Hitting streak

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Joe DiMaggio's 56-game hitting streak in 1941 is the longest in Major League Baseball history.

In baseball, a hitting streak is the number of consecutive official games in which a player appears and gets at least one base hit. According to the Official Baseball Rules, such a streak is not necessarily ended when a player has at least 1 plate appearance and no hits. A streak shall not be terminated if all official plate appearances result in a base on balls, hit by pitch, defensive interference or a sacrifice bunt. The streak shall terminate if the player has a sacrifice fly and no hit.[1]

Joe DiMaggio holds the Major League Baseball record with a streak of 56 consecutive games in 1941 which began on May 15 and ended July 17. DiMaggio hit .408 during his streak (91-for-223), with 15 home runs and 55 runs batted in.[2]

Ketel Marte of the Arizona Diamondbacks holds the Major League Baseball postseason record with a streak of 20 consecutive games, with the streak beginning in his first playoff game appearance.[3] The streak began in 2017 on October 14 and was broken up in Game 5 of the 2023 World Series on November 1st, striking out as the final batter for Arizona as the Texas Rangers won the series. Marte hit .352 during his streak (31-for-88), with 3 home runs and 13 runs batted in.[4]

Major League Baseball records[edit]

There have been 55 occurrences in Major League Baseball where a player had a hitting streak of at least 30 games.[5] Multiple streaks in the same season have occurred in 1922 (George Sisler and Rogers Hornsby), 1987 (Paul Molitor and Benito Santiago), 1997 (Nomar Garciaparra and Sandy Alomar Jr.), 1999 (Vladimir Guerrero and Luis Gonzalez), 2006 (Chase Utley and Willy Taveras), and 2011 (Andre Ethier and Dan Uggla). In addition, 1924 included one whole streak (Sam Rice) and the beginning of another (George Sisler). A similar event occurred in 2006 with two whole streaks (Utley and Taveras) and the end of another (Jimmy Rollins).

Rank Player Team Games Year(s)
01 Joe DiMaggio New York Yankees 56 1941
02 Willie Keeler Baltimore Orioles 45 (44) 1896–97
03 Pete Rose Cincinnati Reds 44 1978
04 Bill Dahlen Chicago Colts 42 1894
05 George Sisler St. Louis Browns 41 1922
06 Ty Cobb Detroit Tigers 40 1911
07 Paul Molitor Milwaukee Brewers 39 1987
08 Jimmy Rollins Philadelphia Phillies 38 (36) 2005–06
09 Tommy Holmes Boston Braves 37 1945
10 Gene DeMontreville Washington Senators 36 1896–97
11 Fred Clarke Louisville Colonels 35 1895
Ty Cobb Detroit Tigers 35 1917
George Sisler St. Louis Browns 35 (34) 1924–25
Luis Castillo Florida Marlins 35 2002
Chase Utley Philadelphia Phillies 35 2006
16 George McQuinn St. Louis Browns 34 1938
Dom DiMaggio Boston Red Sox 34 1949
Benito Santiago San Diego Padres 34 1987
19 George Davis New York Giants 33 1893
Hal Chase New York Highlanders 33 1907
Rogers Hornsby St. Louis Cardinals 33 1922
Heinie Manush Washington Senators 33 1933
Dan Uggla Atlanta Braves 33 2011
24 Harry Heilmann Detroit Tigers 32 1922–23
Hal Morris Cincinnati Reds 32 1996–97
26 Jimmy Wolf Louisville Colonels 31 1885–86
Ed Delahanty Philadelphia Phillies 31 1899
Napoleon Lajoie Cleveland Naps 31 1906
Sam Rice Washington Senators 31 1924
Vada Pinson Cincinnati Reds 31 1965–66
Willie Davis Los Angeles Dodgers 31 1969
Rico Carty Atlanta Braves 31 1970
Ron LeFlore Detroit Tigers 31 (30) 1975–76
Ken Landreaux Minnesota Twins 31 1980
Vladimir Guerrero Montreal Expos 31 1999
Whit Merrifield Kansas City Royals 31 (11) 2018–19
36 Cal McVey Chicago White Stockings 30 1876
Dusty Miller Cincinnati Reds 30 1895–96
Elmer Smith Cincinnati Reds 30 1898
Tris Speaker Boston Red Sox 30 1912
Charlie Grimm Pittsburgh Pirates 30 1922–23
Lance Richbourg Boston Braves 30 1927–28
Sam Rice Washington Senators 30 1929–30
Goose Goslin Detroit Tigers 30 1934
Stan Musial St. Louis Cardinals 30 1950
George Brett Kansas City Royals 30 1980
Jerome Walton Chicago Cubs 30 1989
Sandy Alomar Jr. Cleveland Indians 30 1997
Nomar Garciaparra Boston Red Sox 30 1997
Eric Davis Baltimore Orioles 30 1998
Luis Gonzalez Arizona Diamondbacks 30 1999
Albert Pujols St. Louis Cardinals 30 2003
Willy Taveras Houston Astros 30 2006
Moisés Alou New York Mets 30 2007
Ryan Zimmerman Washington Nationals 30 2009
Andre Ethier Los Angeles Dodgers 30 2011
Freddie Freeman Atlanta Braves 30 2016

