Designated Hitter—Hal McRae
(with Royals from 1973-1987)
27.6 fWAR, 27.7 bWAR
.293/.356/.458, 1837 G, 7362 PA, 125 OPS+ (with Royals)
One of the things Hal McRae was most known for during his career was his takeout slides at second base. It’s actually a mistake to even refer to what McRae did as a slide. It was more of a barrel roll. He launched himself into the middle infielder attempting to make the play and often knocked that player halfway into left field. This play from the 1977 ALCS against the Yankees is a good example.
That wasn’t a one-time thing, either. McRae was the king of blowup slides. Any middle infielder looking to turn a double-play with McRae on first was taking his life into his hands. This was perfectly legal at the time, but Major League Baseball has recently changed the rules to prevent this aggressive takeout slide.
Beyond the takeout slides, McRae was a consistently good hitter at the Designated Hitter position for the Royals for many years. He started his career with the Cincinnati Reds but spent 15 years with the Royals from 1973 to 1987. He made the AL all-star team three times, was named Designated Hitter of the Year three times, and hit over .300 six times. He was at his best in 1976 and 1977. He led the league in on-base percentage and finished fourth in AL MVP voting in 1976, then led the league with 54 doubles in 1977.
The end of the 1976 season was an interesting one for McRae. He was leading the AL in hitting with one game left in the season. The Royals were facing the Twins and all four of the leading hitters in the league were playing in this game: Hal McRae, George Brett, Rod Carew, and Lyman Bostock. Brett went 2-for-4 in the game and finished at .333, one point ahead of McRae and two points ahead of Carew.
That 1976 season was the last time McRae would hit .300 until he had a big bounce back year in 1982. At the age of 36, McRae hit .308/.369/.542 with 46 doubles and a league-leading 133 RBI. He made the all-star team for the final time that year and finished fourth in AL MVP voting.
McRae followed up the 1982 season with another good year, but started to slow down when he hit the age of 38. Over the last four years of his career, McRae averaged 87 games per year and a .273/.341/.413 batting line. He hung up his spikes after the 1987 season.