Only 3 players have won a batting title and hit 50 or more home runs in the same season. Aaron Judge did it this year. Who was the last player to accomplish the feat?
Willie Mays
Barry Bonds
Mickey Mantle
Shohei Ohtani
Hack Wilson
That’s the question – do you know the answer?
Answer: Mickey Mantle – in 1956 the Mick led the AL in batting with a .353 average at the age of 24 – he also hit a league leading 52 homers – and if that’s not enough – Mantle also led the AL in RBIs with 130 to win the Triple Crown.
So now that we’ve established that Judge and Mantle are the last two players to lead a league in batting and hit 50 or more home runs in the same season, here’s the next question.
Who was the first of just 3 players to lead a league in batting and hit 50 or more homers in the same season?
That’s the question – do you know the answer?
Hack Wilson
Babe Ruth
Hank Greenberg
Jimmie Foxx
Red Foxx
Answer: If you said Red Foxx you may be red in the face – you are wrong – Red Foxx one of the great comics who became famous with his sitcom Sanford and Son, also famous for his standup comedy and his raunchy adult humor.
If you said Jimmie Foxx, YES, you are right, nicknamed Double X, Jimmie Foxx led the NL in batting with .364 average and he led the NL in homers with 58, all at the age of 24 while playing for the Philadelphia A’s.
Foxx ended his career with 534 home runs and was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1951.