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Second base is somewhat of an overlooked position in baseball, literally sandwiched between the power hitting of first base and the defensive importance of shortstop. However, if you go back to the early 20th century, a number of the game’s elite players manned second base, including arguably the two greatest second basemen in MLB history in Eddie Collins and Rogers Hornsby. Though their respective playing styles were quite different – Collins was one of the game’s premier table-setters, while Hornsby is one of the purest hitters ever (along with the likes of Ty Cobb and Ted Williams) – each player’s impact was immense and a century later, both remain among the legends of the game. Thus, between these two goliaths of second base, it is only natural to ask:
Who was better – Eddie Collins or Rogers Hornsby?
The Beginning
As youngsters, Collins and Hornsby each showed flashes of brilliance in their first few major league seasons on their way to becoming eventual superstars.
Born and raised outside of New York City, Collins was a bit of an anomaly for his era given few baseball players back then attended college; excelling both academically and athletically, he attended Columbia University and signed as a 19-year-old with the Philadelphia Athletics in 1906 while still a student. Though he made his major league debut in 1906, Collins only played in 20 games over the next two seasons; he would get regular playing time by 1908 and in 102 games played, hit .273 with 1 home run, 40 runs batted in, 39 runs scored, a .312 on-base percentage, and a .379 slugging percentage, good for a 119 OPS+ (which measures on-base percentage plus slugging vs. a league-wide average set at 100).
As for Hornsby, he was the youngest of six children growing up in Texas and started playing baseball at a young age, joining a semi-professional team by the age of 15. After dropping out of high school in 10th grade, he went to work at a meat packing factory, while also playing minor league baseball; at age 19 in 1915, he was signed by the St. Louis Cardinals and made his big league debut later that year. In his first full season in 1916, Hornsby hit .313 with 6 home runs, 65 runs batted in, 63 runs scored, a .369 on-base percentage, and a .444 slugging percentage, good for a 151 OPS+.
Career Comparison
During their primes, Collins and Hornsby were among the premier players in baseball – each was an MVP winner and compiled numerous single-season and career records that continue to stand the test of time today.
As part of the Athletics’ renowned “$100,000 infield” that also included Hall of Fame third baseman Home Run Baker, Collins emerged as a superstar in 1909, hitting .347 with 3 home runs, 56 runs batted in, 104 runs scored, 63 stolen bases, a .416 on-base percentage, and a .450 slugging percentage (170 OPS+). This marked the first of eight consecutive seasons batting .300+ and was followed by a 1910 campaign highlighted by 81s: a .324 batting average with 3 home runs, 81 runs batted in, 81 runs scored, a league-high and career-best 81 stolen bases (the first time a player had stolen 80+ bases in a season), a .382 on-base percentage, and a .418 slugging percentage, good for a 150 OPS+. With the introduction of the MVP award in 1911, Collins placed top-six in each of its first four years of existence, hitting at least .340 each year, stealing 50+ bases 3x, and leading the league in runs scored for three straight years:
- 1911: .365 batting average with 3 home runs, 73 runs batted in, 92 runs scored, 38 stolen bases, a .451 on-base percentage, and a .481 slugging percentage (162 OPS+); finished third for AL MVP
- 1912: .348 batting average with no home runs, 64 runs batted in, a league-leading and career-high 137 runs scored, 63 stolen bases, a .450 on-base percentage, and a .435 slugging percentage (158 OPS+); finished sixth for MVP
- 1913: .345 batting average with 3 home runs, 73 runs batted in, a league-high 125 runs scored, 55 stolen bases, a .441 on-base percentage, and a .453 slugging percentage (164 OPS+); finished third for MVP
- 1914: .344 batting average with 2 home runs, 85 runs batted, a league-best 122 runs scored, 58 stolen bases, a .452 on-base percentage, and a .452 slugging percentage (176 OPS+); won the AL MVP award for the only time in his career
Following his MVP season, Collins was sold by the Athletics to the Chicago White Sox for $50,000, which at the time was the highest-ever price paid for a player, and it was also the first of only 3x that a reigning MVP has been sold or traded (the other times being Alex Rodriguez in 2003 and Giancarlo Stanton in 2017); for his troubles, Collins became the third highest-paid player in baseball, behind Cobb and Tris Speaker. In his first season with the White Sox in 1915, Collins again hit .330+ with 100+ runs scored and a league-high 119 walks, but soon experienced a bit of a mid-career slump, as he saw his batting average drop to .308, then .289, and then, .276 in successive years. However, he rebounded to a .319 batting average in 1919 (the year of the infamous Black Sox Scandal – more on that later) and would hit .300+ for the remainder of his career.
