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22 MLB records that will never be broken in our lifetimes
Bettmann/Getty Images

22 MLB records that will never be broken in our lifetimes

What are baseball's records least likely to be broken during your lifetime? Give or take a half-century or so, many of the game's most impressive marks have stood the test of time and seem to be out of reach. Whether it be the immortal records tied to the likes of Joe DiMaggio, Cal Ripken and Nolan Ryan or some of the more obscure yet formidable marks that have been mixed in among legends, there is no shortage of incredible records that could stand the test of time within Major League Baseball.

Here are 22 MLB records that could last longer than all of us.

 
1 of 22

Joe DiMaggio’s 56-game hitting streak

Joe DiMaggio’s 56-game hitting streak
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The legendary 1941 hitting streak by the Yankee Clipper is perhaps the most iconic and dominant run in the history of the game. DiMaggio hit .404 and accumulated 91 hits during his streak, which is 11 games longer than the next closest consecutive games streak of its kind. No player since Pete Rose in 1978 has hit in as many as 40 straight games, and with the expanded usage of specialized bullpen arms in today’s game, it is less likely than ever that the record will fall.

 
2 of 22

Cal Ripken’s 2,632 consecutive games

Cal Ripken’s 2,632 consecutive games
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From May 1982 to September 1998, Ripken didn’t miss a single ballgame. He broke Lou Gehrig’s previous standard of 2,130 straight games that stood for 56 years and then bettered it by 500 games all while playing one of the game’s most demanding positions, shortstop, for most it. Only six players besides Ripken have played in more than 1,000 straight games. To best Ripken’s mark, a player would have to have perfect attendance for 16 years and then play a part of a 17th. Meanwhile, no active player has more than even 300 straight games played.

 
3 of 22

Nolan Ryan’s 5,714 career strikeouts

Nolan Ryan’s 5,714 career strikeouts
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Even in an era where strikeouts are a bigger part of the game than ever, the sheer volume of K’s that Ryan accumulated is staggering. Ryan had six seasons of 300 strikeouts and 15 of at least 200. He has 839 more K’s than any other pitcher, and to catch him, a player would have to pitch for nearly 30 years (Ryan did) while still averaging around 200 strikeouts a year. Meanwhile, in the last 20 years only five pitchers have reached 300 strikeouts in a season.

 
4 of 22

Nolan Ryan's seven career no-hitters

Nolan Ryan's seven career no-hitters
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Throwing a no-hitter is the second-most difficult single-game task for a pitcher besides a perfect game, and Ryan did it three more times than any other pitcher in history. Ryan threw his first no-no in May 1973, followed with his second exactly two months later and pitched his final one 18 years later at age 44. Only four active pitchers have thrown at least two in their careers, and only four other pitchers in history have thrown three no-hitters, which is an extraordinary feat but still dwarfed by Ryan’s brilliance.

 
5 of 22

Nolan Ryan’s 2,795 walks

Nolan Ryan’s 2,795 walks
Robert Riger/Getty Images

If one thing can be said about Ryan, it's that when he did something, he did it thoroughly. While his penchant for strikeouts was legendary, so was his frequency in issuing bases on balls. Ryan ran up over 900 more walks than any pitcher in history during his 27-year career. It is a level of control that he was uniquely able to sustain due to being able to pitch himself single-handedly out of his self-created jams. It is highly unlikely that a pitcher with such control issues would even be allowed to stay in the rotation in today’s game, as he would be relocated to a bullpen role.

 
6 of 22

Johnny Vander Meer’s back-to-back no-hitters

Johnny Vander Meer’s back-to-back no-hitters
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With much due respect to Ryan's accumulation of no-hit outings, even he could not pull it off in back-to-back appearances. In 1938 Vander Meer issued consecutive no-hitters just four days apart. Since then, Max Scherzer followed a no-hitter with a one-hitter in 2015 and in 1990 Dave Stieb had a second no-hitter broken up with two outs in the ninth inning of the encore attempt. Ewell Blackwell threw 17 straight no-hit innings in back-to-back starts but left before finishing the second start. No one has been able to equal the mastery of Vander Meer in 1938, and the idea of breaking it with a third straight no-hitter is unthinkable.

