MLB All-Time Leaders: Career Batting Average

This article lists the MLB all-time leaders in career batting average: it provides each player's batting average, at-bats (AB), hits, season-high (more than 200 at-bats), and active period.

Among those MLB players ranked in the top twenty-five in career batting average, two eclipsed the .350 mark and all twenty-five batted better than .330. Career batting averages for these players range from .330 to .367. Thirteen of these players achieved single-season batting averages of over .400. Eleven of these players had careers lasting more than 20 years, five spent their entire careers with just one team, and two remain active.

1. MLB All-Time Leaders: Career Batting Average- Ty Cobb

Batting Average: .367
AB: 11,429
Hits: 4,191
Season-high: .420 (1911)

Active Period: Detroit Tigers (1905-1926); Philadelphia Athletics (1927-1928)

2. MLB All-Time Leaders: Career Batting Average - Rogers Hornsby

Batting Average: .358
AB: 8,173
Hits: 2,930
Season-high: .424 (1924)

Active Period: St. Louis Cardinals (1915-1926, 1933); New York Giants (1927); Boston Braves (1928); Chicago Cubs (1929-1932); St. Louis Browns (1933-1937)

3. MLB All-Time Leaders: Career Batting Average - Ed Delahanty

Batting Average: .346
AB: 7,505
Hits: 2,596
Season-high: .410 (1899)

Active Period: Philadelphia Phillies (1888-1889, 1891-1901); Cleveland Infants (1890); Washington Senators (1902-1903)

4. MLB All-Time Leaders: Career Batting Average - Tris Speaker

Batting Average: .345
AB: 10,195
Hits: 3,514
Season-high: .389 (1925)

Active Period: Boston Red Sox (1907-1915); Cleveland Indians (1916-1926); Washington Senators (1927); Philadelphia Athletics (1928)

5. (tie) MLB All-Time Leaders: Career Batting Average - Ted Williams

Batting Average: .344
AB: 7,706
Hits: 2,654
Season-high: .406 (1941)

Active Period: Boston Red Sox (1939-1960)

MLB All-Time Leaders: Career Batting Average - Billy Hamilton

Batting Average: .344
AB: 6,269
Hits: 2,159
Season-high: .404 (1894)

Active Period: Kansas City Blues (1888-1889); Philadelphia Phillies (1890-1895); Boston Beaneaters (1896-1901)

7. (3-way tie) MLB All-Time Leaders: Career Batting Average - Babe Ruth

Batting Average: .342
AB: 8,399
Hits: 2,873
Season-high: .393 (1923)

Active Period: Boston Red Sox (1914-1919); New York Yankees (1920-1934); Boston Braves (1935)

MLB All-Time Leaders: Career Batting Average - Harry Heilmann

Batting Average: .342
AB: 7,787
Hits: 2,660
Season-high: .403 (1923)

Active Period: Detroit Tigers (1914-1929); Cincinnati Reds (1930-1932)

MLB All-Time Leaders: Career Batting Average - Dan Brouthers

Batting Average: .342
AB: 6,711
Hits: 2,296
Season-high: .374 (1883)

Active Period: Troy Trojans (1879-1880); Buffalo Bisons (1881-1885); Detroit Wolverines (1886-1888); Boston Beaneaters (1889); Boston Reds (1890-1891); Brooklyn Grooms (1892-1893); Baltimore Orioles (1894-1895); Louisville Colonels (1895); Philadelphia Phillies (1896); New York Giants (1904)

10. (tie) MLB All-Time Leaders: Career Batting Average - Willie Keeler

Batting Average: .341
AB: 8,591
Hits: 2,932
Season-high: .424 (1897)

Active Period: New York Giants (1892-1893, 1910); Brooklyn Grooms (1893); Baltimore Orioles (1894-1898); Brooklyn Superbas (1899-1902); New York Highlanders (1903-1909)

MLB All-Time Leaders: Career Batting Average - Bill Terry

Batting Average: .341
AB: 6,428
Hits: 2,193
Season-high: .401 (1930)

Active Period: New York Giants (1923-1936)

12. (tie) MLB All-Time Leaders: Career Batting Average - Lou Gehrig

Batting Average: .340
AB: 8,001
Hits: 2,721
Season-high: .379 (1930)