In 1920, Collins hit a career-high .372 on a career-best 224 hits with 3 home runs, 76 runs batted in, 117 runs scored, 20 stolen bases, a .438 on-base percentage, and a .493 slugging percentage, good for a 146 OPS+. Entering his mid-30s, when most players were in decline, he embarked on another remarkable three-year stretch of finishing top-five for MVP each season, including a pair of runner-ups (note that the MVP award was discontinued after 1914 and only resumed for the AL in 1922):
- 1922: a .324 batting average with 1 home run, 69 runs batted in, 92 runs scored, 20 stolen bases, a .401 on-base percentage, and a .403 slugging percentage, good for a 111 OPS+; placed fifth for MVP
- 1923: a .360 batting average with 5 home runs, 67 runs batted in, 89 runs scored, a league-leading 48 stolen bases, a .455 on-base percentage, and a .453 slugging percentage, good for a 142 OPS+; placed second for MVP to Babe Ruth
- 1924: a .349 batting average with a career-best 6 home runs and 86 runs batted in, 108 runs scored, a league-high 42 stolen bases, a .441 on-base percentage, and a .455 slugging percentage, good for a 134 OPS+; named player-manager and placed second for MVP to Walter Johnson
During his last two seasons with Chicago, Collins hit at least .340 both years before returning to Philadelphia in 1927 as a 40-year-old player-coach. However, he only played 143 total games over four seasons before retiring at age 43 in 1930, one of a handful of players to play in four decades and the only one to play at least a dozen years for two different teams – upon retirement, Collins was top-five in a number of categories (career games played, at-bats, hits, runs scored, walks, stolen bases, etc.) and remains the all-time hit leader at second base.
Meanwhile, Hornsby improved further in 1917 to a .327 batting average, 8 home runs, 66 runs batted in, 86 runs scored, a .385 on-base percentage, and a league-best .484 slugging percentage (169 OPS+). After a couple more strong seasons with St. Louis and with the advent of the live-ball era, he embarked in 1920 on one of the most dominant stretches in baseball history, winning six straight batting titles while hitting no lower than .370 in any season and also leading the league in on-base percentage, and slugging percentage every year:
- 1920: .370 batting average on a league-high 218 hits with 9 home runs, a league-high 94 run batted in, 96 runs scored, a .431 on-base percentage, and a .559 slugging percentage (185 OPS+)
- 1921: .397 batting average on a league-leading 235 hits with 21 home runs, a league-high 126 runs batted in, a league-best 131 runs scored, a .458 on-base percentage, and a .639 slugging percentage (191 OPS+)
- 1922: .401 batting average (highest NL mark of the 20th century to-date) on a career-high 250 hits with a career-best 42 home runs (then an NL record) and 152 runs batted in, 141 runs scored, a .459 on-base percentage, and a.722 slugging percentage (207 OPS+); while the NL MVP award had been discontinued after 1914 and would not resume until 1924, Hornsby won the Triple Crown and his 450 total bases remains an NL record
- 1923: .384 batting average with 17 home runs, 83 runs batted in, 89 runs scored, a .459 on-base percentage, and a .627 slugging percentage (187 OPS+); limited to 107 games played due to injuries
- 1924: set a live-ball era-record with a .424 batting average on a league-high 227 hits with 25 home runs, 94 runs batted in, a league-leading 121 runs scored, a career-best .507 on-base percentage, and a .696 slugging percentage (222 OPS+); in the first year of the re-introduced NL MVP award, finished second to Dazzy Vance
- 1925: another .400+ season with a .403 batting average, a league-high 39 home runs and 143 runs batted in, a .489 on-base percentage, and a career-high .756 slugging percentage (210 OPS+); Hornsby not only won the NL MVP, but also again won the Triple Crown, making him and Ted Williams the only players to ever win multiple Triple Crowns
Having become the Cardinals’ player-manager in 1925, Hornsby followed up on his Triple Crown campaign by hitting “only” .317 in 1926 and as a result of a contract dispute, was traded to the New York Giants for Frankie Frisch (a Hall of Fame second baseman in his own right) and Jimmy Ring. In his lone season with the Giants, he finished third for MVP with a .361 batting average, 26 home runs, 125 runs batted in, a league-best 133 runs scored, a league-leading .448 on-base percentage, and a .586 slugging percentage, good for a 175 OPS+. Due to ongoing conflicts with the team, Hornsby was traded in offseason to the Boston Braves for Jimmy Welsh and Shanty Hogan, where he proceeded to win his seventh and final batting title in 1928 by hitting .387 with 21 home runs, 94 runs batted in, 99 runs scored, a league-high .498 on-base percentage, and a .632 slugging percentage (202 OPS+).
