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MLB: The Evolution of the Lead-off Hitter

By s.a. rose

Mar 15, 2016; Salt River Pima-Maricopa, AZ, USA; Oakland Athletics special instructor Rickey Henderson talks with fans prior to the game against the Colorado Rockies at Salt River Fields at Talking Stick. Mandatory Credit: Matt Kartozian-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 15, 2016; Salt River Pima-Maricopa, AZ, USA; Oakland Athletics special instructor Rickey Henderson talks with fans prior to the game against the Colorado Rockies at Salt River Fields at Talking Stick. Mandatory Credit: Matt Kartozian-USA TODAY Sports /
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April 25, 2012; Oakland, CA, USA; Former Oakland Athletics player Rickey Henderson follows the action against the Chicago White Sox during the tenth inning at O.co Coliseum. The Oakland Athletics defeated the Chicago White Sox 5-4 in 14 innings. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports
Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports /

Over the years, the leadoff hitter has changed in the MLB. Let us look at how that spot in the lineup has evolved in the past few decades.

“Today I am the greatest of all-time” – R. Henderson

Rickey was referring to Rickey as he became the all-time leader in stolen bases, but he could have been referring to being the greatest lead-off hitter of all time as well. With an OBP of .401 throughout his twenty-four seasons, Rickey is the ultimate lead-off hitter who holds or held at one time the all-time record for most runs, most walks, most home runs to lead off a game, and stole more bases by a wide margin than anyone in history.

He was elected to the Hall of Fame the first chance the voters had, even if he had a hard time believing he was actually retired. Tim Raines, part of the Hall of Fame class of 2017, had an OBP of .385 which is higher than Pete Rose (.375), Ichiro (.356) and Hall of Fame second baseman Craig Biggio (.363) and held the distinction of being the second best leadoff hitter of his era.

The blend of power and speed enabled both Rickey and Raines to put fear into opposing defences and established them as the players people think of when prototypical lead-off hitters come to mind. How has the lead-off hitter evolved since Rickey and Raines were swiping 90 feet at a time? Let’s look at some of the more memorable lead-off hitters in MLB of the last three decades.

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