The 15 Scariest Hitters In Postseason History

MLB pitchers always seem to have a ridiculous amount of confidence about them. They’ve spent the vast majority of their lives perfecting their craft and have finally mastered every pitch imaginable. Wheeling and dealing have become the specialty of top of the line pitchers. So, whether it’s a 100 mph fastball or an 88 mph slider, said pitcher is unbelievably confident in their ability to get a hitter out of there.

It’s practically impossible for the best pitchers in the world to lose confidence in their stuff. But, there are times where their self-belief wavers a bit. Depending on who’s stepping up to swing the bat.

That same confidence that oozes from pitchers, turns into hubris when it comes to some of the best hitters in the history of the game.

In recognition of the scariest time of the year, we’ve decided to compile a list of the biggest, meanest, and flat-out scariest hitters in postseason history.

So which players struck the ball with the same ferocity as Jason, Freddy Krueger, Chucky, and every other horror film main character? Keep reading to find out.

The 15th Scariest Hitter In Postseason History: Giancarlo Stanton

Wait a second, hear us out.

We know it’s incredibly early in the career of Giancarlo Stanton. We also know that he hasn’t had a ton of opportunities. But, we’re also pretty confident that Stanton is one of the scariest hitters in postseason history.

Standing at 6’6’ and weighing roughly 250 pounds, Stanton is the last player pitchers want to see stepping into the batter’s box. In just 18 postseason games, Stanton has homered in nine of them. He’s also registered 17 RBIs.

Unfortunately for Stanton, his play was often ripped for what took place earlier in his career. After spending eight seasons in Florida, Stanton racked up a ton of individual awards but the Marlins could never come close to making a playoff appearance. Once the immensely talented right fielder landed in New York with the Yankees, he continually made an impact on their championship hopes.

Stanton has yet to play in a World Series but you can’t put the blame on him. In his most recent trip to the playoffs, Stanton had some ridiculously monster numbers. He batted .750 with only one strikeout. Stanton is a beast on the mound and while he doesn’t have the longevity of several other names you’ll see on this list, when it’s all said and done, he’ll have earned his spot.

The 14th Scariest Hitter In Postseason History: Lloyd McClendon

You wouldn’t stop to take a second look at the career of Lloyd McClendon. His best statistical season came in 1989 and even then, he didn’t do much of anything.

On the year, McClendon knocked only 12 balls out of the park while mustering a paltry 40 RBIs. McClendon simply wasn’t the sort of player that fans could rely on to carry their ball club for long stretches. Although he faded into the shadows more times than not, during the postseason, McClendon performed far better than expected.

Still, McClendon isn’t on this list due to some long track record under the bright lights. No, in actuality, McClendon should be considered one of the scariest hitters in MLB postseason because of his run in 1992. As a member of the Pittsburgh Pirates, McClendon had an unbelievable postseason showing. He set the playoff record for batting average in a single season with, get this, .727.

McClendon was incredible that year. Not only was he essentially guaranteed to get a but he was incredibly reliable all over the field, registering eight RBIs and a home run. There wasn’t much success for his teams overall but for at least one year, he was incredibly scary at the plate.

The 13th Scariest Hitter In Postseason History: Chipper Jones

Chipper Jones had one of the greatest up and down careers you’ll ever see. Now we know that doesn’t make a ton of sense but give us a chance to explain.

In only his third year in the majors, Jones was selected to his first All-Star team. He strung together a few more on a consistent basis before going six years without making another. To cap off his career, Jones made two final All-Star squads at the age of 39 and 40. Pretty interesting huh?

Now, off to his postseason batting achievements, Jones wrapped up his career with 13 homers, 47 RBIs, a batting average of .287, and a World Series ring. If those aren’t scary numbers, then I don’t know what is.

The 11th Scariest Hitter In Postseason History: David Ortiz

Big Papi was smooth as he practiced his swings in the batter’s box. Pitchers would immediately begin to sweat as they took a close look at the multiple-time All-Star.

David Ortiz was simply a monster and a scary individual to be standing across with the game on the line. The 6’3’ 230 pounder was stoic in his batting stance. And while he didn’t give many facial expressions, we all knew it was coming.

Ortiz ripped 17 postseason homers in his career. It wasn’t just his power but his ball placement. Ortiz currently has the fourth most doubles in postseason history with 22 and the sixth most total bases with 165.

Ortiz nabbed three World Series rings thanks to big-time hitting and during the 2013 World Series, Ortiz had the sort of numbers that’ll make you scratch your head.

