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Pleading For The Fifths

Posted by Steve Lombardi on March 21, 2010

As baseball fans, we love to talk about lead-off hitters. And, we love to talk about clean-up hitters. Further, there's always talk about "the best hitter on the team" - meaning the guy who bats third. Shoot, at times, I've seen some heavy debate about #2 hitters and #9 hitters, for what it's worth. But, it's not often that we talk about # 5 hitters. Well, here's a fun list via Baseball-Reference.com's Play Index Batting Game Finder - it's the players with 2,400+ PA as a "5th batter" since 1920:

Rk Player #Matching   PA 6 AB H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS SH SF IBB HBP GDP
1 Ernie Banks 995 Ind. Games 4068 3728 960 153 28 161 592 241 525 .258 .305 .443 .749 31 36 68 32 99
2 Robin Ventura 929 Ind. Games 3950 3355 909 172 9 159 615 534 577 .271 .369 .470 .839 8 42 81 11 86
3 Harry Heilmann 901 Ind. Games 3906 3384 1238 258 57 102 703 398 221 .366 .435 .566 1.001 108 0   16  
4 Orlando Cepeda 829 Ind. Games 3468 3191 949 172 13 159 580 208 435 .297 .345 .509 .854 1 27 52 39 93
5 Don Baylor 821 Ind. Games 3426 2976 777 131 9 122 445 286 426 .261 .346 .434 .780 4 39 41 121 77
6 Moises Alou 817 Ind. Games 3402 3024 937 174 20 137 577 317 377 .310 .375 .517 .891 2 39 48 20 89
7 Pie Traynor 772 Ind. Games 3322 3016 993 155 76 27 553 195 105 .329 .373 .458 .830 98 0   13 0
8 Gary Gaetti 802 Ind. Games 3286 2992 763 150 15 120 458 217 543 .255 .310 .435 .745 7 34 21 36 101
9 Bibb Falk 768 Ind. Games 3275 2894 929 195 39 39 504 257 160 .321 .378 .456 .834 116 0   8 0
10 Chick Hafey 767 Ind. Games 3261 2936 963 231 47 121 592 237 292 .328 .383 .562 .945 65 0   23 0
11 Jimmie Foxx 743 Ind. Games 3254 2723 895 160 49 190 672 482 396 .329 .430 .633 1.063 46 0   3  
12 John Olerud 777 Ind. Games 3252 2742 812 202 4 86 426 453 351 .296 .396 .467 .863 1 32 74 24 94
13 Bob Meusel 747 Ind. Games 3214 2904 908 219 47 75 598 209 337 .313 .361 .498 .859 92 0   9 0
14 Carlton Fisk 755 Ind. Games 3144 2777 760 141 19 109 414 289 435 .274 .349 .456 .805 7 26 41 45 68
15 Ron Cey 757 Ind. Games 3127 2685 728 115 10 133 453 379 477 .271 .363 .470 .833 10 30 58 23 64
16 Luke Appling 682 Ind. Games 2986 2617 863 149 34 19 412 347 135 .330 .409 .434 .843 19 0   3 0
17 Tony Perez 745 Ind. Games 2984 2700 775 147 20 107 467 238 519 .287 .344 .475 .819 1 31 40 14 79
18 Tino Martinez 703 Ind. Games 2923 2605 711 136 8 121 473 269 373 .273 .342 .471 .813 1 28 32 20 69
19 Norm Cash 719 Ind. Games 2899 2435 694 98 18 163 460 408 385 .285 .391 .541 .932 7 19 53 30 66
20 Gus Suhr 679 Ind. Games 2895 2512 722 142 58 38 436 341 209 .287 .374 .436 .810 35 0   7 0
21 Joe Adcock 715 Ind. Games 2858 2575 726 112 9 145 478 230 448 .282 .340 .501 .841 23 22 20 8 84
