There has always been something sexy about the 30/30 hitter. Back in the day, when you hit 30 homers and stole 30 bases, you were a rare breed of power and speed. Before the 1980’s rolled along, there were only ten 30/30 seasons in history, five of which were by Bobby Bonds. Hank Aaron had a year like that. Willie Mays had two. The milestone was dampened a bit in the ’80’s, as there were seven 30/30 years, including the first ever 40/40 by Jose Canseco.
But since we’ve entered the ’90’s, the milestone has been devalued to the point where no one seems to care about it all that much anymore. In the 21 seasons since 1990, there have been 37 30/30 seasons, not including the multiple possibilities we could have this season. Bobby’s son Barry took over the 30/30 torch in 1990, scoring the first of his five 30/30 seasons. Ron Gant went 30/30 in back to back years in 1990 and 1991, before a broken leg in 1994 changed his career forever. The introduction of baseball in Denver resulted in three of the four Blake Street Bombers (Dante Bichette, Larry Walker, and Ellis Burks) all going 30/30. Sammy Sosa even went 30/30 twice, before he became known as a home run powerhouse.
There have been 17 different 30/30 seasons since the calendar turned to 2000. The superstars that used to hit the milestone, like Sosa, Bonds, Alex Rodriguez and Jeff Bagwell, don’t get there anymore. The last 30/30 season happened in 2009, and belonged to Ian Kinsler of the Rangers, a fine player, but not a superstar. Alfonso Soriano has four 30/30 seasons, one of which was a 40/40 year. He’s now thought of as a severely limited player with an albatross of a contract. In his younger year, Vladimir Guerrero had a pair of seasons. He’s now thought of as a broken down old man who hasn’t been able to run in years. Bobby Abreu is in the same boat with his two seasons.
Gone are the days when a 30/30 season guaranteed that you were one of the most valuable players in the league. Below is a listing of the last ten 30/30 players, and their MVP finish.
| Player | Year | Finish |
| Kinsler | 2009 | 26th |
| Sizemore | 2008 | 10th |
| Ramirez | 2008 | 11th |
| Phillips | 2007 | 22nd |
| Wright | 2007 | 4th |
| Rollins | 2007 | 1st |
| Soriano | 2006 | 6th |
| Soriano | 2005 | NR |
| Beltran | 2004 | 12th |
| Abreu | 2004 | 23rd |
So just by looking at the past results, you see that there’s not a lot of love for 30/30 players. Of the last ten, only four finished in the top ten of MVP voting. The best finishes were by Wright, Rollins and Soriano in the 2006-2007 stretch, and their finishes can be attributed to other factors: Soriano went 40/40 in 2006 for an awful Nationals team and had a .911 OPS, Rollins won the award with an .875 OPS as a leadoff hitter, and Wright nearly carried the Mets to a division title with a .963 OPS and over 100 RBI. The “normal” guys who hit the milestone, like Kinsler, Sizemore, Ramirez, and Phillips, just don’t seem to get a lot of love in the grand scheme of things.
What does this mean for this season’s contenders for 30/30? Let’s identify who they are, first. There are two NL players who are 20/20 right now: Matt Kemp (who needs just two homers to join the 30/30 club), and Ryan Braun. In the AL, there are also two: Curtis Granderson and Jacoby Ellsbury. All four are getting a lot of MVP love right now. Kemp, the only one who appears to be a lock to go 30/30, and will be the one who probably gets the least amount of MVP support for one reason: his team. The Dodgers are an absolutely terrible team right now, and with so many other deserving candidates on contending teams, Kemp appears to be likely to get lost in the shuffle a little bit despite the fantastic year he’s having.
That leaves us with the other three possible 30/30 players: Granderson, Ellsbury, and Braun. All three are getting a ton of love in MVP talk right now, with Ellsbury being a chic pick in the AL due to the Jimmy Rollins effect from 2007 (leadoff hitter with power? WHAT’S GOING ON HERE?!?!). All three have great supporting casts on their teams, and that could end up hurting them at the end of the day. The NL race appears to be more wide open than the AL race due to the lack of an amazing candidate for the award right now. This will only help Braun, though the equally as good season from teammate Prince Fielder could hurt him. As for Granderson, his season is still a little under the radar, despite being in New York.
All three of these guys are going to get a lot of solid support for the MVP awards in their respective leagues this season. The streak of 30/30 hitters underachieving in the MVP voting will be broken this November, and maybe some prestige will be given back to the distinction again. Hopefully, the days of players like Preston Wilson going 30/30 and people not blinking an eye at him are over and done with.