The St. Louis Cardinals have a strong hatred for Ortiz thanks to his two home runs, six RBIs, and an outrageously efficient batting average of .688. Ortiz was incredibly scary for the entire Cardinals pitching staff but truth be told, he was a scary hitter to just about everyone.

The 10th Scariest Hitter In Postseason History: Mickey Mantle

To New York Yankees fans, Mickey Mantle was the nicest guy around. Just incredibly loveable and a great player. For everyone else, Mantle was the ultimate villain who always seemed to win no matter what the good guy threw in his direction.

Where do we begin with Mantle? How about those 20 All-Star Game selections? Oftentimes, fans seem a bit puzzled when they read that stat. Mostly because Mantle played only 18 years. But, several decades ago, MLB had two All-Star Games in one year. The idea was eventually canned but not before Mantle took advantage of the weirdness.

The regular season accolades are obvious but the postseason was where Mantle made his legend. In 12 seasons of postseason play, Mantle took home seven World Series titles, including a stretch where he won three straight and four out of five.

It’s been well over a half-century since Mantle has donned an MLB uniform but he still has the seventh most home runs ever.

The 9th Scariest Hitter In Postseason History: Albert Pujols

The tail end of Albert Pujols’ career wasn’t a pretty one. His regular-season numbers were pedestrian and his postseason play made him practically unplayable. Despite his downward spiral, when Pujols was smack dab in the middle of his prime, no one wanted to throw him a pitch.

In eight NLDS appearances, Pujols was practically unstoppable. He batted .320 with an on base percentage of .424 to go along with four home runs. He was even better, believe it or not, in the NLCS. In those six appearances, Pujols batted .367 and smashed ten balls out of the park.

Pujols played major roles in helping the St. Louis Cardinals win it all in 2006 and 2011. He batted well over .420 in those championship games and a combined four home runs.

At this point, Pujols doesn’t have much of anything left in the tank but like all great players, he’s still capable of turning back the clock one last time.

The 8th Scariest Hitter In Postseason History: Turkey Stearnes

Undoubtedly in possession of one of the most unique names in MLB history, Turkey Stearnes was one of the scariest postseason players ever. Try if you want, but there’s simply no downplaying him.

Stearnes was terrific when the bright lights turned on. Over the course of his career, he ranks fifth all-time in batting average at .417. He’s also second in slugging percentage at .771. But before Stearnes became an all-timer in the postseason, his career was both vastly under-appreciated and swept under the rug.

In Stearnes’ first season in the Negro League League, he registered 101 hits. Yet, he didn’t come close to making an All-Star team. Stearnes would then go on to record at least 100 hits in five of his next six seasons including a career-high 136 in 1925 for the Detroit Stars.

Stearnes’ career wasn’t truly recognized until approximately ten years later when he played for the Chicago American Giants Statistics. He would go on to pick up five All-Star selections in his final few years in the league. His exploits in the postseason were terrific along the way but his teams were never quite good enough to pocket a World Series Championship.

The 7th Scariest Hitter In Postseason History: Barry Bonds

He was at the top of his cheating peak. Because of that, Barry Bonds was about as unstoppable back in 2002.

Before we continue, we’ll admit that we bent the rules for Bonds, go figure. But in all seriousness, our list has mostly been put together taking into account the totality of a player’s career. When it comes to Bonds, he was good but he wasn’t next level great like he was during the regular season. However, in 2002, arguably no one had a better postseason run.

Bonds set the record for home runs in a single postseason with eight. He’s since been passed up by Randy Arozarena. Forget about him for a moment and focus on Bonds. The all-time cheater was unforgettable as he led the San Francisco Giants all the way to the World Series. Despite cranking four homers out of the park, Bonds and his Giants came up just short in seven games.

He might be connected to PED use for the rest of his life and he may never get the Hall of Fame nod but in 2002, Bonds was the scariest postseason hitter of all time.

The 6th Scariest Hitter In Postseason History: Jose Altuve

Don’t let his incredibly small stature fool you, Jose Altuve plays big, especially in the postseason. With seven All-Star appearances to his name and a 2017 World Series ring, when you absolutely have to have a hit, he was the man you wanted at the plate.

With the pressure on, Altuve has never shied away from the moment. He’s routinely batted over .300 during numerous series. During the 2017 ALDS, Altuve smashed three home runs and batted a ridiculous .533. When all the chips were pushed to the middle of the table during the 2019 ALCS, Altuve came up clutch.

Altuve took home the MVP of that series after batting .348, knocking out two homers, and registering three RBIs.

At the moment, Altuve is number two all-time on the postseason home run list with 23 smashes. By the time he wraps up his career, we’d be absolutely shocked if he wasn’t number one.

