Among Betts to ever play

Mookie Betts’ torrid start to the year has put him on a pace to have one of the best, if not the best, season in baseball history. Through the Red Sox’ first 43 games as of Wednesday, Betts was on pace for 165 runs, 60 doubles, 49 homers, 105 RBI and 30 stolen bases to go with a .353 average and .428 on-base percentage. Nobody has ever had a season quite like that. To illustrate, here are a few comparables:

The last player to score 165 runs:

LOU GEHRIG for the 1936 Yankees, when he had 167 runs, 37 doubles, 49 homers, 152 RBIs with a .354 average and .478 OBP to win his second and final MVP award.

The last player to hit 60 doubles:

CHARLIE GEHRINGER (60 doubles) for the 1936 Tigers and JOE MEDWICK (64 doubles) for the 1936 St. Louis Cardinals. They each finished fourth in MVP voting.

The last player to hit 30 homers with a .350 average:

JOSH HAMILTON with the 2010 Rangers hit .359 with 32 homers to win his only MVP.

The last player to hit 40 homers with a .350 average:

BARRY BONDS with the 2004 Giants hit .362 with 45 homers to win his seventh and final MVP.

The last player to go 30-30:

RYAN BRAUN for the 2012 Brewers and MIKE TROUT for the 2012 Angels. They each finished second in MVP voting.

The most home runs hit by a player with 30 stolen bases:

LARRY WALKER with the 1997 Rockies hit 49 homers with 33 stolen bases to win his only MVP. Walker is also the only player in baseball history to hit at least .350 with 40 homers and 30 steals.