List of Major League Baseball career triples leaders

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

In baseball, a triple is a hit in which the batter advances to third base in one play, with neither the benefit of a fielding error nor another runner being put out on a fielder's choice.[1] Triples were more common in baseball's dead-ball era, when teams relied more on stolen bases and hit and run plays than on the home run.[2] More distant fences in old ballparks, such as Pittsburgh's Forbes Field and Detroit's Tiger Stadium, also produced fewer home runs and more triples on well-hit balls.[3] As a result, most of the players on this list have been retired for decades.[4] Only two players in the top 50 all-time career triples leaders played after WWII (Stan Musial and Roberto Clemente), and there are no players in the top 50 who played after 1972.

A baseball card of a player in a white and black uniform
Sam Crawford retired in 1917 with 309 triples, the major league record.

In 2006, the Hardball Times lamented the decline of the 100-triple player, although three have joined the list since that time.[5] Fangraphs, a statistical website, likewise noted the lack of modern 100-triple hitters in 2013.[6] Of the 162 Major League Baseball players who have hit 100 or more triples, 69 are members of Baseball's Hall of Fame.[7]

Hall of Famer Sam Crawford of the Detroit Tigers holds the Major League Baseball triples record, with 309.[8][9] Second to him is his Tigers teammate,[10] Ty Cobb, with 295, the American League record.[11] Honus Wagner is third with 252, the National League record.[12] Jake Beckley (243), Roger Connor (233), Tris Speaker (222), Fred Clarke (220), and Dan Brouthers (205) are the only other players to have hit at least 200 triples. No player whose entire career was in the post-1920 live-ball era has 200 triples; among those players, Paul Waner is the leader with 191. Only triples hit during the regular season are included in the totals (George Brett, Rafael Furcal, and Derek Jeter are tied for the record in post-season triples, with five).[13]

Jim O'Rourke was the first player to reach the 100-triple mark, doing so with the New York Giants in 1886.[14] With Kenny Lofton's retirement after the 2007 season, 2008 was the first season since 1885 in which no active player had more than 100 triples.[14] Carl Crawford hit his 100th triple in 2010, becoming the only active player on the list at that time. José Reyes became the latest player to reach the 100 triple plateau, doing so on April 8, 2012.

When Reyes retired after the 2018 season, Major League Baseball once again had no active player with 100 career triples. The active career triples leaders are Starling Marte and Mike Trout, who each have 55 career triples as of April 12, 2026. They are each tied for 608th on the all-time list.[9]


Key

More information Triples, First MLB season ...
Triples Total career triples
First MLB
season
First year in which the player was active
Last MLB
season
Last year in which the player was active
* Denotes elected to National Baseball Hall of Fame.
Bold Denotes active player.[a]
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Leaders

