Albert Belle’s name often is mentioned next to two 5s. But this time the numerals were not referring to the record contract he signed with the White Sox.
Chicago Tribune, June 28, 1997
Belle, the $55-million man, went 5 for 5 with a home run and a double Friday night to lead the Sox to their seventh consecutive victory. He drove in two runs and scored four as the Sox beat the Minnesota Twins 10-6 at the Metrodome.
It was on this day in 1997 that Albert Belle collected five hits –including a home run and a double– the first time in his career he accomplished such a feat. While the left fielder’s 1997 offensive output wasn’t perhaps what the Sox envisioned when they acquired him (that would come the next season), he still led the team in extra-base hits that year with 76, good for ninth all-time on the franchise leaderboard.
Today, we’ll be looking at the other names that appear on the extra-base leaderboard. I set the cut-off at 60 extra-base hits in a season, which leaves us with 76 entries: how many can you get? Good luck!
Quiz Parameters
- I’ve allotted 10 minutes for completion attempts.
- For hints, I’ve provided the season, number of extra-base hits, and the position of the player in question.
Useless information to amaze, annoy, confuse, and/or confound your friends and family:
- A White Sox player has led the league in extra-base hits five times: 1916, 1972, 1992, 1994, and 1998.
- One player who made this list led the league in stolen bases, with 35.
- It probably won’t come as a surprise that the single-season record holder in extra-base hits in MLB is Babe Ruth, on the strength of 119 in 1921.
All data from stathead.com
74/76. Went through the checklist of old guys and forgot
Damn Boomer 75/76. He only missed
76/76 with 3:24 left. I spent half a minute trying to spell
76/76 with 4:41 left.
Like a hot knife through butter.
I’ve been in a slump lately. I needed a good week!
67/76. Got everybody 1977 on and missed the usual menagerie from before that. Kinda surprised the 2004 2B was even on the list.