Active Period: New York Yankees (1923-1939)

MLB All-Time Leaders: Career Batting Average - George Sisler

Batting Average: .340
AB: 8,267
Hits: 2,812
Season-high: .420 (1922)

Active Period: St. Louis Browns (1915-1927); Boston Braves (1928-1930); Washington Senators (1928)

14. (3-way tie) MLB All-Time Leaders: Career Batting Average - Nap Lajoie

Batting Average: .338
AB: 9,589
Hits: 3,242
Season-high: .426 (1901)

Active Period: Philadelphia Phillies (1896-1900); Philadelphia Athletics (1901-1902, 1915-1916); Cleveland Naps (1902-1914)

MLB All-Time Leaders: Career Batting Average - Tony Gwynn

Batting Average: .338
AB: 9,288
Hits: 3,741
Season-high: .394 (1994)

Active Period: San Diego Padres (1982-2001)

MLB All-Time Leaders: Career Batting Average - Jesse Burkett

Batting Average: .338
AB: 8,421
Hits: 2,850
Season-high: .410 (1896)

Active Period: New York Giants (1890); Cleveland Spiders (1892-1898); St. Louis Cardinals (1899-1901); St. Louis Browns (1902-1904); Boston Pilgrims (1905)

17. MLB All-Time Leaders: Career Batting Average - Al Simmons

Batting Average: .334
AB: 8,759
Hits: 2,927
Season-high: .390 (1931)

Active Period: Philadelphia Athletics (1924-1932, 1940-1941, 1944); Chicago White Sox (1933-1935); Detroit Tigers (1936); Washington Senators (1937-1938); Boston Bees (1939); Cincinnati Reds (1939); Boston Red Sox (1943)

18. (3-way tie) MLB All-Time Leaders: Career Batting Average - Cap Anson

Batting Average: .333
AB: 10,278
Hits: 3,418
Season-high: .415 (1872)

Active Period: Rockford Forest Citys (1871); Philadelphia Athletics (1872-1875); Chicago White Stockings (1876-1889); Chicago Colts (1890-1897)

MLB All-Time Leaders: Career Batting Average - Eddie Collins

Batting Average: .333
AB: 9,949
Hits: 3,315
Season-high: .365 (1911)

Active Period: Philadelphia Athletics (1906-1914, 1927-1930); Chicago White Sox (1915-1926)

MLB All-Time Leaders: Career Batting Average - Paul Waner

Batting Average: .333
AB: 9,459
Hits: 3,152
Season-high: .380 (1927)

Active Period: Pittsburgh Pirates (1926-1940); Boston Braves (1941-1942); Brooklyn Dodgers (1941, 1943-1944); New York Yankees (1944-1945)

21. (4-way tie) MLB All-Time Leaders: Career Batting Average - Stan Musial

Batting Average: .331
AB: 10,972
Hits: 3,630
Season-high: .367 (1948)

Active Period: St. Louis Cardinals (1941-1963)

MLB All-Time Leaders: Career Batting Average - Ichiro Suzuki

Batting Average: .331
AB: 6,779
Hits: 2,244
Season-high: .372 (2004)

Active Period: Seattle Mariners (2001-present)

MLB All-Time Leaders: Career Batting Average - Albert Pujols

Batting Average: .331
AB: 5,733
Hits: 1,900
Season-high: .359 (2003)

Active Period: St. Louis Cardinals (2001-present)

MLB All-Time Leaders: Career Batting Average - Sam Thompson

Batting Average: .331
AB: 5,984
Hits: 1,979
Season-high: .407 (1894)

Active Period: Detroit Wolverines (1889-1898); Philadelphia Phillies (1889-1898); Detroit Tigers (1906)

25. MLB All-Time Leaders: Career Batting Average - Heinie Manush

Batting Average: .330
AB: 7,654
Hits: 2,524
Season-high: .378 (1926 and 1928)

Active Period: Detroit Tigers (1923-1927); St. Louis Browns (1928-1930); Washington Senators (1930-1935); Boston Red Sox (1936); Brooklyn Dodgers (1937-1938); Pittsburgh Pirates (1938-1939)

Source(s):

"League Leaders - Batting Average," MLB.com