Rogers Hornsby

American second baseman regarded as one of the greatest right-handed hitters in history, with a career .358 batting average — third-highest in MLB history — and two Triple Crowns.

Born in Winters, Texas, on 27 April 1896 and raised in Fort Worth, Rogers Hornsby debuted with the St. Louis Cardinals in 1915. He developed into the most feared right-handed hitter of his era, winning seven National League batting titles, including six in a row from 1920 to 1925, a stretch in which he averaged .402. Hornsby's 1924 season remains one of the greatest offensive campaigns in baseball history: he hit .424, still the highest single-season batting average of the modern era. In 1922 and 1925 he won the Triple Crown, and in 1922 became the only player to hit 40 home runs and bat .400 in the same season. He led the Cardinals to their first World Series title in 1926 as player-manager. Over a 23-year career spent primarily at second base, Hornsby posted a .358 career batting average, trailing only Ty Cobb and Negro Leagues legend Oscar Charleston, with 2,930 hits, 301 home runs and two National League MVP awards, in 1925 and 1929. Bill James ranked him the third-greatest second baseman in history, behind Joe Morgan and Eddie Collins, with his all-time hitting numbers offset somewhat by below-average defense. Known as blunt, uncompromising and a compulsive horse-racing gambler, Hornsby was traded or fired by nearly every organization he played or managed for, including a stint managing the St. Louis Browns and Cincinnati Reds in the early 1950s. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1942 and died in Chicago on 5 January 1963, aged 66.

Powerful, disciplined right-handed hitter with elite bat-to-ball skill

Widely regarded as the greatest right-handed hitter in baseball history