Fansided

Top 25 MLB batting seasons of all time

By Joshua Sadlock

American baseball player George Herman Ruth (1895 - 1948) known as 'Babe' Ruth. (Photo by MPI/Getty Images)
American baseball player George Herman Ruth (1895 - 1948) known as 'Babe' Ruth. (Photo by MPI/Getty Images) /
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Chicago Cubs baseball player Rogers Hornsby holding a rosin bag on a baseball bat, standing in a dugout at Wrigley Field, Chicago, Illinois, 1929. (Photo by Chicago History Museum/Getty Images)
Chicago Cubs baseball player Rogers Hornsby holding a rosin bag on a baseball bat, standing in a dugout at Wrigley Field, Chicago, Illinois, 1929. (Photo by Chicago History Museum/Getty Images) /

14. Rogers Hornsby, 1924

  • The Numbers: .424/.507/.696, 227 hits, 222 OPS+, 43 doubles

Of all the hitters to bridge the gap between the dead ball and live ball eras, Rogers Hornsby may have come through the best. The .424 average that Hornsby posted in 1924 is the highest batting average of any player after 1920 and is the fifth-highest in MLB history.

Hornsby had all the ball-striking abilities of a slap hitter in the early 1900s with the power and ability to drive the ball of the big sluggers that dominated the second half of his career. He finished his career with three .400 seasons, but also had seven seasons with a slugging percentage higher than .600.

While Ruth and Gehrig dominated the American League in the 1920s, Hornsby was the best player in the National League. For the entire decade, he batted .382/.460/.637 with 250 home runs and 1,153 RBI. His Cardinals won the World Series in 1926 and went again in 1929. Hornsby does not quite get the same historical love and romanticized treatment of the Ruths, Gehrigs, Williamses, and DiMaggios of the world because he did not play in New York, but he should be. His .358 career batting average is second all time.

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