The tables below list the players who led their league by the widest margin over the second-place finisher in the stated category. They covers the years 1876-1993 and include the American, National, and Players Leagues and the American Association.
|
Category |
Player |
Year |
Amount of Lead |
|
Batting Average |
Nap Lajoie |
1901 |
.086 |
|
On Base Average |
Ted Williams |
1941 |
.101 |
|
Slugging Average |
Babe Ruth |
1921 |
.240 |
|
At Bats |
Harvey Kuenn |
1953 |
55 |
|
Runs |
Ross Barnes |
1876 |
54 |
|
Hits |
Stan Musial |
1946 |
44 |
|
Total Bases |
Rogers Hornsby |
1922 |
136 |
|
Doubles |
Earl Webb |
1931 |
20 |
|
Triples |
Owen Wilson |
1912 |
16 |
|
Home Runs |
Babe Ruth |
1920, 1921 |
35 |
|
RBIs |
Sam Thompson |
1887 |
62 |
|
Walks |
Babe Ruth |
1923 |
72 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Category |
Player |
Year |
Percentage Lead |
|
Batting Average |
Nap Lajoie |
1901 |
25.3 |
|
On Base Average |
Ted Williams |
1954 |
24.0 |
|
Slugging Average |
Babe Ruth |
1921 |
39.6 |
|
At Bats |
Ivy Olson |
1919 |
9.9 |
|
Runs |
Ross Barnes |
1876 |
75.0 |
|
Hits |
Ross Barnes |
1876 |
24.3 |
|
Total Bases |
Rogers Hornsby |
1922 |
43.3 |
|
Doubles |
Honus Wagner |
1904 |
57.1 |
|
Triples |
Dave Orr |
1886 |
82.4 |
|
Home Runs |
Babe Ruth |
1919 |
190.0 |
|
RBIs |
Sam Thompson |
1887 |
59.6 |
|
Walks |
Candy Nelson |
1884 |
94.7 |
Most of the record holders wouldn't surprise many people. Some of them did it while setting the season record total for the category, such as Earl Webb leading the AL in doubles by 20 when he hit 67 in 1931. Others were dominant in the 1876 NL or 1901 AL, when there was a large imbalance in talent. And there are the familiar names like Ruth, Hornsby, and Ted Williams. However, there are two names on these lists that are surprising. Ivy Olson led the NL in at bats by nearly 10 percent in 1919, and nobody really came close to that. He was the leadoff hitter for Brooklyn, which led the league in team at bats by a wide margin, despite not having a particularly good offense. Olson led the league in plate appearances by only 11, but didn't walk much, or have many sacrifice bunts, which allowed him to have a big lead in at bats.
The other surprise is Candy Nelson. He is little remembered today, but was well regarded among the early pro players, and his Major League career lasted until he was 41, which was quite unusual then. In 1884, Candy Nelson helped his team to the first World Series by drawing 74 bases on balls, a full 94.7% ahead of the number 2 walker, Billy Geer. The American Association still required 7 balls for a walk that year; the low number of walks helped Nelson to set the percentage record. Still, he was dominant. Nelson set his career high for walks that year, although the AA would drop the number of balls for a walk to 6 in 1886 and 5 in 1887 (Candy was no longer a regular in 1887.) Nelson led the AA in walks twice and the NA once; he also finished second twice.Contact me at CliffordBlau@yahoo.com