The following quote is attributed to Roger Maris:
“I never wanted all this hoopla. All I wanted is to be a good ballplayer and hit 25 or 30 homers, drive in 100 runs, hit .280 and help my club win pennants. I just wanted to be one of the guys, an average player having a good season.”
Roger Maris chased the HR record in 1961
Of course, Maris is referring to all the attention he received in 1961 when he was chasing the home run record of 60 homers hit in a season by Babe Ruth. Maris eventually hit 61 and broke the record. Imagine the scrutiny Maris would have been under if this happened in today’s social media crazed world!
That comment got me thinking about how many players in MLB history might have been “average players having a good season”… according to Maris’ definition. And… how many Brewers players accomplished that?
To answer that, here’s a look at the players who had the most seasons in the Modern Era of baseball (from 1900) with 25 or more HRs, 100+ RBIs, and a .280 or better batting average.
MLBers with most 25/100/.280 seasons
13-Alex Rodriguez, Babe Ruth
12-Miguel Cabrera, Manny Ramirez, Barry Bonds, Jimmie Foxx, Lou Gehrig
11-Albert Pujols
10-Vladimir Guerrero, Henry Aaron, Willie Mays
A total of 362 different MLBers reached these stats in at least one season. Maris himself did it only once; in 1960 he had 39 home runs, 112 RBIs, and batted .283. Even in the 1961 season when he broke the HR record, he fell short. He hit 61 HRs, drove in 141 runs, but batted .269 that season.
The Milwaukee Brewers have had 12 different players reach these stats. Leading the way is Ryan Braun who did it five times. Here are the Brewers who had 25 HRs/100 RBI and a batting average of .280 in a season with the Crew:
Milwaukee Brewers players with most 25/100/.280 seasons
5-Ryan Braun
3-Prince Fielder, Cecil Cooper
1-Christian Yelich, Aramis Ramirez, Corey Hart, John Jaha, Robin Yount, Ben Oglivie, Sixto Lezcano, Larry Hisle, George Scott
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