300-300 club

In Major League Baseball, the 300-300 club is a grouping of players who have hit at least 300 home runs and collected at least 300 stolen bases in their career. It is an accomplishment that requires both speed and power and has only been achieved by six players. The combination of skills and longevity required to join this club give it high prestige among baseball fans. This is in relation to the 30-30 club, which is a measure of power and speed for a single season.

History of the 300-300 club

In baseball history, 114 players have hit 300 or more home runs, and 145 have stolen at least 300 bases, yet only 6 have done both. The most recent member to join the club is Steve Finley then of the San Francisco Giants, who hit a leadoff home run June 14, 2006 against the Arizona Diamondbacks' Claudio Vargas at Chase Field for his 300th career home run. Four days earlier on June 10, Reggie Sanders of the Kansas City Royals joined the club by hitting his 300th career home run against the Tampa Bay Devil Rays' Chad Harville at Kauffman Stadium.

The 300-300 club and defense

Players capable of hitting for power and stealing bases tend to display defensive excellence on the field as well, as evidenced by the members of the club. Willie Mays (12), Andre Dawson (8), Barry Bonds (8), Steve Finley (5), and Bobby Bonds (3) have combined for a total of 36 Rawling's Gold Glove awards. All six members are/were outfielders.

Details about the club

All of the members of the club played a majority of their careers in the National League. The only member of the club currently in the hall of fame is Willie Mays, although Dawson remains eligible for election by baseball writers and Bobby Bonds was considered by the Veterans Committee for election in 2007. [http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=2781628] The three active players will not be eligible until five years after they retire.

The club and the Giants

The San Francisco Giants dominate this club, as three of the six members (Mays, Barry Bonds, and Bobby Bonds) have played more games with the Giants than any other team, and the only member not to have played for the Giants is Andre Dawson. The Giants are the only team to field two members of the club at the same time, as Barry Bonds and Steve Finley played for them together in 2006 (Willie Mays and Bobby Bonds also played together on the Giants from 1968 to 1972, and Reggie Sanders played for the Arizona Diamondbacks with Steve Finley in 2001 and the Giants with Barry Bonds in 2002, but in those instances one or both members were yet to join the club). Three of these Giants have a family tie; Barry Bonds is the son of Bobby Bonds and the godson of Willie Mays.

Members of the 300-300 club

300-300-2000 club

Another subset of the 300-300 club is the 300-300-2000 club, which is 300 home runs, 300 stolen bases, and 2000 base hits (which is considered by many Who|date=July 2008 to be a feat equivalent to 300 home runs or 300 stolen bases, in the hits category Fact|date=July 2008). Willie Mays is the only one to have 3000 hits. This club boasts four members:

See also

*30-30 club
*40-40 club
*20–20–20 club
*Baseball statistics