We all know that Barry Bonds hit more home runs than any other player in Major League Baseball history. Even if we ignore the Performance Enhancing Drugs allegations, that doesn't necessarily mean he was the greatest slugger of all-time.
But how do we compare power hitters?
Home runs is one measure. But that hurts players like Hank Greenberg, who only played 13 seasons. We could also use Slugging Percentage (SLG). But SLG includes singles, so somebody like Ty Cobb will still rank high even though he had almost no power.
One way to compare power hitters is to use a stat called Isolated Power (ISO) which is simply the number of extra-bases per at bat. It is also easily calculated by subtracting batting average from slugging percentage.
On the next few pages, we will take a look at the greatest pure power hitters of all-time (min. 1,000 games). And some of the names might surprise you.
#20 Mike Schmidt — .260 Isolated Power (ISO)
Home Runs: 548
At Bats per HR: 15.2
Extra-Base Hits: 1,015
At Bats per XBH: 8.2
#19 Sammy Sosa — .261 ISO
Home Runs: 609
At Bats per HR: 14.5
Extra-Base Hits: 1,033
At Bats per XBH: 8.5
#18 David Ortiz — .262 ISO
Home Runs: 388
At Bats per HR: 16.4
Extra-Base Hits: 875
At Bats per XBH: 7.3
#17 Adam Dunn — .262 ISO
Home Runs: 379
At Bats per HR: 14.6
Extra-Base Hits: 680
At Bats per XBH: 8.1
#16 Alex Rodriguez — .263 ISO
Home Runs: 634
At Bats per HR: 14.8
Extra-Base Hits: 1,163
At Bats per XBH: 8.0
#15 Juan Gonzalez — .266 ISO
Home Runs: 434
At Bats per HR: 15.1
Extra-Base Hits: 847
At Bats per XBH: 7.7
#14 Carlos Delgado — .266 ISO
Home Runs: 473
At Bats per HR: 15.4
Extra-Base Hits: 974
At Bats per XBH: 7.5
#13 Ralph Kiner — .269 ISO
Home Runs: 369
At Bats per HR: 14.1
Extra-Base Hits: 624
At Bats per XBH: 8.3
#12 Albert Belle — .269 ISO
Home Runs: 381
At Bats per HR: 15.4
Extra-Base Hits: 791
At Bats per XBH: 7.4
#11 Manny Ramirez — .273 ISO
Home Runs: 555
At Bats per HR: 14.9
Extra-Base Hits: 1,122
At Bats per XBH: 7.3
#10 Jim Thome — .278 ISO
Home Runs: 604
At Bats per HR: 13.7
Extra-Base Hits: 1,074
At Bats per XBH: 7.7
#9 Jimmie Foxx — .284 ISO
Home Runs: 534
At Bats per HR: 15.2
Extra-Base Hits: 1,117
At Bats per XBH: 7.3
#8 Albert Pujols — .284 ISO
Home Runs: 449
At Bats per HR: 14.4
Extra-Base Hits: 928
At Bats per XBH: 7.0
#7 Ryan Howard — .285 ISO
Home Runs: 286
At Bats per HR: 13.3
Extra-Base Hits: 492
At Bats per XBH: 7.7
#6 Ted Williams — .290 ISO
Home Runs: 521
At Bats per HR: 14.8
Extra-Base Hits: 1,117
At Bats per XBH: 6.9
#5 Lou Gehrig — .292 ISO
Home Runs: 493
At Bats per HR: 16.2
Extra-Base Hits: 1,190
At Bats per XBH: 6.7
#4 Hank Greenberg — .292 ISO
Home Runs: 331
At Bats per HR: 15.7
Extra-Base Hits: 781
At Bats per XBH: 6.6
#3 Barry Bonds — .309 ISO
Home Runs: 762
At Bats per HR: 12.9
Extra-Base Hits: 1,440
At Bats per XBH: 6.8
#2 Mark McGwire — .325 ISO
Home Runs: 583
At Bats per HR: 10.6
Extra-Base Hits: 841
At Bats per XBH: 7.4
#1 Babe Ruth — .348 ISO
Home Runs: 714
At Bats per HR: 11.8
Extra-Base Hits: 1,356
At Bats per XBH: 6.2
Now check out the greatest pitching performances of the last 40 years
Kerry Wood And The 15 Greatest Pitching Performances Since 1968
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