Baseball: 500 Club

Now i've heard of Sammy Sosa i've just read he has recently hit 500 homers wow that seems a lot to me.Has there been many that have achieved that feat?

Here are the players that have achieved 500 or more Home Runs.

1) Hank Aaron
2) Babe Ruth
3) Willie Mays
4) Barry Bonds
5) Frank Robinson
6) Mark McGwire
7) Harmon Killebrew
8) Reggie Jackson
9) Mike Schmidt
10) Mickey Mantle
11) Jimmie Foxx
12) Willie McCovey
13) Ted Williams
14) Ernie Banks
15) Eddie Mathews
16) Mel Ott
17) Eddie Murray
18) Sammy Sosa

I think that there are going to be a couple of new names added to that list this season, i do believe that Fred McGriff is a 8 homers away from the 500 club.

I don't know how long baseball has been played so is 18 alot?

considering the hundreds of players that have played MLB....18 is not a lot no.

So you have to be a bit special then to make that many,so what is a good score of home runs for a season?

I agree with Ocelot, 18 isn't alot considering baseball has been around for over 100 years.

As far as a single season, I would say 30 is considered a good amount of homers in a season. Here is a list of the top 6 single season homerun totals:

1. Barry Bonds 73 in 2001
2. Mark McGwire 70 in 1998
3. Sammy Sosa 66 in 1998
4. Mark McGwire 65 in 1999
5. Sammy Sosa 64 in 2001
6. Sammy Sosa 63 in 1999

All in the last five years, just goes to show you how the players are so much bigger and stronger than players in the past. I'll never forget McGwire's 70 in 1998 because when he set the record at the time, the record he broke was Roger Maris' in 1961, it stood for 37 years and many people thought it would never be broken. Then Barry Bonds' 73 last year, that's incredible considering he also set the record for walks meaning that he didn't see many good pitches and still knocked out 73, amazing!

Baseball must be on the up for the record to be broken that many times in 5 years.I remember Mcgwire when he did it.Has the pitching got faster or the Bat/ball been changed in recent years,or has the players just got bigger and stronger as you say PA?

the players over the years have been getting a lot stronger and faster and it makes the pitchers get stronger and faster. if you remenber not to long ago you could count the number of players that could throw 90 and above, now it seems like everyplayer can throw that fast. And to top that off with how many different pitches the pitchers how these days and the different spins and speeds.

The players have gotten huge lately it seems like the only not huge players out there are the pitchers. And the pitchers are still pretty big. Even the umps are big. Also you have to wonder sometimes, like 7 or 8 years ago when Bonds was with the Padres he wasnt that big, now he is a monster. So i guess it makes you wonder.

So if the Pitchers have got faster and with the different kind of pitches they throw now the Batters must have improved even more,pure skill to see a ball comming that fast let alone hit it.

I have played Baseball for years and trust me it's hard hitting a ball coming at you at 90+ mph. You need to have great hand eye cordination.

I can well believe it as i say pure skill,i don't think i would want someone throwing a ball at me at 90mph +...

What really sucks is getting hit by one. It hurts like a motherf*****!! Big purple bruises I tell ya. It sucks.

Cheers Ocelot i think i will stick to watching on the T.V.

Do you think anyone else will make the 500 in the near future?

Here are the next active players who have a shot at making the club:

1) Rafael Palmeiro with 492
2) Fred McGriff with 480
3) Ken Griffey Jr. with 469

They are pretty close not that many anyway.
So you can be looking at least 10 years to hit that many,so what is the highest total ever in a career? if it is high do you think it can be broken?

The highest total ever in a career belongs to Hank Aaron who hit 755 hr in his career. I don't think it will be broken anytime soon. The closest active player that may have a shot at it is Barry Bonds. But I dont think he'll brake it.

Originally posted by TRD
So you can be looking at least 10 years to hit that many

500 homeruns in 10 years is quite a bit, you would have to average 50 a year, which is alot. I think Palmeiro and McGriff should reach the magic number this year, but Griffey is unlikely since it's hard to hit homers from the disabled list.

PA i said at least 10 years meaning a minimum amount, as you said before a good score is about 30 but the way these guys are hitting in recent times maybe the records are there to be broken.

It will be hard for Griffey to make some home runs on the diasbled list but once he is off he should hit 500 homers. Maybe some more, he is still very young.