The Best Base Stealers Since 1900

If the stolen base is the lost art, what does that make the caught stealing? Using the SQL database I decided to find the best basestealing runs created (.22*SB - .38*CS as BSRC) by the decade. The results with some commentary after the jump.

Unsurprisingly, stolen bases (or caught stealings, more appropriately) weren’t well recorded in the early 1900’s. For that reason we’ll skip the decade, otherwise we’d have zero caught stealing data to work from, and that defeats the purpose. Eddie Collins, Ty Cobb, and Bob Bescher were the three to record more than 70 steals, which is at least worth noting.

It was 1914 that a player was on record for encroaching on 10 runs, or a win, solely on the basepaths. Fritz Maisel, a skittish third baseman for the New York Yankees, stole a base 74 times and was caught 17 times for a nifty 9.82 BSRC. Maisel would also record 6.66 BSRC in 1915, but actually finished second to some guy named Ty Cobb, who had 6.68 BSRC himself. Tommy Griffith, meanwhile, finished with -7.80 BSRC, that’s what being caught four times your steals amount will do for you. The next closest was nearly a full run away at -6.96, so Griffith was in his own class of awful.

Max Carey, appropriately nicknamed "Scoops", had quite the season in 1920 with the Pittsburgh Pirates, and finished with 7.64 BSRC. Our friend Max would pop up in the top five three other times. In 1922 his BSRC would be a decade leading 10.46, in 1923 8.18, and finally 5.94 in 1925. Amusingly he shows up not once more in the top 10, but twice. 6th for 1924 and his 5.84 BSRC, and 10th for 1921 and 3.58 BSRC. I’m probably not the one to appoint titles, like "best stealer in the 1920’s" but I will anyways. Max Carey was the best stealer in the 1920’s, bar none.

Lyn Lary and Billy Werber attempted to become the Max Carey of the 1930’s, but neither succeeded. Lary had the second, fifth, and tenth best seasons by BSRC in the decade, while Werberg had the seventh and eighth. The leader, George Case’s 1939 season doesn’t come within half of Carey’s best, but again, Max Carey was insanely good, and a half of a win on the basepaths isn’t something to be ashamed of.

Case would repeat as champion in the 40’s, and only four players would finish with more than 4 BSRC. Every season within the top 12 was pre-1945, and most of those were pre-1944, which speaks towards the amount of talent lost to the war. Case appears to be our first repeat leader as well.

He may or not have been bullheaded, but he didn’t three-peat. Instead Little Luis Aparicio took honors in 1959 with 7.38 BSRC. Willie Mays dominates the top 10, with 5 runs in 1956, 4.54 in 1958, 4.42 in 1959, and 3.76 in 1955. Interestingly, Sam Jethroe and Pee Wee Reese rounded out the top five, second and fourth respectively.

Maury Willis owned the 60's.  Just as amazing was Dagoberto Campaneris 1969, 62 steals and eight catches, nearly 11 runs was only good for second. Lou Brock finished third with his 1966 season of 74 steals and 9.44 BSRC, Ernie Broglio was in his final season.

Willie Wilson lead the 70’s with 13.70 runs in 1979. A switch-hitting outfielder, Wilson spent most of his career with the Royals. In 1991 he moved on to Oakland and then in 1993 and 1994 wrapped his career up in the north side of Chicago, although by that time he was simply a shadow of his former stealing self. Lou Brock poached second, and Davey Lopes third. Joe Morgan makes three appearances in the top 10, and along with Lopes were the only players to record two seasons of 10+ runs. Jose Cruz finished 9th.

With all due respect to everyone else mentioned, things got real in the 1980’s with Vince Coleman and Rickey Henderson active. As if the stolen base lead wasn’t a big enough race, Coleman and Henderson alternate between spots on the BSRC leaderboard throughout the top five. Coleman’s 1986, 1987, and 1985 claim first, third, and fifth, while Henderson snuck in his 1983 and 1988. Coleman’s 1986 is simply astounding. 107 steals and 14 catches resulted in 18.22 runs. Wilson and Tim Raines Sr. also made appearances.

While the 80’s were top heavy, the 90’s nearly featured a top 10 that combined for over 100 runs despite nobody recording more than 12.5 runs. Marquis Grissom’s 92 with the Expos tops the list, then Tony Womack in 1999 and 1997, Henderson, Coleman, Grissom again, a trio of Kenny Lofton, and finally Chuck Knoblauch. Not too shabby.

Things aren’t nearly as impressive in the 2000’s. Willy Taveras’ 2008 tops the list with 12.3 runs, Scott Podsednik’s 2004 finishes second, and from there we don’t have a single 10+ run contributor. Carl Crawford’s 2006 comes close at 9.34, as does Eric Young’s 2000, but after that you have only two other 9+ BSRC: Jimmy Rollins in2008 and Jose Reyes in 2007. File this under odd: two Juans, Rivera and Uribe, finished with the worst BSRC, -3.2. I won’t make the "Number Juan" joke here because I’m not that sad.

For those curious, the ten best and worst of the 1900's: