MLB Number 3s

This might be one of the top iconic jersey numbers in all of sports. The journey to find the most substantial Major League Baseball players that wore the number 3 on their uniforms starts by looking at who the Baseball Hall of Fame has in their hallowed halls. Enshrined number ones of professional baseball are:

• Babe Ruth
• Frankie Frisch
• Mickey Cochrane
• Charlie Gehringer
• Jimmie Foxx
• Mel Ott
• Al Simmons
• Bill Terry
• Heinie Manush
• Kiki Cuyler
• Goose Goslin
• Joe Medwick
• Jim Bottomley
• Earl Averill
• Freddie Lindstrom
• Chuck Klein
• Johnny Mize
• George Kell
• Buck Leonard
• Harmon Killebrew
• Arky Vaughan
• Ken Griffey Jr.
• Alan Trammell
• Oscar Charleston
• Buck Leonard
• Harold Baines

Another telling clue to find the best is to see who has the MLB number 3 retired by their respective teams. This list of retired number 3s includes:

• Babe Ruth had his number 3 retired by the New York Yankees on June 13, 1948. He is perhaps the most famous slugger of all time!
• Earl Averill, the brilliant center fielder for the Cleveland Indians had his uniform number placed in protective custody on June 8, 1975.
• Bill Terry played first base and later managed a team. The New York/ San Francisco Giants gave his number 3 a gold watch on April 5, 1983.
• Harmon Killebrew played 1st base, 3rd base and the outfield for the Minnesota Twins who socked away his game day digit on May 4, 1975.
• Dale Murphy the standout outfiled player for the Atlanta Braves earned his number reservation for greatness on June 13, 1994.
• Harold Baines the famous right fielder and designated hitter had his number 3 retired by the Chicago White Sox on August 20, 1989.
• Alan Trammell the legendary short stop, manager and coach had his shirt numeral placed into preservation by the Detroit Tigers on August 26, 2018.

Okay, now it is time to put our knowledge to work and pick the greatest players that wore number 3 in MLB history based on performance stats. We do not have all of the players from some of the Negro Leagues in place yet but when we do we will certainly update the list so please excuse us on this. The criteria is simple we pulled stats from Baseball-Reference and Stat-Head on some important numbers. Is the player in the Hall of Fame? What were the Wins After Replacement or the team victories gained or lost after they entered the lineup versus the player they replaced? Where do they rank in the following categories in history: Home Runs, Runs Produced, Strike Outs, ERA. We mash this information up and see how many of the criteria rankings they have and then multiply that number (0-6) times the number of years they wore the particular uniform number we are discussing and then add it to bonus points if in the Hall of Fame and for earning any Gold Glove Awards and/or Cy Young Awards. We call that calculated number our Ranked Formula and use it as a basis of Comparison to give you the Top Fifteen at the uniform number. 

