When it comes to all-time baseball records, there are some that were set in a different era and will never be approached—such as the 59 wins Old Hoss Radbourn compiled in 1884. The Colorado Rockies won only 43 games last summer. Ouch.
Cy Young’s 511 career wins and 749 complete games also fall into this untouchable category.
As for complete games, there were only 29 thrown in all of Major League Baseball during the 2025 season. At that pace, it would take 26 more seasons just for every team in baseball
combined to reach 749, so that record is never getting broken. The game has changed. Even before the game changed, both of those numbers were unapproachable.
I’d like to propose that baseball break the record book into pre- and post-integration periods. Radbourn’s 59 wins would remain the pre-integration record. The post-integration (1947 to present) record would belong to Denny McLain and his remarkable 31 wins in 1968. Maybe you don’t like the idea of two separate record books, but remember: Major League Baseball once put a footnote next to Roger Maris’ single-season home run record and kept it there for nearly thirty years.
I think it makes sense to have two record books. Pre-integration players never had to compete against Black, Asian, or Latin American players, let alone play night games or endure the travel demands modern players face. Things were different in the old days, and that’s fine—but you’d have a hard time convincing me that Old Hoss Radbourn was a better pitcher than Satchel Paige, Bob Gibson, Steve Carlton, Greg Maddux, or even a modern slinger like Clayton Kershaw. Baseball nerds know about Radbourn’s 59 wins. Reddit fans know him as one of the first people to flip the bird to a photographer.
Nolan Ryan is the career strikeout leader with an astounding 5,715 strikeouts. The Big Unit sits second with 4,875. Think about that for a moment. As great as Randy Johnson was, he still finished 840 strikeouts behind the Ryan Express. The current active leader is Justin Verlander with 3,553, and his career is winding down. That record is safe for our lifetimes.
I doubt we’ll ever see anyone break Joe DiMaggio’s 56-game hitting streak. Defenses and scouting are too sophisticated today, to say nothing of hitters having to face a parade of flame-throwing bullpen arms. By modern standards, a 25- or 30-game hitting streak is notable. DiMaggio’s 56-game run came in 1941, making it the pre-integration record. The post-integration mark belongs to Pete Rose and his phenomenal 44-game heater in 1978.
Some of the other records surprised me. Take Sam Crawford’s record of 309 career triples. Sounds reasonable, right? Ty Cobb sits in second place with 295. Former Royals greats Willie Wilson (#56, 147) and George Brett (#70, 137) appear on the leaderboard. Who’s the active player with the most career triples? That would be Starling Marte with 55. Bobby Witt Jr. will eventually start showing up on this list—he already has 34. The post-integration record holder for career triples is Roberto Clemente with 166. Seeing Roberto’s name in the record book warms my heart. He was a phenomenal player.
Earl Webb holds the single-season doubles record with 67, set in 1931. This is a record that could be broken. The modern record holders are Freddie Freeman and Todd Helton, both of whom hit 59 doubles—Freeman in 2023 and Helton in 2000. More on Freeman as the story unfolds.
How about career doubles? That record belongs to Tris Speaker with 792. Pete Rose is second with 746. George Brett sits at an impressive #7 with 665. The current active leader, at #34, is Freddie Freeman with 547. With a couple of decent seasons, he should comfortably move into the top 20 all time.
Speaking of Freeman, he’s also the current active hits leader with 2,431. Pete Rose, of course, sits at number one with 4,256.
Freeman’s name keeps popping up on other lists as well.
Total bases? Hammerin’ Henry Aaron may have an all-time unbreakable record with 6,856. Albert Pujols is second with 6,211. George Brett sits at #21 with 5,044, while our newest Hall of Famer, Carlos Beltrán, checks in at #34 with 4,751. Freeman is the active leader with 4,145.
Hack Wilson holds the all-time single-season RBI record with 191, set in 1930. The modern record belongs to Manny Ramírez, who drove in 165 runs in 1999.
Career RBIs follow a similar pattern. Hank Aaron is #1 with 2,297, followed by Pujols with 2,218. George Brett sits at #38 with 1,596, while Beltrán is #41 with 1,587. The active leader, once again, is Freeman with 1,322.
How about extra-base hits? The Hammer has #1 locked down with 1,477, while Barry Bonds sits in the #2 spot with 1,440. George Brett ranks an impressive #19 with 1,119, and Beltrán comes in at #25 with 1,078. Freeman is once again the active leader with 947.
Two more, then I’ll stop.
Runs scored: Rickey Henderson leads all-time with 2,295. Ty Cobb is second with 2,245. In a surprise, former Royal Johnny Damon ranks #32 with 1,668, while George Brett (#51, 1,583) and Beltrán (#53, 1,582) occupy the same neighborhood. Freeman is the active leader at #102 with 1,379.
My point in all of this is that Freddie Freeman has had a hell of a career. If you had any doubt about his Hall of Fame credentials, this should end it. He’s going to Cooperstown without question. And looking back to see George Brett’s name on so many of these lists brings back great memories of just how tremendous a hitter he was.
Another Rickey Henderson record that looks safe for a long, long time is his stolen base mark of 1,406. Lou Brock—one of the nicest baseball players I’ve ever met—sits second with 938. Several former Royals dot the list. Willie Wilson ranks #12 with 668, so his club record looks safe for a long time. Damon appears again at #68 with 408. He had a heck of a career, too—too bad the Royals couldn’t keep him in Kansas City longer. Freddie Patek, somewhat overlooked, checks in at #83 with 385 steals. The active career leader, at #102, is Starling Marte with 361.
What’s the point of all this? I’m not entirely sure, other than a fascination with numbers. Despite the game featuring several all-time greats currently playing (Mike Trout, anyone?), these career records show just how astounding some of the past careers really were. The more I toyed with the idea of pre- and post-integration record books, the more I liked it. It would give fans something new to get excited about. Could someone break the modern RBI or doubles record? Absolutely. And right now, baseball needs all the excitement it can get.
Also, with Freeman turning 36 later this fall, enjoy watching him while you can. It may be a long time before we see another one like him.
