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30-30 Club: Baseball Terminology

Being part of a club is always a giddy feeling; you are a member of a group that has exclusive membership while sharing similar qualities as the other members. Maybe you were automatically welcomed into a club, and maybe you had to pay a nominal fee to gain access. For members of the prestigious 30-30 Club, this set of baseball players had to have both power and speed to receive admission.

30-30 Club Barry Bonds Pittsburgh Pirates

Barry Bonds reached the 30-30 Club a record five times

The 30-30 Club consists of players that have hit 30 home runs and stolen 30 bases in a single season. While it is easier said than done, there has been 23 times since 2000 that a player has accomplished the feat. Some of the most recent players to join the 30-30 Club include reigning AL MVP Mike Trout, Ryan Braun, Ian Kinsler, Jacoby Ellsbury, and Matt Kemp.

A handful of players have reached the milestone multiple times over the course of their careers. Willie Mays reached the club twice in 1956 and 1957. Bobby Bonds smacked 30 homers and swiped 30 bags five separate times. Barry Bonds reached the achievement five times as well, the two highest totals of any player. Sammy Sosa and Jeff Bagwell are both two-time 30-30 Club members.

It takes a special player to have the power and hitting prowess to hit 30 home runs in a season. An even more special player has to also have the speed and base running ability to steal 30 bases. The majority of the players in the club accumulated the single season statistics earlier in their careers. You will be hard pressed to find many 30 or 40-year-old players cracking the 30-30 Club.

30-30 Club Mike Trout Los Angeles Angels

Mike Trout is the most recent member of the 30-30 Club

As exclusive as the 30-30 Club is, there is an even more exclusive club: the 40-40 Club. Simply put, the 40-40 Club requires players to hit 40 home runs and steal 40 bases in the same season. There have only been four players to do so: Alfonso Soriano, Alex Rodriguez, Barry Bonds, and Jose Canseco. The 20-20 Club is also a thing, but it is a much more common feat with hundreds of players on the list.

The 30-30 Club isn’t an actual club. There is no trophy like for the MVP or Triple Crown winner. It is more of feat that encompasses a sense of pride and achievement. Because there is no physical award and the rareness of the achievement, the bragging rights associated are monumental. It may be one of the hardest things to in sports to hit 30 home runs and steal 30 bases in the same season, let alone getting 40 of each.

Trying to guess who could be the next player to accomplish the feat? Look no further than Trout, who has as high a chance as anybody to join the club again and challenge the Bonds family for the most 30-30 seasons all-time.

Comments

  1. The best thing I like about the 30-30 club is that a handful of players have reached the milestone multiple times over the course of their careers.

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