22 Brooks Robinson 676 Ind. Games 2840 2562 695 106 23 79 376 206 237 .271 .324 .423 .747 25 35 24 12 74
23 Ted Simmons 677 Ind. Games 2822 2592 721 151 19 70 418 190 227 .278 .328 .432 .760 5 23 45 12 93
24 Tim Wallach 676 Ind. Games 2788 2539 629 139 14 85 366 202 372 .248 .305 .414 .719 1 28 22 18 72
25 Ben Oglivie 668 Ind. Games 2782 2476 684 114 16 124 404 256 295 .276 .345 .485 .830 10 24 60 16 57
26 Marty McManus 650 Ind. Games 2767 2444 700 138 31 42 392 246 212 .286 .355 .420 .775 64 0   13  
27 David Justice 664 Ind. Games 2753 2347 696 118 9 133 451 375 405 .297 .391 .524 .916 1 23 32 6 47
28 Darrell Evans 668 Ind. Games 2731 2290 556 67 6 116 374 401 365 .243 .354 .429 .784 8 24 42 8 34
29 Pinky Whitney 625 Ind. Games 2687 2454 726 140 29 43 422 168 195 .296 .342 .429 .771 61 0   4 0
30 Johnny Bench 649 Ind. Games 2686 2377 649 109 9 116 391 272 381 .273 .346 .473 .818 3 26 40 5 64
31 George Hendrick 663 Ind. Games 2662 2414 676 112 6 102 388 209 318 .280 .335 .458 .793 4 28 34 5 77
32 Lee May 653 Ind. Games 2653 2465 653 118 7 128 417 145 491 .265 .307 .474 .781 4 25 23 14 70
33 Pinky Higgins 596 Ind. Games 2595 2305 675 133 13 65 412 257 262 .293 .364 .446 .811 31 0   2  
34 Bill Skowron 638 Ind. Games 2578 2372 685 117 19 94 404 157 333 .289 .336 .473 .809 10 17 19 22 85
35 Jackie Jensen 595 Ind. Games 2574 2214 616 115 16 79 397 325 252 .278 .369 .452 .821 4 23 14 8 73
36 Dave Winfield 608 Ind. Games 2535 2274 639 104 14 101 339 233 368 .281 .347 .472 .819 5 17 35 6 60
37 Chili Davis 604 Ind. Games 2512 2154 617 120 8 91 344 332 415 .286 .380 .476 .856 4 17 60 4 49
38 Tony Cuccinello 594 Ind. Games 2511 2254 645 125 20 35 326 220 169 .286 .351 .406 .757 31 0   6 0
39 Gary Carter 601 Ind. Games 2501 2195 603 122 12 101 367 250 284 .275 .350 .479 .829 10 27 25 19 43
40 Willie Horton 608 Ind. Games 2497 2276 617 84 16 119 402 179 415 .271 .327 .479 .806 7 17 29 18 46
41 J.T. Snow 599 Ind. Games 2477 2116 577 106 5 77 361 303 450 .273 .365 .437 .802 3 31 30 24 55
42 Rico Petrocelli 594 Ind. Games 2463 2123 527 91 10 92 320 291 357 .248 .338 .431 .768 11 28 28 10 46
43 Deron Johnson 625 Ind. Games 2463 2204 542 96 13 76 348 215 497 .246 .310 .405 .715 7 32 20 5 56
44 Dan Driessen 610 Ind. Games 2453 2096 548 110 11 69 318 319 285 .261 .357 .423 .780 8 24 43 6 47
45 Joe Judge 575 Ind. Games 2419 2069 625 135 38 22 342 256 100 .302 .382 .436 .818 81 0   13 0
46 Ryan Klesko 612 Ind. Games 2417 2101 597 139 10 104 384 287 402 .284 .371 .508 .879 1 13 28 10 50
47 Torii Hunter 586 Ind. Games 2403 2190 594 140 8 105 346 177 430 .271 .330 .486 .816 0 14 18 22 59
48 Riggs Stephenson 551 Ind. Games 2402 2116 718 152 25 33 369 231 126 .339 .408 .482 .889 41 0   14 0
Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Play Index Tool Used
Generated 3/21/2010.

