Whatever Became Of The .300 Hitter?

By Dan Schlossberg

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SPECIAL FROM THE IBWAA - This article was published in the IBWAA's newsletter, "Here's The Pitch" on August 23, 2025 and is used with permission.

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In 1968, the American League batting champ finished at .301.

Carl Yastrzemski, left-fielder of the Boston Red Sox, had won a Triple Crown the year before, when he led his team into the World Series against 100-to-1 preseason odds.

Little did he or anyone else expect 1968 to become The Year of The Pitcher.

Before he knew it, though, Denny McLain went 31-6, Bob Gibson posted a 1.12 earned run average, and pitchers teamed to post 335 shutouts.

Hitters suffered. The Dodgers, as a team, hit .230.

Judging by the current batting statistics, history is repeating itself.

This time, it’s the National League that is lean on meaty batsmen.

In fact, by season’s end, the Senior Circuit might not have a single .300 hitter for the first time in its lengthy history.

Starters and closers, told to throw as hard as they can for as long as they can, are routinely reaching triple digits while hitters are trying to hit the ball as far as they can. The results are more strikeouts and less contact.

Entering the weekend, there was a three-way tie for the NL lead in batting among Dodger teammates Will Smith and Freddie Freeman and Phillies shortstop Trea Turner. All were hitting just .303.

The only other .300 hitters in the entire league were Xavier Edwards of the Marlins (.302) and Sal Frelick of the Brewers (.300).

Slim pickin’s to be sure.

At least the American League had a couple of healthy batting averages. Aaron Judge, after flirting with .400 during the first half, led both leagues at .329. Behind him in the AL batting title chase were Tampa Bay’s Jonathan Aranda (.316) and Comeback of the Year candidate Jeremy Pena (.306) of the Houston Astros.

Yes, a few guys were in the .290s but will they thrive over the final five weeks or succumb to a succession of flame-throwing relief pitchers?

Even Shohei Ohtani, probably en route to his second straight National League MVP and third straight overall, was only hitting .285 — despite his 44-homer production.

Judge, who battled several injuries this summer, had been an early candidate for the Triple Crown. But switch-hitting catcher Cal Raleigh, playing almost every day, surprised him — and the rest of the baseball world — by smacking 47 to lead the majors.

Neither Raleigh nor Kyle Schwarber, whose 45 homers top the NL charts, hits for a high average.

Before the 2025 campaign started, San Diego’s Luis Arraez had won three batting titles in a row — all with different teams — and seemed a good bet for another. But injuries intervened, holding him to a .289 mark. He’ll need a big finish for another .300 season.

None of the top five leaders of the moment has ever won a batting title. Freeman, however, has a .300 career average so his chances of finishing ahead of Smith and Turner look pretty solid.

As a footnote to this discussion, Yastrzemski hit only .285 lifetime even though he won three batting titles. He’s the only member of the Baseball Hall of Fame with such uneven statistics.

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HtP weekend editor Dan Schlossberg of Fair Lawn, NJ covers baseball for forbes.com, Memories & Dreams, USA TODAY Sports Weekly, Sports Collectors Digest, and many other outlets.