The Major League Baseball (MLB) we know and love today has gone down in history as the oldest major professional sports league in the world – so one can only imagine the amount of history hidden in the never-ending book of MLB records. And that history has been documented since the 19th century.
The National League (NL) was formed in 1876, while the American League (AL) was formed 25 years later in 1901. Unity and cooperation between the two leagues was a result of the National Agreement in 1903, but it wasn’t until 2000 that they merged into the same organization led by the Commissioner.
With nearly 150 years of existence, the MLB has an overwhelming amount of history to show and tell. More than 20,000 players have made a career out of the game of baseball and several hundred – 270 to be exact – have been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame, located in Cooperstown, NY.
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MLB Records That Are Unbreakable
The MLB records book is one of the most sacred record books in all of sports. From historic legends to modern-day icons, baseball has changed so much over the past 150 years and the records we get to witness every single year help tell that story in a vivid manner – it’s what makes baseball, well, baseball.
They often say records are meant to be broken – we’ve all heard that saying before. And while any record CAN be broken, that doesn’t necessarily mean all records WILL be broken. The fact of the matter is some records are simply so impressive that they may never be touched by anyone – no matter how hard we try.
Last year, we saw Aaron Judge write his name in the history books when he hit his 62nd home run of the 2022 season – breaking an AL record and becoming the only baseball player not connected to PED use to hit at least 62 home runs in one season (behind Barry Bonds, Sammy Sosa, and Mark McGwire).
To honor the history written in the MLB records book, let’s take a look at 15 MLB records that may never be broken:
15. Most Hits in a Single Season – 262 hits
Ichiro Suzuki currently holds the record for most hits in a single season, finishing the 2004 season with 262 hits. He had at least 200 hits in each of his first 10 seasons and led the entire MLB in hits in seven of those seasons. He retired after his 19th season in 2019 with 3,089 hits and a .311 career batting average.
While Ichiro made it look easy, getting 200 hits in a single season isn’t easy – the last players to do it were Whit Merrifield (206 hits) and Rafael Devers (201 hits) in the 2019 season. Players come close every year, but almost always fail. And while 200 hits is hard, getting more than 262 is near impossible.
14. Most Career Walks by a Pitcher – 2,795 Walks
Nolan Ryan currently holds the record for most career walks by a pitcher – throwing 2,795 walks across his legendary and iconic 27-year career in the MLB. He led the entire MLB in walks on seven occasions, which isn’t necessarily something to be proud of, but he more than made up for it with a lot of strikeouts.
To put this record into perspective, Ryan has 962 more walks than the next closest pitcher all-time – Steve Carlton with 1,833 strikeouts – and 1,912 more walks than the next closest active pitcher – Justin Verlander at 883 walks. Ryan was in the MLB far too long for anyone to match what he did in his career.
13. Most Consecutive Games Played – 2,632 Games
Cal Ripken Jr. currently holds the record for most consecutive games played – he played in 2,632 consecutive games between May 30, 1982 and September 19, 1998. During that time, he won Rookie of the Year in 1982 and two MVPs – once in 1983 and again in 1991. He retired after the 2001 season.
Only one other player has played in more than 2,000 consecutive games – Lou Gehrig played in 2,130 straight games between 1925 and 1939. What’s even more crazy is that only five other players have had a streak of more than 1,000 games played and it hasn’t been done since 2007 – Miguel Tejada.
12. Most Career Strikeouts by a Pitcher – 5,714 Strikeouts
Nolan Ryan currently holds the record for most career strikeouts by a pitcher – throwing 5,714 strikeouts during his 27-year career in the MLB. He led the MLB in strikeouts on seven occasions, led the AL in strikeouts on eight occasions, and led the NL in strikeouts on two occasions. He was and is the G.O.A.T..
To put his record in perspective, the next closest pitcher on the all-time list is Randy Johnson with 4,875 career strikeouts – 839 away from Ryan – and the next closest active pitcher is Max Scherzer with 3,219 career strikeouts – 2,495 away from Ryan. I don’t expect anyone to ever surpass this unbreakable record.
11. Longest Hitting Streak – 56 Games
Joe DiMaggio currently holds the record for longest hitting streak – recording a hit in 56 straight games during the 1941 season. During that record-breaking stretch, DiMaggio had a .408 batting average with 91 hits, 16 doubles, 4 triples, 15 home runs, 55 runs batted in, and 56 runs scored in 223 at-bats.
To put that record into perspective, only 55 MLB players have ever had a hitting streak of at least 30 games and only six players have a hitting streak of at least 40 games – Willie Keeler has the second longest hitting streak of all-time at 45 games in 1896-97. Hitting streaks like that don’t happen anymore.
10. Back-to-Back No-Hitters – Johnny Vander Meer (1938)
Johnny Vander Meer is currently the only pitcher in MLB history to ever throw back-to-back no-hitters – doing so during the 1938 season. The first no-hitter came against the Boston Bees on June 11, 1938 and he followed that up with a second no-hitter against the Brooklyn Dodgers on June 15, 1938.
To put this record into perspective, only 15 no-hitters have been thrown since 2020 and five of the past seven no-hitters thrown were combined no-hitters (multiple pitchers were used). No-hitters are very rare today and getting two is even more rare – let alone doing so in two consecutive starts. Now that’s tough!
9. Most Walks in a Single Season by a Batter – 232 Walks
Barry Bonds currently holds the record for most walks in a single season by a batter – he was walked a record 232 times during the 2004 season (the same season Ichiro set a record with 262 hits). Bonds led the MLB in walks on eight occasions and has the three highest single-season walk totals all-time.
