Baserunning runs
This most overlooked aspect of offensive production also weights at just five per cent of the total score. But in a closely fought battle over who to carve into a Hitter’s Mt. Rushmore, it could be a pivotal five percent.
And that may benefit Aaron, who while not a great baserunner was a solid one. He accumulated 44 career baserunning runs due both to his ability to steal bases and also to his awareness of how and when to take an extra base.
On the base-stealing side, Aaron was surprisingly good for a slugger. He stole 240 bases in 313 attempts, a .767 percentage.
Here’s the category top 10
Rank Player Score
1 Rickey Henderson 144
2 Willie Mays 78
2 Lou Brock 78
2 Paul Molitor 78
5 Ichiro Suzuki 62
6 Alex Rodriguez 56
6 Derek Jeter 56
6 Robin Yount 56
9 Ty Cobb 55
10 Craig Biggio 54
With 44 baserunning runs, Aaron ranked 12th, behind Mickey Mantle (51).
Most of the leaders in this category – Henderson, Brock, Molitor, Jeter – have not fared well enough in the more heavily weighted categories to significantly improve their overall standing.
Among the overall contenders, Aaron’s finish in this category ranked behind Mays and Cobb, but marginally ahead of Bonds – in 13th place at 43 runs – and farther in front of Musial (25th), Williams (28th) and Ruth (38th).