Starling Marte is tied for active leader in triples with 55.
Mike Trout is the other active leader in triples, also with 55.
A baseball player slides into third base as an opposing player attempts to tag him
Ty Cobb, sliding into third base, ranks second all-time in career triples with 295.
A baseball player looking directly at the camera
Honus Wagner holds the National League record for triples with 252 and is third overall in major league history.
A baseball player in a "Pittsburg" jersey
Jake Beckley hit 244 triples between 1888 and 1906.
A sepia-toned baseball card of a 19th-century ballplayer holding a bat
Roger Connor hit 233 triples between 1880 and 1897.
A batter in a pin-striped uniform after swinging at a ball
Tris Speaker hit 222 triples in his 21-year career.
A ballplayer looking off into the middle distance
Fred Clarke hit 220 triples between 1894 and 1915.
A ballplayer with a jacket on
John "Chief" Wilson hit a record 36 triples in the 1912 season, retiring with 114 total.
Baseball player in a black and white jersey, holding his cap
Tim Raines is the most recent player with 100 or more career triples to have been elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame (elected in 2017).
  • Stats updated through March 25, 2026.
More information Rank, Player ...
Players with 100 or more triples
Rank Player Triples First MLB
season[15]
Last MLB
season[15]
Ref
1Sam Crawford*309[b]18991917[16]
2Ty Cobb*29519051928[17]
3Honus Wagner*25218971917[18]
4Jake Beckley*24418881907[19]
5Roger Connor*23318801897[20]
6Tris Speaker*22219071928[21]
7Fred Clarke*22018941915[22]
8Dan Brouthers*20518791904[23]
9Joe Kelley*19418911908[24]
10Paul Waner*19119261945[25]
11Bid McPhee*18818821899[26]
12Eddie Collins*18719061930[27]
13Ed Delahanty*18518881903[28]
14Sam Rice*18418901915[29]
15Jesse Burkett*18218901905[30]
Ed Konetchy18219071921[31]
Edd Roush*18219131931[32]
18Buck Ewing*17818801897[33]
19Rabbit Maranville*17719121935[34]
Stan Musial*17719411963[35]
21Harry Stovey17418801893[36]
22Goose Goslin*17319211938[37]
23Tommy Leach17218981918[38]
Zack Wheat*17219091927[39]
25Rogers Hornsby*16919151937[40]
26Joe Jackson16819081920[41]
27Roberto Clemente*16619551972[42]
Sherry Magee16619041919[43]
29Jake Daubert16519101924[44]
30Elmer Flick*16418981910[45]
George Sisler*16419151930[46]
Pie Traynor*16419201937[47]
33Bill Dahlen16318911911[48]
George Davis*16318901909[49]
Lou Gehrig*16319231939[50]
Nap Lajoie*16318961916[51]
37Mike Tiernan16218871899[52]
38George Van Haltren16118871903[53]
39Harry Hooper*16019091925[54]
Heinie Manush*16019231939[55]
Sam Thompson*16018851906[56]
42Max Carey*15919101929[57]
Joe Judge15919151934[58]
44Ed McKean15818871899[59]
45Kiki Cuyler*15719211938[60]
Jimmy Ryan15718851903[61]
47Tommy Corcoran15518901907[62]
48Earle Combs*15419241935[63]
49Jim Bottomley*15119221937[64]
Harry Heilmann*15119141932[65]
Jim O'Rourke*15118721904[66]
52Kip Selbach14918941906[67]
Al Simmons*14919241944[68]
54Wally Pipp14819131928[69]
Enos Slaughter*14819381959[70]
56Bobby Veach14719121925[71]
Willie Wilson14719761994[72]
58Charlie Gehringer*14619241942[73]
59Harry Davis14518951917[74]
Willie Keeler*14518921910[75]
61Bobby Wallace*14318941918[76]
62Cap Anson*14218711897[77]
63Lou Brock*14119611979[78]
64Willie Mays*14019511973[79]
65John Reilly13918801891[80]
Jimmy Williams139[c]18991909[82]
67Tom Brown13818821898[83]
Willie Davis13819601979[84]
Frankie Frisch*13819191937[85]
70George Brett*13719731993[86]
71Babe Ruth*13619141935[87]
Jimmy Sheckard13618971913[88]
Elmer Smith13618861901[89]
74Lave Cross13518871907[90]
Pete Rose13519631986[91]
76Shano Collins13319101925[92]
77George Wood13218801892[93]
78Brett Butler13119811997[94]
Joe DiMaggio*13119361951[95]
Buck Freeman13118911907[96]
José Reyes13120032018[97]
82Buddy Myer13019251941[98]
83Oyster Burns12918841895[99]
Larry Gardner12919081924[100]
85Earl Averill*12819291941[101]
Arky Vaughan*12819321948[102]
87Vada Pinson12719581975[103]
88Hardy Richardson12618791892[104]
Robin Yount*12619741993[105]
90Jimmie Foxx*12519251945[106]
91John Anderson12418941908[107]
Hal Chase12419051919[108]
Steve Finley12419892007[109]
Frank Schulte12419041918[110]
95Carl Crawford12320022016[111]
Larry Doyle12319071920[112]
Duke Farrell12318881905[113]
98Dummy Hoy12118881902[114]
99Mickey Vernon12019391960[115]
100Hugh Duffy*11918881906[116]
Fred Pfeffer11918821897[117]
102Joe Cronin*11819261945[118]
Chick Stahl11818971906[119]
Lloyd Waner*11819271945[120]
105Lance Johnson11719872000[121]
Del Pratt11719121924[122]
Curt Walker11719191930[123]
108Jimmy Collins*11618951908[124]
Kenny Lofton11619912007[125]
110Bill Kuehne11518831892[126]
Tony Lazzeri*11519261939[127]
Jimmy Rollins11520002016[128]
113Henry Larkin11418841893[129]
Paul Molitor*11419781998[130]
Gus Suhr11419301940[131]
Joe Tinker*11419021916[132]
John Wilson11419081916[133]
118Jack Fournier11319121927[134]
Joe Medwick*11319321948[135]
Tim Raines*11319792002[136]
121Rod Carew*11219671985[137]
Nellie Fox*11219471965[138]
Bill Terry*11219231936[139]
Sam Wise11218811893[140]
125Joe Kuhel11119301947[141]
126Babe Herman11019261945[142]
Wally Moses11019351951[143]
128Richie Ashburn*10919481962[144]
Lu Blue10919211933[145]
Doc Cramer10919291948[146]
Johnny Damon10919952012[147]
Jimmy Wolf10918821892[148]
133George Burns10819111925[149]
Mike Griffin10818871898[150]
Charlie Grimm10819161936[151]
Sam Mertes10818961906[152]
Dots Miller10819091921[153]
Dave Orr10818831890[154]
139Ben Chapman10719301946[155]
Carl Reynolds10719271939[156]
141Bill Joyce10618901898[157]
Les Mann10619131928[158]
Garry Templeton10619761991[159]
144Clyde Milan10519071922[160]
John Stone10519281938[161]
143Heinie Zimmerman10519071919[162]
147Mike Mitchell10419071914[163]
148Home Run Baker*10319081922[164]
Tom Daly10318871903[165]
150Luke Appling*10219301950[166]
Bill Bruton10219531964[167]
Duff Cooley10218931905[168]
Jeff Heath10219361949[169]
Charley Jones10218751888[170]
King Kelly*10218781893[171]
Danny Murphy10218761900[172]
Juan Samuel10219831998[173]
158Stuffy McInnis10119091927[174]
Sam West10119271942[175]
160Cupid Childs10018881901[176]
Dan McGann10018861908[177]
Hy Myers10019091925[178]
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See also

Notes

  1. A player is considered inactive if he has announced his retirement or not played for a full season.
  2. Some sources, including the Hall of Fame, give Crawford's career total as 312. See "Sam Crawford". The Hall of Famers. National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum, Inc. Archived from the original on 2011-07-17. Retrieved 2011-04-02.
  3. Some older sources give Williams's career total as 138. According to SABR, "After Jimmy was collared in the season opener ..., Bill 'Wee Willie' Dammann gave up the overlooked hit when Cincy outfielder Elmer Smith, a Pittsburgh native and a former Pirate for several years, 'made a very bad mess of handling Jimmy's fly to left.' No hometown news outlet charged Elmer with an error for his misjudged 'awkward path' yet some box scores neglected to give Williams a triple, but 'the ball fell safe, Williams taking three bases.'"[81]

References

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