Once again, Hornsby was on the move, this time traded to the Chicago Cubs for five players and cash. During his first year with the Cubs in 1929, he hit .380 with 39 home runs, 149 runs batted in, a league-leading and career-best 156 runs scored, a .459 on-base percentage, and a league-high .679 slugging percentage (178 OPS+) to win his second MVP award. At age 33, this would turn out to be his last great season – following a 1930 campaign that was limited to just 42 games played, he rebounded to a .331 batting average and a league-high .421 on-base percentage over 100 games played in 1931, but this would essentially be Hornsby’s last full MLB season. The Cubs waived Hornsby midway through the 1933 season and he was claimed by the St. Louis Browns to be player-manager – over the next four years, he only played a total of 56 games, playing his last MLB game in 1937 at age 41, though he continued to dabble in other professional leagues. Overall, Hornsby’s .358 career batting average is topped only by Cobb (.367), and his seven batting titles rank behind only Cobb (12x) and Honus Wagner/Tony Gwynn (8x each), and are tied with Stan Musial and Rod Carew.
Though they played a similar number of MLB seasons (25 for Collins and 23 for Hornsby), Collins has a significant lead in both career games played and at-bats, which translates into more career hits despite Hornsby’s loftier career batting average; due to their differing playing styles, i.e table-setter vs. middle-of-the-lineup slugger, each player has a distinct advantage in different categories. On one hand, in addition to more career hits, Collins scored more runs, walked more, and stole more bases with an advantage in .300+ seasons (16 vs. 14), years with 100+ runs scored (7 vs. 6), and 30+ stolen base seasons (12 vs. none). On the other hand, Hornsby was a greater peak hitter (9x above .350 and 3x above .400 vs. 3x above .350 for Collins) who hit more home runs (7x with 20+ home runs vs. none; Collins has the fewest career home runs in the 3,000-hit club), drove in more runs (5x with 100+ runs batted in vs. none), and had higher ratios across the board (batting average, on-base percentage, slugging percentage, OPS+). While there were no All-Star Games until 1933, Hornsby won two MVP awards to Collins’ one, and also has seven batting titles and a pair of Triple Crowns. In trying to measure and compare Collins’ consistent excellence vs. Hornsby’s peak greatness using advanced metrics, their career Wins Above Replacement (WAR) are very close – 123.9 for Collins vs. 127.1 for Hornsby. As two of the greatest players of the early 20th century, Collins (1939) and Hornsby (1942) were among the first 30 players enshrined in the Baseball Hall of Fame.
Regular Season Statistics
| Eddie Collins | Player | Rogers Hornsby |
| 25 (1906-1930) | Seasons | 23 (1915-1937) |
| 2,826 | Games Played | 2,259 |
| 9,949 | At-Bats | 8,173 |
| 3,315 | Hits | 2,930 |
| 1,821 | Runs | 1,579 |
| 47 | Home Runs | 301 |
| 1,299 | Runs Batted In | 1,584 |
| 1,499 | Walks | 1,038 |
| 741 | Stolen Bases | 135 |
| .333 | Batting Average | .358 |
| .424 | On-Base Percentage | .434 |
| .429 | Slugging Percentage | .577 |
| 141 | OPS+ | 175 |
| 123.9 | Wins Above Replacement | 127.1 |
| – | All-Star Games | – |
| 1x | MVP | 2x |
| 4x | World Series Titles | 1x |
| – | Other Awards | 2x Triple Crown, 7x Batting Title |
| 1939 | Hall of Fame Induction | 1942 |
Source: Baseball-Reference.com
During the era in which Collins and Hornsby played, the winners of the AL and NL pennants met directly in the World Series; each legend made multiple World Series appearances and came away with a title, with Collins enjoying both greater success and greater notoriety in the postseason.
In his prime decade of the 1910s, Collins made six World Series trips that resulted in four titles (three with the Athletics and one with the White Sox). As a member of the Athletics, he made back-to-back World Series appearances in both 1910-1911 and 1913-1914, winning the first three series and hitting .400+ in both 1910 and 1913. After joining the White Sox, Collins won another World Series in 1917, again hitting .400+. Entering the 1919 World Series, Chicago was heavily favored against the Cincinnati Reds, but surprisingly lost due to the notorious “Black Sox Scandal” in which up to eight players on the team allegedly threw the series for money; for his part, Collins was not involved, though only hit a paltry .226 in the loss.