Keeler's streak started in his final game of the 1896 season, and continued through the first 44 games of the 1897 season. Rollins ended the 2005 season with a 36-game streak and extended it through the first two games of the 2006 season. Sisler had a hit in the last game of 1924 and the first 34 games of 1925. Major League Baseball recognizes two hitting streak records: Longest hitting streak in one season, and longest hitting streak over multiple seasons (e.g. Rollins 2005–2006).[6] Keeler's, Sisler's, and Rollins' streaks are listed as 44, 34, and 36 games when discussing single-season streaks, and 45, 35, and 38 games when discussing multiple-season streaks.

This list omits Denny Lyons of the 1887 American Association Philadelphia Athletics, who had a 52-game hitting streak.[7] In 1887, the major leagues adopted a new rule which counted walks as hits, a rule which was dropped after that season. Lyons hit in 52 consecutive games that season, but his streak included two games (#22 and #44) in which his only "hits" were walks. In 1968, MLB ruled that walks in 1887 would not be counted as hits, so Lyons' streak was no longer recognized, though it still appears on some lists. In 2000 Major League Baseball reversed its 1968 decision, ruling that the statistics which were recognized in each year's official records should stand, even in cases where they were later proven incorrect. Paradoxically, the ruling affects only hit totals for the year; the batting champion for the year is not recognized as the all-time leader despite having the highest single-season average under the ruling, and Lyons' hitting streak is not recognized.

Ty Cobb, Sam Rice, and George Sisler are the only players with multiple streaks of 30 games or longer.

There have been 129 single-season streaks of 25 games or more. The lowest batting average ever recorded during a hitting streak of 25 games or more was .304 by Bruce Campbell in 1938. The highest was .486 during Chuck Klein's streak in 1930. Joe DiMaggio hit .408 during his record-holding 56-game streak.[8] In probability theory, every baseball game is a Bernoulli trial in which a hitter either does or does not get a hit. DiMaggio's streak of 56 consecutive games with hits awaits an equal streak: "The probability is .0003 that a .350 hitter will have a hitting streak of at least 56 games in a season. If there are about four such seasons per year in the future, such a streak would be expected, assuming the Bernoulli trials model, every 1/(.0003 x 4) = 833 years."[9]

Postseason[edit]

Key[edit]

* Active Hitting Streak
Active Player during 2023 MLB Season
Member of Baseball Hall of Fame

Source:[10]

Rank Player Team(s) Games Year(s)
01 Ketel Marte Arizona Diamondbacks 20 2017–2023
02 Hank Bauer New York Yankees 17 1956–1958
Derek Jeter New York Yankees 2003–2004
Manny Ramirez Boston Red Sox 2003–2004
05 Pat Borders Toronto Blue Jays 16 1991–1993
Michael Brantley Houston Astros 2020–2021
07 Alcides Escobar Kansas City Royals 15 2015
Marquis Grissom Atlanta Braves 1995–1996
Rickey Henderson Oakland Athletics 1989–1990

Major League Baseball records by franchise[edit]

Only currently extant franchises are included on this list. Where a player had a significant streak while the team was in other than its current city, the records in these other cities are displayed. As above, for a multi-year streak, the single-season streak is shown in parentheses.[11]