 
7 of 22

Rickey Henderson’s all-time stolen base record

Rickey Henderson’s all-time stolen base record
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The stolen base is rapidly becoming a relic of the past, as the game has become far less reliant on base running to produce runs than it was in Henderson’s day. Even in his time, Rickey was the exception to the rule (in many ways) and rewrote the record book for steals in a staggering fashion. To even approach his 1,406 steals — which is 468 more than his closest all-time competition, Lou Brock — it would require averaging 70 steals for 20 years. In comparison, only two players in the last 10 years have reached 70 steals once.

 
8 of 22

Ted Williams's .482 career on-base percentage

Ted Williams's .482 career on-base percentage
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Widely regarded as the greatest hitter of all time, an honor that he certainly encouraged, no one ever reached base with the regularity that Williams did. He led the American League in OBP 12 times. Since Williams retired in 1960, only four players have had single-season on-base percentages as high as his 19-year career average.

 
9 of 22

Cy Young’s 511 wins, 749 complete games and 316 losses

Cy Young’s 511 wins, 749 complete games and 316 losses
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While the majority of the feats listed here are limited to baseball’s "modern era," after 1900, Young’s feats are so extraordinary that we'd be remiss to omit them. His wins, losses and complete game totals are all-time records and testament to his effectiveness, durability and the time he competed in, when relievers were seldom utilized. To even reach 500 victories, a pitcher would have to average 25 wins for 20 years. Only three pitchers in the last 40 years have reached that many once, and with the expansion of relievers, starters taking credit for decisions is becoming less and less frequent.

 
10 of 22

Walter Johnson’s 110 shutouts

Walter Johnson’s 110 shutouts
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He is 20 better in this category than any other pitcher and had 11 seasons of at least six shutouts. To measure how strong of a showing this is over an extended period of time, it would take 25 years of averaging four shutouts a season to get within 10 of the Big Train’s mark. The only two players in the last 50 years to come within 50 shutouts of Johnson are Tom Seaver and Nolan Ryan, who each totaled 61.

 
11 of 22

Jack Taylor's incredible run of endurance

Jack Taylor's incredible run of endurance
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At the turn of the century, no pitcher showed up and put in more work with more regularity than Taylor. From 1901 to 1906 he made 202 consecutive appearances without needing a relief pitcher. From 1901 to 1904 he actually made 187 straight starts without needing a reliever, but he interrupted the streak by making 15 appearances as a reliever himself.

 
12 of 22

Sam Crawford’s 309 triples

Sam Crawford’s 309 triples
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The triple is the hardest hit to get in all of baseball outside of the rare inside-the-park home run, and from 1899 to 1917 the Detroit Tigers’ Crawford made it a trademark habit. He had four seasons of better than 20 and 17 of at least 10. Only three players in the last 30 years have managed one season reaching 20. Take into account how rare this is: The only player to begin his career after 1940 to approach this mark is Stan Musial, and his 177 are just over half of what Crawford did.

 

 
13 of 22

Chief Wilson’s 36 triples in a season

Chief Wilson’s 36 triples in a season
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Wilson set the record in 1912 for the Pittsburgh Pirates, and it has remained one of the game’s most unapproachable records since. For context’s sake, only two players in the last 100 years have come within 10, with the closest attempt being Kiki Cuyler’s 26 triples in 1925. Only six players in the last half-century have hit as many as 20 in a year, and with the infrequency of the event in the modern game, this is one mark that is likely safe forever.

 
14 of 22

Ty Cobb’s .367 career batting average

Ty Cobb’s .367 career batting average
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Cobb played in a much different era than today, when contact was king. Regardless, Cobb’s mastery at running up hits has not been equaled since. His career batting average still stands head and shoulders above the best effort any other hitter has been able to sustain. Even Ted Williams, who many consider the greatest hitter of all-time, finished 22 points back of the record. Tony Gwynn, arguably baseball's best modern hitter finished nearly 30 points back from Cobb. 

