Sept. 27, 2001

Rickey Henderson has Ty Cobb's career runs record clearly in view. But how to view the route the self-proclaimed greatest leadoff hitter of all time took to get there?

When Pete Rose passed Cobb as baseball's hit king, Cobb has the advantage of piling up his hits in fewer games. Not so with Rickey, who needed about 66 fewer games and one fewer season than Cobb to score nearly as often. He has two more 100-run seasons than Cobb.

Ty Cobb's career runs per game mark doesn't even rank among the top 15 players of his era (calculated as Total Baseball as 1893-1919). Henderson entered this season ranked second among players since 1977 for runs per game, trailing only Kenny Lofton at .78. Lofton has fallen to .77, still ahead of Rickey.

When other stats are taken into account, however, Cobb's status as one of the greatest offensive catalysts ever remains intact even after he loses another famous record. He retired with 90 major-league records, so he has plenty to spare.

Calculate runs produced, which takes into account runs scored and driven in -- except home runs, since they count as one run scored and one RBI -- and Cobb has a vast advantage. It helped that Cobb also posted seven seasons with 100 RBI, while Henderson has never driven in more than 74 runs in a season.

Runs created, a stat authored by Bill James, uses a formula to determine the offensive contribution of several offensive stats -- hits, walks, total bases, steals and sacrifices included. The formula changes for various years depending on how many statistics are available from that era, but Cobb's advantage over Henderson is uncontested.

The total bases category isn't even close despite Henderson's home-run advantage. Cobb's advantage in total hits is that much greater. Much of Cobb's stats also come from the dead-ball era.

The greatest leadoff hitter ever will still be the greatest run-scorer ever once he gets the record. But Cobb still has some advantages -- plus a few more major-league records for others to break. He retired with 90 records; barring a long Colorado career for the second coming of Ted Williams, Cobb's record for career batting average might never be broken.

30-somethings

Just when Barry Bonds' pursuit of the home-run record conjures images of more juiced baseballs, the stats on the guys behind him suggest otherwise.

The number of 40-homer hitters this year could end up under a dozen for the first time since 1995. The number of 30-homer hitters is at its lowest in three years. All totaled, the population of home-run hitters is set to make a significant decline.

The table at right shows that the beginning of the jump in home-run sluggers might be dated to immediately after the 1994-95 strike. If you remember that the 1994 season ended in August, however, with players such as Matt Williams and Ken Griffey Jr. mounting a challenge to Roger Maris' mark, then the spike dates further back to 1993 -- the arrival of the first expansion in nearly two decades and the debut of Colorado baseball.

The number of 30-homer hitters from 1992 to '93 more than doubled to nearly two dozen, as did the number of 40-homer hitters from two to five. Add another month and a half to the 1994 season, or about 30 percent of a full season, and those numbers could have easily been topped. By those calculations, a player with 21 home runs would have had a chance at 30. Seventeen players that year hit between 21 and 29 home runs.

Hitting Chipper

Chipper Jones has yet to be considered among the greatest third basemen ever, but five more RBI to close the season might change that.

At 95 RBI through Thursday, Chipper stands close to becoming the first player at his position ever to record six straight seasons of 100 RBI. When he drove in 111 last season, he joined former Pirates great Pie Traynor as the only players at the hot corner to drive in 100 for five consecutive years.

Mike Schmidt plated 100 RBI in nine seasons, but never more than twice in a row. However, he played on some bad Phillies clubs during his 18-year career. Arguably, Chipper has had similar challenges being the offensive force on a Braves squad that has been known for the last decade more for pitching than hitting.

Of Chipper, Traynor and Schmidt, Traynor enjoyed the most successful clubs offensively. The Pirates averaged at least 5.25 runs a game in four of his five straight 100-RBI seasons. Chipper's last three Braves teams have averaged just over 5.00 runs per game. Of Schmidt's nine seasons with 100 RBI, only once did the Phillies top 5.00 -- or even 4.75.

Our Slammin' Sammy

Elected officials can only hope to have a four-year run that compares with what Sammy Sosa has accomplished since 1998.

With his 59th home run of the season Thursday night, Sosa has 1588 total over the last four years. If he can start on a hitting tear and pick up 29 more bases, he'll match Chuck Klein's record for most total bases over a four-year span. His 585 RBI in that time mark the highest four-year total since Hank Greenberg drove in 591 runs from 1937-40.

Even more numbers

3 -- Players to hit 50 home runs and steal 20 bases in the same season. Shawn Green needs two home runs and one steal to join the club created by Willie Mays in 1955 and joined later by Brady Anderson and Ken Griffey Jr. Mays is also the only player ever to have a 50-20 and a 30-30 season.

5 -- Consecutive seasons in which Ray Durham has led the White Sox in stolen bases, a streak that might end this season. Magglio Ordonez entered Wednesday with a team-high 22 steals, one more than Durham. Lance Johnson was the last player other than Durham to lead the team in stolen bases, swiping 40 in 1995.

6 -- Winning seasons by the Cubs since 1972, including this season.

11 -- Jewish players in major-league baseball, according to jewishsports.com. Shawn Green is the only one known to have missed a game for Yom Kippur, though Jason Marquis was fasting following his start Wednesday and planned to attend temple.

17 -- Diamondbacks victories through Wednesday when the starting pitcher works less than six innings, against 34 losses. Arizona's record is 68-33 when the starter goes at least six innings.

21 -- Game-winning RBI from Expos shortstop Orlando Cabrera, tops in the National League

44 -- RBI for Jim Edmonds in his last 36 games entering Tuesday. The second-half surge ensured Edmonds' second consecutive 100 RBI season.

107 -- Stolen bases for the Angels this season, the first year they have broken 100 since 1997.