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Next, here's a list of batters, since 1920, ranked by their OPS in those PA where they batted 5th in the line-up with a cut-off of an OPS of .850 or better:

Rk Player #Matching   PA AB H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS 6 SH SF IBB HBP GDP
1 Jimmie Foxx 743 Ind. Games 3254 2723 895 160 49 190 672 482 396 .329 .430 .633 1.063 46 0   3  
2 Lou Gehrig 319 Ind. Games 1393 1181 394 80 24 65 273 184 144 .334 .427 .607 1.034 19 0   9 0
3 Johnny Mize 408 Ind. Games 1728 1509 505 109 31 70 297 199 130 .335 .416 .587 1.003 10 0 0 10 2
4 Harry Heilmann 901 Ind. Games 3906 3384 1238 258 57 102 703 398 221 .366 .435 .566 1.001 108 0   16  
5 Barry Bonds 533 Ind. Games 2222 1809 550 115 12 108 371 373 269 .304 .421 .560 .981 1 26 90 13 31
6 Mel Ott 466 Ind. Games 2003 1691 536 92 16 94 362 280 148 .317 .416 .557 .973 25 0   7  
7 Jim Thome 506 Ind. Games 2176 1766 487 95 3 133 355 375 548 .276 .404 .559 .963 0 18 40 17 34
8 Rafael Palmeiro 463 Ind. Games 1955 1675 502 94 1 116 342 244 201 .300 .389 .565 .953 4 20 36 12 38
9 Jim Edmonds 453 Ind. Games 1754 1487 431 98 5 96 300 247 382 .290 .392 .556 .948 3 9 31 8 18
10 Chick Hafey 767 Ind. Games 3261 2936 963 231 47 121 592 237 292 .328 .383 .562 .945 65 0   23 0
11 Bill Dickey 422 Ind. Games 1852 1622 510 90 14 81 374 214 82 .314 .398 .537 .935 5 0   11 0
12 Norm Cash 719 Ind. Games 2899 2435 694 98 18 163 460 408 385 .285 .391 .541 .932 7 19 53 30 66
13 Ripper Collins 459 Ind. Games 1974 1769 554 108 30 83 347 182 156 .313 .379 .549 .928 17 0   6 0
14 Adam Dunn 385 Ind. Games 1624 1298 317 57 5 101 247 304 432 .244 .391 .529 .920 1 8 36 13 17
15 David Justice 664 Ind. Games 2753 2347 696 118 9 133 451 375 405 .297 .391 .524 .916 1 23 32 6 47
16 Will Clark 330 Ind. Games 1393 1204 376 89 3 51 198 166 201 .312 .395 .518 .913 0 15 26 8 21
17 David Ortiz 304 Ind. Games 1251 1091 313 80 4 63 207 148 226 .287 .371 .541 .912 1 8 16 3 25
18 Dolph Camilli 280 Ind. Games 1201 1027 300 49 10 54 200 163 195 .292 .393 .517 .910 4 0   7  
19 Fred McGriff 394 Ind. Games 1611 1378 380 71 7 91 229 214 320 .276 .373 .536 .909 0 12 20 7 33
20 Darryl Strawberry 464 Ind. Games 1914 1630 443 78 18 102 287 261 423 .272 .373 .529 .902 1 13 44 9 15
21 Mike Stanley 343 Ind. Games 1342 1134 328 62 1 61 210 183 246 .289 .391 .507 .899 1 10 9 14 27
22 Bill Terry 499 Ind. Games 2146 1919 632 107 38 55 371 176 144 .329 .387 .511 .897 48 0   3 0
23 David Wright 279 Ind. Games 1192 1041 316 65 8 46 202 130 219 .304 .382 .514 .896 0 12 16 9 28
24 Gil Hodges 453 Ind. Games 1784 1565 448 70 11 95 298 190 281 .286 .364 .527 .891 10 12 15 7 34
25 Moises Alou 817 Ind. Games 3402 3024 937 174 20 137 577 317 377 .310 .375 .517 .891 2 39 48 20 89
26 Del Bissonette 319 Ind. Games 1365 1211 381 70 25 37 209 132 151 .315 .384 .505 .889 18 0   4  
27 Riggs Stephenson 551 Ind. Games 2402 2116 718 152 25 33 369 231 126 .339 .408 .482 .889 41 0   14 0