 
15 of 22

Wes Ferrell's 37 home runs as an AL pitcher

Wes Ferrell's 37 home runs as an AL pitcher
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This is a quirky record that has been established simply by the fact that rules adjustments have made it essentially impossible to break, since American League pitchers are not a part of the everyday lineup anymore. In the days prior to the designated hitter, Wes Ferrell connected for 37 career homers while a member of an AL squad, and his 38 total homers (one came as a pinch hitter) are also a record for pitchers. This may be the most tenuous "unbreakable" record on this list, as Angels rookie phenom Shohei Ohtani is racking up the strikeouts and home runs as the first two-way star in long, long time.

 
16 of 22

Hank Aaron's 25 All-Star Games

Hank Aaron's 25 All-Star Games
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Back in the day when two All-Star Games were played, one midsummer and another after the season, Hammerin’ Hank was a mainstay. However, with All-Star competition limited to just once a year now, this is a record that will likely stand forever.

 
17 of 22

Hank Aaron's 6,856 career total bases

Hank Aaron's 6,856 career total bases
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While Aaron’s former reign as the all-time home run king was his main calling card to fame, it overshadowed the fact that he was much more than just a long ball hitter. In addition to his 755 home runs, Aaron has the third most hits ever (3,771), 10th most doubles (624) and walked over 1,400 times as well. His total number of bases accumulated is over 700 more than his closest competition in Stan Musial.

 
18 of 22

Yankees' 15 World Series appearances in 18 years

Yankees' 15 World Series appearances in 18 years
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The New York Yankees are the most accomplished franchise in major sports history, and at the peak of their powers, it was rare to see a World Series without them involved. From 1947 to 1964, the Yanks represented the American League in 15 out of 18 seasons, winning 10 times (including five consecutively). In the constantly shifting cost and makeup of roster maintenance in today’s game, such a dynasty is next to impossible to hold together that long.

 
19 of 22

Boston Red Sox's eight consecutive wins, postseason comeback in 2004

Boston Red Sox's eight consecutive wins, postseason comeback in 2004
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While not a record in the textbook sense, the fight back from oblivion that the 2004 Red Sox accomplished is as rare of a feat as possible, as it had never happened before or since. Down 3-0 to the New York Yankees in the series and trailing in the ninth inning of Game 4, the Red Sox fought back to win the game and the ALCS as a whole, 4-3, before going on to sweep the Cardinals in the World Series. It marked the first time a team had ever come back from a 3-0 postseason deficit in baseball history and was the first World Series win for the Sox since 1918.

 
20 of 22

Barry Bonds’s 120 intentional walks in a season

Barry Bonds’s 120 intentional walks in a season
Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images

Bonds's most famous record came via the long ball, as he is both the single-season and career home run champion. However, his most impressive mark is not via the home run; rather it is the extent that opponents went to to avoid him connecting for one. In 2004, Bonds was walked a record 232 times, 120 of which were intentional. It was 52 more times than the next closest single-season record for being avoided, which Bonds also owns. In total, he was intentionally passed on more often than the total of eight MLB teams that season.

 
21 of 22

Fernando Tatis' two grand slams in one inning

Fernando Tatis' two grand slams in one inning
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Hitting a grand slam is an awesome culmination of a big inning for a team and an ultimate failure by a pitcher. To have it happen once is devastating enough, but to have it happen twice in a single inning is a backbreaker, let alone by the same opponent. Fernando Tatis pulled off this incredible feat in 1999 against the Los Angeles Dodgers while also setting the record for RBI in an inning. This feat is incredible as is, but the idea of it being broken with a third slam is as unlikely as it gets.

 
22 of 22

Chicago Cubs World Series drought

Chicago Cubs World Series drought
Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

The simple mathematics of living long enough to see another team run up the generation-spanning dry spell of the Chicago Cubs makes this a record not likely to be seen by the eyes of the currently living again. The Cubs broke their century-plus World Series drought in 2016, a streak that could take another 38 years for the Cleveland Indians to reach and 52 years for the Washington Nationals to meet. The overwhelming odds (and current returns) of both of those franchises make that unlikely.

Matt Whitener is St. Louis-based writer, radio host and 12-6 curveball enthusiast. He has been covering Major League Baseball since 2010, and dabbles in WWE, NBA and other odd jobs as well. Follow Matt on Twitter at @CheapSeatFan.

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