Yesterday, as I was researching names for today's Sporcle, Jim happened to post an article which aligned with a player I was planning to note. Yes, that player is Albert Belle.
What's noteworthy about Albert Belle is that he's the most recent White Sox player to collect 200 hits in a season, and that occurred all the way back in 1998. In fact, he's one of only 10 player seasons in franchise history to accomplish that feat.
Ten names does not a good Sporcle make, though, so I took a look at how many players had 190+ hits. That gave me thirty names...better, but not enough. Thus, 180 hits will be today's cutoff. That leaves us with 66 entries...how many can you name? Good luck!
Quiz Parameters
- I've allotted 10 minutes for completion attempts.
- For hints I've provided the season, number of hits, and primary defensive position.
Useless information to amaze, annoy, confuse, and/or confound your friends and family:
- The franchise with the most players to have hit 200+ hits in a season is the Detroit Tigers, with 42 player seasons (Miguel Cabrera being the most recent, in 2012).
- The franchise with the fewest players would be the Tampa Bay Rays, with exactly...0 players; Aubrey Huff came *this* close in 2003, with 198. (The Mets have just two, surprisingly, Jose Reyes in 2008 and Lance Johnson in 1996)
- 2018 saw no player in MLB achieve the 200 hit mark (first time since 2013). Whit Merrifield was the MLB leader last season, with 192 knocks. (In case you're wondering, Yolmer Sanchez led the Sox with 145)
All data from baseballreference.com