Team Player Games Year(s)
Arizona Diamondbacks Luis Gonzalez 30 1999
Atlanta Braves Tommy Holmes (Boston Braves) 37 1945
Dan Uggla (Atlanta Braves) 33 2011
Hank Aaron (Milwaukee Braves) 25 1956
Baltimore Orioles George Sisler (St. Louis Browns) 41 1922
Eric Davis (Baltimore Orioles) 30 1998
Boston Red Sox Dom DiMaggio 34 1949
Chicago Cubs Bill Dahlen (Chicago Colts) 42 1894
Chicago White Sox Carlos Lee 28 2004
Cincinnati Reds Pete Rose 44 1978
Cleveland Guardians Napoleon Lajoie (Cleveland Naps) 31 1906
Sandy Alomar Jr. (Cleveland Indians) 30 1997
Colorado Rockies Nolan Arenado 28 2014
Detroit Tigers Ty Cobb 40 1911
Houston Astros Willy Taveras 30 2006
Kansas City Royals Whit Merrifield 31 2018–19
Los Angeles Angels Garret Anderson 28 1998
Los Angeles Dodgers Willie Davis (Los Angeles Dodgers) 31 1969
Zack Wheat (Brooklyn Dodgers) 29 1916
Miami Marlins Luis Castillo (Florida Marlins) 35 2002
Milwaukee Brewers Paul Molitor (Milwaukee Brewers) 39 1987
Tommy Davis (Seattle Pilots) 18 1969
Minnesota Twins Heinie Manush (Washington Senators) 33 1933
Ken Landreaux (Minnesota Twins) 31 1980
New York Mets Moisés Alou 30 2007
New York Yankees Joe DiMaggio 56 1941
Oakland Athletics Bill Lamar (Philadelphia Athletics) 29 1925
Jason Giambi (Oakland Athletics) 25 1997
Héctor López (Kansas City Athletics) 22 1957
Vic Power (Kansas City Athletics) 22 1958
Philadelphia Phillies Jimmy Rollins 38 (36) 2005–06
Pittsburgh Pirates Jimmy Williams 27 1899
San Diego Padres Benito Santiago 34 1987
San Francisco Giants George Davis (New York Giants) 33 1893
Jack Clark (San Francisco Giants) 26 1978
Seattle Mariners Ichiro Suzuki 27 2009
St. Louis Cardinals Rogers Hornsby 33 1922
Tampa Bay Rays Jason Bartlett 19 2009
Texas Rangers Gabe Kapler (Texas Rangers) 28 2000
Ken McMullen (Washington Senators) 19 1967
Toronto Blue Jays Shawn Green 28 1999
Washington Nationals Vladimir Guerrero (Montréal Expos) 31 1999
Ryan Zimmerman (Washington Nationals) 30 2009

Minor League Baseball records[edit]

The longest streaks in the history of Minor League Baseball and other professional baseball leagues:[12]

Rank Player League Games Year(s)
1 Joe Wilhoit Western League 69 1919
2 Joe DiMaggio Pacific Coast League 61 1933
3 Román Mejías Big State League 55 1954
4 Otto Pahlman Illinois–Indiana–Iowa League 50 1922
Francisco Mejia Carolina League 50 2016
6 Jack Ness Pacific Coast League 49 1915
Harry Chozen Southern League 49 1945
8 Johnny Bates Southern League 46 1925
9 James McOwen California League 45 2009
10 Brandon Watson International League 43 2007
Doc Marshall American Association 43 1935
Orlando Moreno Longhorn League 43 1947
Howie Bedell American Association 43 1961
14 Herbert Chapman Southeastern League 42 1950
Jack Lelivelt International League 42 1912
16 Jim Ogelsby Pacific Coast League 41 1933
Randy César Texas League 41 2018
18 Jason James Frontier League 40 2009
Frosty Kennedy West Texas–New Mexico League 40 1953
20 Jose Siri Midwest League 39 2017
21 Mitch Hilligoss South Atlantic League 38 2007
Hubert Mason Eastern League 38 1925
Paul Owens PONY League 38 1951
24 Maikel Jova North American League 37 2012
Johnny Rizzo American Association 37 1937
Joey Cora Pacific Coast League 37 1989
Bobby Treviño Texas League 37 1969
Harold Garcia Florida State League 37 2010
29 Bill Sweeney International League 36 1935
Joe Altobelli Florida State League 36 1951
31 Brent Gates California League 35 1992
Scott Seabol South Atlantic League 35 1999
Kevin Holt Frontier League 35 1996–97
Ildemaro Vargas Pacific Coast League 35 2018
35 Greg Tubbs Southern League 33 1987
Mat Gamel Florida State League 33 2007
37 Chris Valaika Pioneer League 32 2006
Robert Fick Midwest League 32 1997
Lance Downing Arizona League 32 1997
Jim Reboulet Eastern League 32 1986
41 Kevin Hooper Pacific Coast League 31 2002
Casey Blake Florida State League 31 1998
Jeremy Carr Texas League 31 1997
Pedro Guerrero Pacific Coast League 31 1979
45 Desi Wilson Golden Baseball League 30 2005
Mike Galloway Frontier League 30 2005
Ricardo Nanita Pioneer League 30 2003
Michael Robertson Frontier League 30 2001
Doug Brady American Association 30 1995
Jose Tolentino Pacific Coast League 30 1990