1. Babe Ruth played the position of Right Fielder, Left Fielder, Pitcher, Center Fielder,  and First Baseman wearing the number 3 on the New York Yankees (1929-34) Boston Braves (1935) for 7 seasons as he batted 0.342 for his career, had an On Base percentage of 0.69, with 714 career Home Runs. No wonder he is in the Hall of Fame. They did call him the "Sultan of Swat" for a reason.
2. Ken Griffey Jr. is a Hall of Fame, Center Fielder, Right Fielder, Left Fielder, First Baseman, and DH wearing the number 3 on the Cincinnati Reds (2006-08) for 3 seasons as he batted 0.284 for his career, had an On Base percentage of 0.538, with 630 career Home Runs, and 10 Gold Glove Awarded Seasons. An inductee of the Hall of Fame.
3. Alan Trammell is a Hall of Fame Shortstop, Third Baseman, Second Baseman, Left Fielder,  and Center Fielder wearing the number 3 on the Detroit Tigers (1978-96) for 19 seasons as he batted 0.285 for his career, had an On Base percentage of 0.415, with 185 career Home Runs, and 4 Gold Glove Awarded Seasons.
4. Oscar Charleston was a Hall of Fame player who wore the number 3 on the Pittsburgh Crawfords (1934) for 1 season as he batted 0.364 for his career, had an On Base percentage of 0.614, with 146 career Home Runs, and 5 Gold Glove Awarded Seasons.
5. Eric Chavez played the position of Third Baseman in Hall of Fame fashion along with playing, First Baseme, Shortstop, and Left Fielde wearing the number 3 on the Oakland Athletics (1999-10) for 12 seasons as he was awarded 6 Gold Glove Seasons.
6. Dale Murphy played the position of Center Fielder, Right Fielder, First Baseman, Left Fielder, and Catcher wearing the number 3 on the Atlanta Braves (1976-90) Philadelphia Phillies (90, 91, 92) Colorado Rockies (93) for 18 seasons as he batted 0.265 for his career, had an On Base percentage of 0.469, with 398 career Home Runs, and 5 Gold Glove Awarded Seasons.
7. Bobby Grich played the positions of Second Baseman, Shortstop/, First BasemanH, Third Baseman in his Hall of Fame career wearing the number 3 on the Baltimore Orioles (1972-76) for 5 seasons as he batted 0.266 for his career, had an On Base percentage of 0.424, with 224 career Home Runs, and 4 Gold Glove Awarded Seasons.
8. Willie Davis played the positions of Center Fielder, Right Fielder, and Left Fielder during his Hall of Fame career, wearing the number on the Los Angeles Dodgers (1961-73), Texas Rangers (1975), and the San Diego Padres (1976) for 15 seasons as he batted 0.279 for his career, had an On Base percentage of 0.412, with 182 career Home Runs, and 3 Gold Glove Awarded Seasons.
9. Gary Gaetti played the position of Hall of Fame, Third Baseman, First BasemanH/D, Shortstop, Left Fielder, Pitcher, Second Baseman, Right Fielder wearing the number on the California Angels (91, 92, 93) for 3 seasons as he batted  for his career, had an On Base percentage of , with 360 career Home Runs, and 4 Gold Glove Awarded Seasons.
10. Orlando Hudson had a Hall of Fame career playing the positions of Second Baseman and Third Baseman wearing the number 3 on the Toronto Blue Jays (2002-03) for 2 seasons as he batted 0.273 for his career, had an On Base percentage of 0.412, with 93 career Home Runs, and 4 Gold Glove Awarded Seasons.
11. Evan Longoria had a Hall of Fame MLB career playing the positions of Third Baseman,DH, and Shortstop wearing the number 3 on the Tampa Bay Rays (2008-17) for 10 seasons as he batted 0.265 for his career, had an On Base percentage of 0.472, with 331 career Home Runs, and 3 Gold Glove Awarded Seasons.
12. Alex Rodriguez played the position of Shortstop, Third Baseman,, and First Baseman wearing the number 3 on the Seattle Mariners (1994-2000) Texas Rangers (2001-03) for 10 seasons as he won 2 Gold Gloves.
13. Rafael Palmeiro played the positions of  First Baseman, Left Fielder, Right Fielder, and Center Fielder  for a Hall of Fame tenure wearing the number 3 on the Texas Rangers (1989) for 1 seasons as he batted 0.288 for his career, had an On Base percentage of 0.515, with 569 career Home Runs, and 3 Gold Glove Awarded Seasons.
14. Jimmie Foxx made it to the Hall of Fame as he had played the positions of First Baseman, Third Baseman, Catcher, Left Fielder, Right Fielder, Pitcher, and Shortstop wearing the number 3 on the Philadelphia Athletics (1931-35) and the  Boston Red Sox (1936-42) for 12 seasons as he batted 0.325 for his career, had an On Base percentage of 0.609, with 534 career Home Runs.
15. Harold Baines played the position of  Right Fielder, Center Fielder,  and Left Fielder wearing the number 3 on the Chicago White Sox (1980-89, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2001), Texas Rangers (1989-90) ,Oakland Athletics (1990-92), and the Baltimore Orioles (1993-95 and 1997-2000) for 22 seasons as he batted 0.289 for his career, had an On Base percentage of 0.465, with 384 career Home Runs.

Here is our supporting evidence powered by Baseball-Reference.com

So what do you thinks of our top fifteen based on performance numbers? Let us know your feedback by emailing us at PigskinDispatch@gmail.com

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The photograph in the banner above is courtesy of the Wikimedia Commons collection of public Domain pictures. It is of Babe Ruth circa 1920. It was taken by National Photograph Company.

Special thanks to Baseball-Reference.com, Stathead.com and the most wonderful book by Larry Lester and Wayne Stivers, The Negro Leagues Book, Volume 2.