MLB Triple Crown Winners: A Comprehensive List of Baseball's Elite Hitters

MLB Triple Crown Winners: A Comprehensive List of Basebal...

By Jason Bolton August 25, 2024 20:05

Photo by Kiyoshi Mio-USA TODAY Sports

The MLB Triple Crown is among the greatest individual feats in sports. It requires a hitter to officially dominate three of baseball's most important offensive stats during a single season. A Triple Crown win requires a player to have the highest batting average, most home runs, and RBIs for his league (AL or NL). That accomplishment showcases an elite hitter's capability to hit both average and power, proving that one player can collect RBI after the other throughout the year.

As a result, the Triple Crown is an extremely rare and arguably one of the most difficult feats in Major League Baseball because it requires high proficiency across all three dimensions. Let alone take a batting title that requires consistency over hundreds of at-bats. Combining this with home run totals that led the league in power while still having RBIs of such an all-time high makes the Triple Crown special.

Only ten players have ever won a Triple Crown in Major League Baseball history, and it has happened on just 12 occasions since RBIs were first recorded in the early half of last century. This piece highlights just how rarefied an accomplishment it is and solidifies its place as one of the most prized individual awards in baseball.

MLB Triple Crown Winners

Here are the cream of the crop who earned their place in this elite group in reverse chronological order

Miguel Cabrera, Detroit Tigers (2012 AL)

Batting Average:.330
Home Runs: 44
RBIs: 139

Detroit's Miguel Cabrera ended a 45-year Triple Crown drought in the majors during his MVP season in 2012. The American League led in all three categories with his batting average four points higher, home runs one more, and RBI 11 more than anyone else. The historic feat helped Cabrera to the first of two straight AL MVP Awards, firmly establishing him as one of the most consistent batters in his era.

Carl Yastrzemski, Boston Red Sox (1967 AL)

Batting Average:.326
Home Runs: 44
RBIs: 121

Carl Yastrzemski earned the Triple Crown in the summer of '67, which was also part of his banner year when he paced the AL in on-base percentage (.418), second in runs, and in hits. That season also saw him win the AL MVP and Golden Glove.

Frank Robinson, Baltimore Orioles (1966 AL)

Batting Average:.316
Home Runs: 49
RBIs: 122

Frank Robinson won the Triple Crown in his first season with the Baltimore Orioles following a three-way trade from Cincinnati. His league-leading numbers in on-base percentage (.324) and slugging (.524) were part of a career season.

Mickey Mantle, New York Yankees (1956 AL)

Batting Average:.353
Home Runs: 52
RBIs: 130

A monster season in the HR category; he bettered his nearest AL challenger by a whopping 20 homers. Those numbers earned him his first of three career MVP awards and established Mantle as the top switch hitter in baseball history.

Ted Williams, Boston Red Sox (1947, 1942 AL)

1947: BA.343, HR 32, RBI 114
1942: BA.356, HR 36, RBI 137

The 1942 season was the year after he had become the last Major League player to bat .400 in a season.

Lou Gehrig, New York Yankees (1934 AL)

Batting Average:.363
Home Runs: 49
RBIs: 166

That year was when one of the greatest all-time Yankees, Lou Gehrig, turned in his Triple Crown season. That same year, he did notch 166 RBIs as part of a ridiculous streak in which he tore home over at least 150 times.

Jimmie Foxx, Philadelphia Athletics (1933 AL)

Batting Average:.356
Home Runs: 48
RBIs: 163

Jimmie Foxx won his second straight AL MVP Award in 1933 with a Triple Crown season. His power numbers, in particular, put him ahead of Babe Ruth by 14 home runs and Lou Gehrig by 23 RBIs.

Chuck Klein, Philadelphia Phillies (1933 NL)

Batting Average:.368
Home Runs: 28
RBIs: 120

Jack Klein hit for the Triple Crown the same year as Jimmie Foxx; truly, 1933 stood out forever with two distinctive champs. Klein also paced the NL in on-base percentage (. 422) and slugging. He also led the Majors in at-bats (602), hits (223), and doubles (44).

Rogers Hornsby, St. Louis Cardinals (1925 NL, 1922 NL)

1925: BA.403, HR 39, RBI 143
1922: BA.401, HR 42, RBI 152

Rogers Hornsby is the only NL player to win multiple Triple Crowns. This marks a remarkable six-year stretch from 1920-25, hitting. 400 three times.

Ty Cobb, Detroit Tigers (1909 AL)

Batting Average:.377
Home Runs: 9
RBIs: 107

Ty Cobb's official Triple Crown season happened before the RBI was recognized, but his 1909 performance remains a Triple Crown year. Nine home runs would be a low total by modern standards, but they still managed to lead the league in those days of dead-ball baseball.

Analysis and Discussion

National League hitting Triple Crown Three skills for a league's best hand-eye coordination, power, and consistency: a knack for clutchness. It is more than a case of players needing to bat over 300 and hit with both average and power in the same season; just driving runs home might require different plate approaches altogether.

Getting a Triple Crown Season

Elite hitting ability: Only those who can control the bat remarkably well and consistently get the barrel on the ball will emerge victorious.

Power: Must produce home runs as needed.

Consistency: it is not easy for a given baseball team with high standards to play up those levels throughout an entire 162-game season.

Opportunity: Becoming an elite hitter who has runners on base more often results in additional RBI opportunities.

Timing and luck: Remaining healthy while other players are not playing their best seasons can also be a contention.

Triple Crown stats have been adapted for the game. During the first half of the 20th century, it was far more frequent among many players and, for some, like Rogers Hornsby or Ted Williams, nearly a habit. Yet as pitching evolved, defense moved to more aggressive shifts, and statistical analysis drove an increased focus on advanced player roles, the Triple Crown's attainability diminished.

In more recent times, the focus on advanced statistics and sabermetrics has slightly marred how people view those traditional Triple Crown stats. Meanwhile, many analysts have moved on to stats like the aforementioned OPS (On-base Plus Slugging) and WAR (Wins Above Replacement) -both designed for more all-encompassing evaluations of a player's full offensive value. However, while they may not count for a certain Triple Crown prize, winning titles in batting average, home runs, and RBIs simultaneously is still an incredible feat that captures the attention of fans and other players.

With ever-changing baseball, the Triple Crown might become more difficult to achieve. With the rise of defensive shifts, launch angle, and exit velocity profiles becoming much more prevalent numbers in today's game, as well as "three true outcomes" home runs, walks, and strikeouts, it may not be practical for a single player to dominate all three traditional categories.

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