DiMaggio set the Minor League record as a member of the San Francisco Seals. Unrecognized by Minor League Baseball is the 69 game hitting streak by Joe Wilhoit in 1919. Wilhoit was in the independent Western League at the time and his record is considered the all-time Professional Baseball record.[13]

College Baseball records[edit]

Player Team Classification Games Year(s)
Damian Costantino Salve Regina NCAA Division III 60 2001–03
Robin Ventura Oklahoma State NCAA Division I 58 1987
Kevin Pillar[14] Cal State Dominguez Hills NCAA Division II 54 2010
Tommy Stewart Southern Arkansas NAIA 54 1995

College Softball records[edit]

Player Team Classification Games Year(s)
Rebeca Laudino Florida Southwestern State College NJCAA 48 2019
Sara Graziano Coastal Carolina NCAA Division I 43 1993–94
Heather Bortz Moravian NCAA Division II 44 2003–04
Jocelyn Alo Oklahoma Sooners NCAA Division I 40 2020–2021
Kerstein McVicker Hampton NCAA Division III 35 1991
Robin Martz Lewis NCAA Division II 35 2004

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Official Rules: 10.00 The Official Scorer, Rule 10.23(b)" (PDF). Major League Baseball. Retrieved April 15, 2020.
  2. ^ "Joe DiMaggio Hitting Streak by Baseball Almanac". Baseball Almanac. Retrieved August 7, 2011.
  3. ^ "D-backs' Ketel Marte hits in record 18th straight postseason game". 29 October 2023.
  4. ^ "Ketel Marte Postseason Batting Game Log".
  5. ^ "Consecutive Games Hitting Streaks: 30+ Game Hitting Streaks in Baseball". www.baseball-almanac.com.
  6. ^ "Phillies' Rollins extends streak to 36 games". ESPN.com. 2 October 2005.
  7. ^ "Hitting Streaks, 30 Games or More". Archived from the original on April 9, 2006. Retrieved August 7, 2011.
  8. ^ Neyer, Rob (6 August 2011). "For the Braves' Uggla, Luck Is Not a Statistic". The New York Times – via NYTimes.com.
  9. ^ C.M. Grinstead, W.P. Peterson & J. Laurie Snell (2011) Probability Tales, page 37, American Mathematical Society ISBN 978-0-8218-5261-3
  10. ^ "Postseason Hitting Streaks". Associated Press News. 29 October 2023.
  11. ^ http://baseballevolution.com/richard/hitting_streaks.xls Richard Van Zandt, BaseballEvolution.com, http://baseballevolution.com/richard/hitstreaks.html . The article and research are dated June 2009; retrieved March 8, 2012.
  12. ^ Peng, Michael (2016-08-14). "Mejia's run ends while Bradley's rolls on". MiLB.com. Retrieved 2022-05-08.
  13. ^ Bob Rives (January 2000). "Joe Wilhoit and Ken Guettler: Minor league hitting record-setters" (PDF). The Baseball Research Journal. pp. 121–125.
  14. ^ "Kevin Pillar Makes NCAA Division II History With 50 Game Hit Streak as Toros Sweep Doubleheader – Cal State Dominguez Hills". gotoros.com. May 2010.

External links[edit]