Today's top players in baseball are chasing historic records during the 2014 season that will rewrite baseball's record books. Angels outfielder Mike Trout, Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw, and White Sox rookie first baseman Jose Abreu headline the record-breaking efforts.
ESPN's Jayson Stark provides us with a comprehensive analysis of the current MLB players that are likely to join exclusive lists or break longstanding records. Aside from the three previously listed names, Astros second baseman Jose Altuve, Reds closer Aroldis Chapman, Pirates starter Charlie Morton, and Rockies shortstop Troy Tulowitzki are also in pursuit of interesting milestones. But Trout, Kershaw and Abreu could solidify themselves as some of the best of all-time.
Mike Trout could make his mark on baseball history at just 23 years of age. In his first two full seasons in the MLB, the Angels outfielder led the American League in runs scored (129 in 2012 and 109 in 2013) and he's second in the AL this year with 78 through 109 games. If he can do it again in 2014, he'll join Pete Rose, Albert Pujols, Babe Ruth, Ted Williams and Mickey Mantle to be the sixth player in the past 100 years to lead his respective league in runs. Trout is also on his way toward another season with an OPS (on-base plus slugging percentage) over .900, which would make him the fourth ever player to achieve the feat, behind Mel Ott, Ted Williams and Jimmie Fox.
Kershaw is having an even better season in 2014, with a 13-2 record, 1.82 ERA, 0.85 WHIP, and five complete games in 18 starts. Last year he was 16-9 with a 1.83 ERA, 0.92 WHIP, and three complete games in 33 starts. This year, Kershaw also has the best strikeout ratio and walk ratio in the NL, and both haven't been achieved in the same season since Walter Johnson did it in 1913. Additionally, if Kershaw can keep his ERA below a 2.00, he will join three other pitchers in the modern baseball era to do so in back-to-back seasons (Greg Maddux in '94 and '95; Sandy Koufax in '63 and '64; and Hal Newhouser in '45 and '46). If he can keep it at 1.83 or lower, he'll join only Maddux (1.56 and 1.63 ERAs) as the second player to keep it that low in back-to-back seasons.
White Sox rookie first baseman Jose Abreu will also likely join the record books. He's on pace to become the first ever rookie to hit 40 home runs and 40 doubles in a season. Albert Pujols came the closest with 37 home runs and 47 doubles, and Mark McGwire hit 49 home runs but only hit 28 doubles in their rookie seasons. He'll also best McGwire if he keeps his slugging percentage where it's at for the remainder of the season. The current record is held by the former Cardinal (.618 SLG) and Abreu is boasting a .624. To help out that cause he'll need to keep smashing extra-base hits, and if he accumulates a total of 85 (which he probably will), he will join Hal Trotsky, Joe DiMaggio, Albert Pujols, Ted Williams and Nomar Garciaparra as the only other rookies to do so.
Check out Jayson Stark's "Players Chasing Some Cool History" article on ESPN.com for more details about the record-breaking efforts.