The 5th Scariest Hitter In Postseason History: Bobby Brown

There are some players on this list who not only performed well in the postseason but also in the regular season. There are others who carved out a permanent spot in the Hall of Fame. None of that, however, applies to Third Baseman and Shortstop Bobby Brown.

Seldomly did Brown give the New York Yankees much of anything in the regular season. In his best year, he only managed to muster up just six home runs and 61 RBIs. But you can’t simply dismiss him from this conversation, just take a look at his postseason work.

Brown is the second most effective batter in history with a batting average of .439. He’s also third with an on base percentage of .500. If the Yankees needed a hit and Brown was sauntering his way to the plate, chances are, he delivered.

The most impressive part of Brown’s career isn’t his otherworldly batting average or his on base percentage. No, the best thing about Brown’s game was that he was a winner. In all four years that Brown joined in on the postseason fun, the New York Yankees lifted the World Series trophy. That can’t just be a coincidence.

The 4th Scariest Hitter In Postseason History: Manny Ramirez

Pitchers all around Major League Baseball shrugged their shoulders in despair whenever Manny Ramirez was up in the batter’s box warming up. It felt as though a game-winning home run was inevitable. And, more times than not, they were right.

It’s been well over a decade since Ramirez has appeared in a postseason baseball game but he still holds the MLB record for the most homers with 29. Ramirez is also good for the third most hits with 117 and, to solidify his high spot on our list, Ramirez is safely locked in with the second-highest RBIs of all time with 78.

If you’re a fan of Ramirez, you’ll remember his 2004 World Series showing. He took home MVP honors by registering a batting average of .412 and to go along with four RBIs.

If Ramirez is on his way to the plate, just duck for cover.

The 3rd Scariest Hitter In Postseason History: Bill Hoskins

The career of Bill Hoskins isn’t protruding like the other names you’ll see on this list.

During the regular season, Hoskins was only responsible for 32 homers in a ten-year span. Needless to say, not so impressive. While he failed to knock one out of the park in the postseason, seeing how Hoskins is the all-time leader in postseason batting average, we had no choice but to include him.

Yes, Hoskins and his .487 batting average are better than Babe Ruth, Lou Gerring, and any other Hall of Famer you can think of. Admittedly, Hoskins didn’t play a ton of games under the bright lights but when he did, he made them count. In total, Hoskins registered 19 hits, three of which were doubles, while two were triples. He was also good for 10 RBIs.

Not only is Hoskins the all-time leader in postseason batting percentage, but he also checks in at number two all-time in on base percentage with a .535 lifetime percentage.

Hoskins didn’t have the most decorated career but during postseason play, he was possibly the scariest hitter ever.

The 2nd Scariest Hitter In Postseason History: Babe Ruth

It takes a lot to become an all-time great. The criteria are somewhat ambiguous. However, Babe Ruth checked every box imaginable. He was a power hitter when it was his turn in the batting order, capable of knocking balls clear out of the park or getting a well-timed RBI to win the game.

For as great as Ruth was, he took things to a whole other level in the postseason. The numbers he managed to put up were great. Ruth hit .326 for his postseason career and registered 15 homers. Those numbers alone would safely lock him onto this list but it was more than just racking up numbers, Ruth was all about winning.

In ten playoff seasons, Ruth walked away with seven World Series rings. In six of those runs, Ruth batted at least .300.

There are a number of great names on this list but a huge chunk of them made their name at the expense of winning. In the case of Ruth, he piled monster stats and took home World Series hardware almost every year.

The Scariest Hitter In Postseason History: Derek Jeter

He was the consummate professional, the perfect teammate, and always did things by the book. Those superlative words could also be used to describe the type of player that doesn’t get much playing time. However, while Derek Jeter was a pro’s pro, he was a nightmare for opposing pitchers.

No one in the history of baseball has played in postseason games than the 158 Jeter has participated in. Also, unsurprisingly, Jeter is at the top of the charts in terms of plate appearances with 734.

Jeter didn’t just accumulate those numbers by being a member of those great New York Yankees teams, he performed time and time again. Jeter is well ahead of second-place Bernie Williams in runs scored with 111, 28 more than Williams. The gap widens more when we take a look at the all-time hits leaders in postseason history. Jeter’s 200 is 72 more than Bernie Williams who once again came up second.

Additionally, Jeter has the most total bases with 302, the most doubles with 32, and the fourth most home runs with 20. Pair those numbers with Jeter’s five World Series rings and you’re looking at the scariest hitter in postseason history.