The next closest player on the all-time list is Babe Ruth, who ranks No. 4 on the all-time list with 170 walks during the 1923 season. Only three other MLB players have recorded at least 150 walks in a single season – Mark McGwire did it once, Eddie Yost did it once, and Ted Williams did it three times.
8. Most Triples in a Single Season – 36 Triples
Owen Wilson (the baseball player, not the actor) currently holds the record for most triples in a single season – he hit 36 triples with the Pittsburgh Pirates during the 1912 season. It’s the only time he led the MLB in triples and the only time in his career that he had more than 14 triples in a single season.
Wilson retired with 114 career triples – while that ranks tied-113th all-time, he’s one of just three players to have at least 30 steals in a single season. The most triples in a single season by an active player is just 15, which was done by Eddie Rosario during the 2015 season – he was 22 short of breaking the record.
7. Most Career Steals – 1,406 Steals
Rickey Henderson currently holds the record for most career steals – stealing 1,406 bases during his iconic 25-year career in the MLB. He led the MLB in steals on six occasions and led the AL in steals on 12 occasions – including three seasons of at least 100 steals. He’s the G.O.A.T. of stealing bases.
To put this record into perspective, Henderson has 468 more steals than the next closest player on the all-time list – Lou Brock with 938 career steals – and 1,066 more steals than the closest active player – Elvis Andrus with 340 career steals. Steal numbers are rising across the league, but not quite enough.
6. Most Steals in a Single Season – 130 Steals
Rickey Henderson currently holds the record for most steals in a single season – stealing a total of 130 bases during the 1982 season (the same season Cal Ripken Jr. started his consecutive games played streak). It was Henderson’s fourth year in the league and he also led the MLB in bases on balls (walks).
Hugh Nicol recorded 138 stolen bases during the 1887 season, which is eight more than Henderson’s record – but it came at a time when baserunners were awarded a steal if they reached an extra base on a hit from another player. Lou Brock came close to Henderson’s record in 1974 with 118 stolen bases.
5. Most Runs Scored in a Single Season – 198 Runs Scored
Billy Hamilton currently holds the record for most runs scored in a single season – scoring 198 runs during the 1894 season. It was the same year he led the MLB in plate appearances, walks, stolen bases, and on-base percentage (OBP). He led the MLB in runs scored three times during his 14-year career.
The two next closest players on the all-time list for runs scored in a single season is Babe Ruth – who scored 177 runs during the 1921 season – and Tom Brown – who scored 177 runs during the 1891 season. Aaron Judge led the MLB in runs scored during the 2022 season with 133 runs scored.
4. Most Runs Batted In (RBIs) in a Single Season – 191 RBIs
Hack Wilson currently holds the record for most runs batted in (RBIs) in a single season – hitting 191 RBIs during the 1930 season. It’s the same season he led the MLB in home runs (56) and strikeouts (84). He also led the entire league in RBIs the year prior (1929), when he hit 159 RBIs in 150 games played.
Several players have come close to this record in the past, but not recently – Miguel Cabrera has the most RBIs in a single season by an active player with 139 RBIs (52 short of the record) in 2012. During the 2022 campaign, Aaron Judge and Pete Alonso both led the MLB with 131 runs batted in each.
3. Most Career Total Bases – 6,856 Total Bases
Hank Aaron currently holds the record for most career total bases – recording 6,856 total bases during his legendary and iconic 23-year career. He led the MLB in total bases on four occasions and had at least 300 total bases in 15 of his 23 seasons – including a career-high 400 total bases during the 1959 season.
The next closest player on the all-time list for total bases in Albert Pujols, who retired at the end of last season with 6,211 total bases – he had an Hall of Fame 22-year career, but was still 645 total bases short of the record. The active leader in total bases is Miguel Cabrera, who currently has 5,266 total bases.
2. Most Career Plate Appearances – 15,890 Plate Appearances
Pete Rose currently holds the record for most career plate appearances – making a total of 15,890 plate appearances over his 24-year career. He led the MLB in plate appearances seven times, including three consecutive years on two occasions. He also had a career-high 771 plate appearances in 1974.
He has 1,898 more plate appearances than the next closest player on the all-time list – Carl Yastrzemski with 13,992 plate appearances – and has 4,388 more plate appearances than Miguel Cabrera with 11,502 plate appearances. Only six players have recorded at least 13,000 career plate appearances.
1. Most Career Hits – 4,256 Hits
Pete Rose currently holds the record for most career hits – recording 4,256 hits during his 24-year career. He led the MLB in hits on seven occasions and had at least 200 hits on 10 occasions – including a career-high 230 hits during the 1973 season. When it comes to making contact, Rose was the G.O.A.T..
Rose has 67 more hits than the next closest player on the all-time list – Ty Cobb with 4,189 career hits – and has 1,155 more hits than the next closest active player – Miguel Cabrera at 3,101 hits. After Cabrera, the next closest active player is Joey Votto with 2,093 hits – putting the record into perspective.
MLB Records That Might Be Broken Soon
While there are a flurry of MLB records that’ll likely never be touched – at least in the foreseeable future – there are also a collection of MLB records that are likely to be broken any season now. For example, the record for most doubles by a batter in a single season is 67 – a record that might not last much longer.
You can also make an argument for the most strikeouts by a batter in a single season. The current record is held by Mark Reynolds at 223 strikeouts in 2009, but batters continue to strike out more and more in the modern era – Joey Gallo had 213 strikeouts in 2021 and Kyle Schwarber had 200 strikeouts in 2022.
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With that said, it seems like records are being broken every other game – some are small records, while others are more impressive. It’s what makes the MLB such an interesting sport to watch and follow along to. You never really know what might happen until it happens – leaving us with our jaws on the floor.
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