28 Matt Stairs 441 Ind. Games 1707 1469 402 75 4 92 249 204 319 .274 .368 .518 .886 1 10 17 22 22
29 Baby Doll Jacobso 314 Ind. Games 1360 1217 408 82 28 22 231 81 79 .335 .382 .503 .885 50 0   12  
30 Willie Aikens 302 Ind. Games 1189 1026 294 62 1 54 193 145 201 .287 .376 .507 .883 0 10 19 8 28
31 Ryan Klesko 612 Ind. Games 2417 2101 597 139 10 104 384 287 402 .284 .371 .508 .879 1 13 28 10 50
32 Kiki Cuyler 290 Ind. Games 1249 1110 357 75 18 24 185 104 115 .322 .385 .486 .872 24 0   11 0
33 Steve Finley 405 Ind. Games 1641 1450 398 58 18 91 258 154 232 .274 .345 .528 .872 8 18 16 11 23
34 Darren Daulton 341 Ind. Games 1419 1167 300 74 10 60 242 229 213 .257 .378 .492 .870 2 14 23 6 8
35 Rondell White 337 Ind. Games 1354 1231 372 75 5 57 192 90 214 .302 .358 .510 .868 1 10 9 22 19
36 Troy Glaus 437 Ind. Games 1829 1552 407 80 4 93 284 249 361 .262 .367 .499 .866 0 12 11 16 32
37 Greg Vaughn 381 Ind. Games 1580 1368 341 60 8 101 298 186 325 .249 .338 .526 .865 5 15 12 6 14
38 John Olerud 777 Ind. Games 3252 2742 812 202 4 86 426 453 351 .296 .396 .467 .863 1 32 74 24 94
39 Aramis Ramirez 304 Ind. Games 1253 1153 331 65 3 68 216 72 148 .287 .333 .526 .859 1 13 7 14 41
40 Bob Meusel 747 Ind. Games 3214 2904 908 219 47 75 598 209 337 .313 .361 .498 .859 92 0   9 0
41 Hideki Matsui 410 Ind. Games 1781 1570 464 82 4 70 291 185 212 .296 .371 .487 .857 0 13 10 10 36
42 Al Simmons 518 Ind. Games 2242 2067 662 130 37 49 380 141 159 .320 .366 .490 .856 26 0   8  
43 Andres Galarraga 548 Ind. Games 2253 2052 591 116 8 109 380 146 502 .288 .344 .512 .856 0 17 23 38 43
44 Chili Davis 604 Ind. Games 2512 2154 617 120 8 91 344 332 415 .286 .380 .476 .856 4 17 60 4 49
45 Scott Rolen 389 Ind. Games 1621 1414 408 98 11 54 266 168 228 .289 .367 .488 .855 1 19 11 19 43
46 Tony Lazzeri 344 Ind. Games 1522 1294 383 61 27 35 264 187 155 .296 .388 .466 .854 34 0   7  
47 Jay Buhner 464 Ind. Games 1971 1676 427 82 4 105 311 262 483 .255 .358 .496 .854 2 15 17 16 50
48 Orlando Cepeda 829 Ind. Games 3468 3191 949 172 13 159 580 208 435 .297 .345 .509 .854 1 27 52 39 93
49 Mike Greenwell 431 Ind. Games 1819 1635 515 105 13 44 254 157 108 .315 .377 .476 .853 1 13 23 13 54
50 Bob Allison 553 Ind. Games 2231 1900 496 86 20 102 323 303 415 .261 .364 .488 .853 7 10 11 11 40
51 Wes Covington 350 Ind. Games 1288 1172 345 51 9 59 207 90 173 .294 .348 .504 .852 6 9 19 11 31
52 Bobby Bonilla 289 Ind. Games 1162 1002 288 44 5 46 179 138 171 .287 .372 .479 .851 0 15 20 5 24
53 Felipe Alou 349 Ind. Games 1277 1186 374 72 9 42 198 68 118 .315 .353 .497 .851 9 8 6 6 19
54 Bob Horner 360 Ind. Games 1486 1316 351 66 1 86 257 145 180 .267 .336 .514 .851 0 21 11 4 34
55 Ellis Burks 431 Ind. Games 1760 1531 430 88 9 71 266 187 276 .281 .362 .489 .851 3 19 9 19 34
56 Javy Lopez 305 Ind. Games 1304 1196 356 67 5 55 188 84 206 .298 .350 .500 .850 0 8 7 16 26
Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Play Index Tool Used
Generated 3/21/2010.

