I know he doesn't meet the criteria here (yet), but just something to think about; Ichiro has over 4,000 professional hits between the Japanese league and the MLB.
Surprised not to see Griffey or DiMaggio on this list. I just looked up DiMaggio, and he isn't even close: 2,214. That gives some perspective to how hard it is to get to 3,000, and how long you have to play (and play at a high level).
If my quick check is correct, Jeter is the only player on this list who got his hits primarily with the Yankees. (Not that this is the only criteria of greatness, but) is it possible that playing with the Yankees inflates our opinions of certain greats of the past?
"Is it possible that playing with the Yankees inflates our opinions of certain greats of the past?" It's certainly possible. Then again, the fact that so many people hate the Yankees may also cause them to be more critical of their players, though this probably applies more to recent players than to ones from decades ago. It'll always be hard to judge the careers of players like DiMaggio, who lost what could have been huge seasons to the war.
I have to believe that if not for military service, Ted Williams would be on this list. He lost 3 full seasons during WWII, and parts of some others in Korea.
I also have to believe that if they hadn't cheated their brains out using steroids, A-Roid and Palmeiro wouldn't be on this list.
You could make the opposite argument for Bonds. He stopped putting up high hit numbers because pitchers stopped pitching to him during the height of his 'roid usage, but was only 65 hits shy of 3000.
He still would have gotten there if it wasn't for losing close to 5 years due to military service. He was 350 short and averaged 179 hits per 162 game season. More than likely he would have ended up with around 3300.
Amazing that Ruth doesn't make it despite being 10th all-time in batting average and playing for 22 seasons. Then you remember that the dude walked more than 2,000 times O_O
I never realized just how much of a beast Babe Ruth was until I read this book. It's insane to me that the best hitter of all time was also one of the best pitchers.
I also have to believe that if they hadn't cheated their brains out using steroids, A-Roid and Palmeiro wouldn't be on this list.
He drew such huge numbers of walks that took the bat out of his hands.