerrero are still waiting outside the 300 Club gates. Only four Dodgers have etched their name on this remarkable list, Gary Sheffield did it twice (1999, 2000) and Dolph Camilli (1939), Duke Snider (1955), Jimmy Wynn (1974) once each.

Babe Ruth was the first to go 100/100/100 level wasn’t breached until Babe Ruth did it in 1919. Cobb came close when he scored 144 runs, walked 118 times and drove in 99 in 1915. Lou Gehrig joined the club in 1926.

Since 1901, a player has reached the century mark in all three areas 175 times, with 68 players accounting for all of them. Since 1919 there have been 26 seasons where nobody pulled it off.

Thirty-one players have accomplished the feat more than once. Almost half are were first basemen or designated hitters. The top 10:

12—Babe Ruth 11—Lou Gehrig 10—Barry Bonds 9—Frank Thomas 8—Ted Williams 8—Jim Thome 7—Jimmie Foxx 6—Jeff Bagwell 6—Ralph Kiner 5—Mel Ott 5—Mike Schmidt

The number of players reaching the triple-triple is dropping; in three of the past five seasons, three or fewer players have accomplished the feat.