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Comparing the two lists, it's pretty safe to say that Jimmie Foxx, Harry Heilmann, Chick Hafey, Norm Cash, David Justice and Moises Alou were the greatest "fifth" hitters of all time - with an honorable mention to Barry Bonds, Mel Ott and Jim Thome.

No related posts.

This entry was posted on Sunday, March 21st, 2010 at 3:44 pm and is filed under Game Finders. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.

7 Responses to “Pleading For The Fifths”

  1. Pageup Says:
    March 21st, 2010 at 5:40 pm

    If Foxx was batting 5th that much who the heck was batting 3rd and 4th on that team?

  2. Raphy Says:
    March 21st, 2010 at 5:49 pm

    Mostly Mickey Cochrane and Al Simmons.

  3. BSK Says:
    March 21st, 2010 at 8:55 pm

    Fifth is an interesting spot in the order because I feel many teams use it for guys who were former #3 or #4 hitters. Or guys who might otherwise be #3 or #4 hitters but there are even better guys in those spots. It is almost defined by what it isn't than what it is. That is to say, many #5 hitters are put there because they don't fit the mold of a #1 or #2 hitter (or at least, the perception of what that mold is) and are not quite good enough for #3 or #4.

  4. Zachary Says:
    March 21st, 2010 at 9:50 pm

    Cochrane, Simmons, and Foxx ... now that's what I call the heart of the order! I'm a big Mickey Cochrane fan, since, like me, he's a Boston University guy.

    Good topic. I was actually thinking about this kind of thing the other day. You know, historically, how do the different spots hit? What's the most common position for a particular lineup spot? In 2009, for instance, a five-hitter was most likely a right fielder.

  5. rico petrocelli Says:
    March 22nd, 2010 at 5:32 am

    These are CLASSIC 5 slot guys, what a list

    Norm Cash
    Orlando Cepeda
    Joe Adcock
    Ron Cey
    Lee May
    Don Baylor
    Willie Horton
    Darrell Evans
    Tony Perez
    Bill Skowron and my man Rico Petrocelli

    classic that Pie Traynormakes it -- slugging on third

  6. Rich Says:
    March 22nd, 2010 at 10:06 am

    # Raphy Says:
    March 21st, 2010 at 5:49 pm

    Mostly Mickey Cochrane and Al Simmons.
    ----------------------------------------

    Also, for those first two years, some guy named Tyrus Cobb. I've never heard of him either.

  7. ddanyc Says:
    March 22nd, 2010 at 4:37 pm

    Curious that none of the top 45 in #5 slot appearances is active.

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