Across two World Series appearances, Hornsby won one title, though performed nowhere near his peak in doing so. During his middling 1926 season as player-manager of the Cardinals, St. Louis beat the New York Yankees in seven games, with Hornsby tagging out Babe Ruth on a stolen base attempt for the title-clinching out; offensively, though, he only hit .250 (7 hits in 28 at-bats) with 4 runs batted in. A few years later, as a member of the Cubs, Chicago lost in five games in the 1929 World Series to the Jimmie Foxx-led Athletics, with Hornsby hitting a mere .238 (5 hits in 21 at-bats); note that Collins was also on the Athletics, but did not appear in the World Series.
Playoff Statistics
| Eddie Collins | Player | Rogers Hornsby |
| 34 | Games Played | 12 |
| 128 | At-Bats | 49 |
| 42 | Hits | 12 |
| 20 | Runs | 6 |
| – | Home Runs | – |
| 11 | Runs Batted In | 5 |
| 10 | Walks | 3 |
| 14 | Stolen Bases | 1 |
| .328 | Batting Average | .245 |
| .381 | On-Base Percentage | .288 |
| .414 | Slugging Percentage | .327 |
Source: Baseball-Reference.com
Every athlete goes through a natural career lifecycle, from starting off as a rookie to reaching peak years of performance and finally, declining into the inevitable retirement due to a combination of age and/or injury; while Collins remained a productive player well into his late 30s, Hornsby declined quickly after his 1929 age-33 MVP season and was a part-time player for the last stretch of his career. For Hall of Fame caliber players across sports, I like to look at a concept I call a “decade of dominance.” The thinking behind this is that for most Hall of Fame type careers, there are roughly 10 great seasons that define an athlete (this idea is embodied in a sense by the NFL’s All-Decade teams), though due to injury or other factors, they might not be 10 consecutive years.
Decade of Dominance
| Eddie Collins | Player | Rogers Hornsby |
| 1909-1915, 1920, 1923-1924 | Decade of Dominance | 1917, 1920-1925, 1927-1929 |
| 1,496 | Games Played | 1,441 |
| 5,432 | At-Bats | 5,447 |
| 1,893 | Hits | 2,089 |
| 1,093 | Runs | 1,185 |
| 32 | Home Runs | 247 |
| 738 | Runs Batted In | 1,126 |
| 817 | Walks | 737 |
| 514 | Stolen Bases | 88 |
| .348 | Batting Average | .384 |
| .439 | On-Base Percentage | .459 |
| .453 | Slugging Percentage | .639 |
| 82.5 | Wins Above Replacement | 99.0 |
Source: Baseball-Reference.com
As great as Collins’ decade of dominance was (e.g. nearly a .350 batting average over his 10 best seasons), it pales in comparison to Hornsby’s peak; in fact, Hornsby’s best stretch is arguably one of the most dominant periods in baseball history, as he hit a staggering .384 during this time with over 2,000 hits and accumulated almost 100 WAR.
My Thoughts
When you think of the great hitters of the early 20th century, while immortal names like Cobb, Wagner, and Ruth quickly come to mind, Eddie Collins and Rogers Hornsby likewise belong in this esteemed company. Collins may in fact be one of the most underrated superstars in baseball history – not only was he one of the most durable and consistent players ever (thus earning him the all-time hits record at second base), but he was also one of the game’s elite table-setters and base stealers. However, Hornsby is arguably one of the five greatest pure hitters baseball has ever seen, the owner of the second-highest career batting average ever, and one of only three men to ever bat .400+ in three different seasons (Hornsby, Cobb, and Ed Delahanty). Perhaps one of the most surprising facts about Hornsby is that despite his hitting prowess, he fell just short of 3,000 career hits (2,930); like Ted Williams (the only other hitter with multiple Triple Crowns), Hornsby was highly proficient at drawing walks and getting on-base, which paradoxically limited his official number of at-bats to accumulate hits. All in all, I consider Hornsby the greatest second baseman in baseball history, with Collins a close second.
Thus, after weighing their careers against each other in terms of statistics, achievements, and impact, the winner of this faceoff is:
Rogers Hornsby
As always, vote for your choice and leave your thoughts and comments below.
Further Reading
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