5 most unbreakable records in MLB history
The saying "records are made to be broken" is a very true statement when it comes to sports. However, the most hallowed milestones in MLB history are as close to immortality as it gets. That's mainly because Major League Baseball, specifically hitting, is almost indisputably the most difficult profession to succeed in.
Ted Williams openly stated, "Hitting a baseball is the single most difficult thing to do in sports." The evidence speaks to that truth. Give me another sport where 70% failure across the board equals legendary success, and I'll recant.
Bearing that in mind, here are five of the most unbreakable records in MLB and professional sports history.
#5 Pete Rose's 4,256 career MLB hits
To amass more than 4,000 hits, longevity is only one of the many abilities you must possess. Pete Rose had longevity, consistency, and raw ability in one legendary package over the course of his 24-year career.
Rose's nickname of Charlie Hussle accurately exemplifies the passionate work ethic it took Rose to accomplish such a timeless record. Rose's hits record has stood for more than 25 years with no prospects in sight to challenge that milestone.
#4 Barry Bonds' 73 home runs in a single season
Barry Bonds left the baseball world in awe when he surpassed Mark McGwire's 70-home run mark with 73 in 2001.
Days to #Kollel2016- #71: Barry Bonds breaks single-season HR record with his 71st, extended to 73 HR #CountDown2016 https://t.co/sQn3aVMXNa
"Barry Bonds breaks single-season HR record with his 71st." - NCSY Kollel
The fact that he led the MLB with 177 walks that season accentuates the magnitude of his achievement. Mr. Bonds was lucky to see even a single pitch in the strike zone throughout the course of the season. However, he seemed to crush every pitch that came into it.
To surpass Bonds' 73-mark, a player would have to average more than 12 HRs per month. Aaron Judge has an outside chance at this feat, considering Bonds had 39 at the All-Star break. However, history indicates this record could be nearly unbreakable.
#3 Batting .400 in a single season
The last time a player batted .400 was in 1941 by none other than the legendary Ted Williams (.406). Joe DiMaggio set a record that year as well. It's nothing short of amazing that the two most hallowed achievements in MLB history occurred in the same season.
1941 was a special time for baseball and the country, while the war was going on Ted Williams hit over .400 for the season and Joe DiMaggio hit in 56 consecutive games. 80 years later and nobody has done either one since. https://t.co/jtD2vbsbvg
"Ted Willoams hit over .400 for the season and Joe DiMaggio hit in 56 consecutive games. 80 years alter nobody has done either one since." - Miles Commodore
Yes, hitting .400 is considered more of an achievement than a record. However, the scarcity of this feat has made the prospect of a .400 batting average almost mythical. No hitter has even flirted with .400 since Tony Gwynn, whom Ted Williams mentored, hit .394 in the lockout-shortened 1994 season. Like DiMaggio's hitting streak, the last time someone hit .400 is 81 years ago and counting.
#2 Joe DiMaggio's 56-game hitting streak
5 days until #Yankees Opening Day
Joe DiMaggio had more games in his career with 3 home runs (3) than games with 3 strikeouts (1). https://t.co/dZHUj5SXuw
"Dimaggio had more games in his career with 3 home runs (3) than games with 3 strikeouts (1) - New York Yankees Stats
The above caption ought to tell you enough about what it takes to record a hit in 56-straight MLB games. Numerous factors make DiMaggio's 56-game hitting streak the second-most impossible record to break in MLB history.
For starters,many things must fall into place to hit safely in 56 consecutive games. It only takes one too many walks or too few at-bats in a game to end a hitting streak. Getting a hit in every game for one-third of the season is nearly inconceivable in the modern MLB era. That's exactly what Yankees legend Joe DiMaggio did in 1941.
#1 Hack Wilson's 191 RBIs in a single season
The historic Wrigley Field harbors lasting memories of baseball's most unbreakable marker. Hack Wilson's 191 RBIs with the Chicago Cubs in 1930 is a record that may never be broken.
Wilson gained this timeless achievement by averaging well over an RBI per game in an era where teams played 7 fewer games per season. That year, his bloated RBIs were a product of his 56 home runs, many coming with runners on base.
Records reveal the second and third hitters before his spot in the order possessed a .430 and .428 OBP that season, respectively. Suffice it to say, fans grew accustomed to Wilson driving them in by driving home an unfathomable 191 RBIs. To put his feat in perspective, the closest any player in the modern era has come is Manny Ramirezn with 165 in 1999.
Hack Wilson's single-season RBI mark continues to stand as the tallest and safest record-setting feat in MLB history.