No player has joined this exclusive club since '07
In the history of Major League Baseball, just four players have produced a 40-40 campaign, tallying 40 home runs and 40 steals in the same season. Now, imagine if two of those 40-40 efforts had taken place simultaneously. That's essentially what happened in 2007 with the 20-20-20-20 club.
The 20-20-20-20 club isn't as famous as the 40-40 club, but it's just as rare, containing only four members. For those unfamiliar, the club is comprised of players who have recorded at least 20 homers, 20 triples, 20 doubles and 20 stolen bases in the same season.
Two of the four members of the 20-20-20-20 club joined in 2007. One was Jimmy Rollins, the eventual National League MVP Award winner that year. The other was Curtis Granderson, who retired after the 2019 season and turns 39 years old Monday. The club hasn't added any new members since 2007.
In honor of the Grandy Man's birthday, let's take a deeper look at the 20-20-20-20 club's four members, the closest calls in the modern era (since 1900) and the present-day players who have the best chance to end the drought by gaining entry.
20-20-20-20 club
Jimmy Rollins, Phillies, 2007
30 HR, 20 3B, 38 2B, 41 SB
Rollins joined the club in the Phillies' last game of the regular season, and in his final plate appearance, recording his 20th triple of the year in the bottom of the sixth inning against the Nationals. The shortstop also finished the season with 778 PAs, an all-time record. Rollins notched at least 20 homers, 20 doubles and 20 steals in three other seasons but didn't have more than nine triples in any of those years.
Curtis Granderson, Tigers, 2007
23 HR, 23 3B, 38 2B, 26 SB
Granderson had 21 triples and 34 doubles by the end of August, and he hit his 20th homer on Sept. 7. Two days later, during a 4-for-4 effort against the Mariners, Granderson swiped his 20th base of the year to become the third member of the 20-20-20-20 club and the first in 50 years. Granderson also completed three of the four legs in 2009 and '11, falling short in the triples category both seasons.
Willie Mays, Giants, 1957
35 HR, 20 3B, 26 2B, 38 SB
Mays recorded 20-plus homers, doubles and steals in every season from 1956-60, but '57 was the only time during that span in which he had more than 12 triples. The Hall of Famer joined the 20-20-20-20 club with plenty of time to spare, notching his 20th triple of the year on Sept. 8.
Frank Schulte, Cubs, 1911
21 HR, 21 3B, 30 2B, 23 SB
The man known as "Wildfire" became the first player in the modern era to hit 20 homers in a single season on Sept. 7, 1911. Two weeks later, he posted his 20th triple of the season to become the very first member of the 20-20-20-20 club. Like Rollins, Schulte earned NL MVP honors for his performance. He never hit more than 12 homers in any other season.
Near Misses
José Reyes, Mets, 2006
19 HR, 17 3B, 30 2B, 64 SB
Reyes recorded at least 16 triples four times in his first nine seasons, but he never reached the 20-mark in three-base hits or home runs during his career. He came close to the 20-20-20-20 club in 2006 and '08 (16 HR, 19 3B, 37 2B, 56 SB).
Ryne Sandberg, Cubs, 1984
19 HR, 19 3B, 36 2B, 32 SB
Sandberg fell one homer and one triple shy of joining the 20-20-20-20 club in 1984, a breakout season that saw the second baseman win the NL MVP Award and earn the first of 10 straight All-Star nods.
George Brett, Royals, 1979
23 HR, 20 3B, 42 2B, 17 SB
Brett is one of two players on this list to record 20-plus homers, triples and doubles but miss the mark in the stolen-base department. The Hall of Fame third baseman exceeded 20 steals in 1976 and '78, but not in '79, when he came within three stolen bases of gaining entry into the club.
Minnie Minoso, White Sox, 1954
19 HR, 18 3B, 29 2B, 18 SB
Minoso was a well-rounded player throughout his career, but this was as close as the Cuban outfielder got to joining the 20-20-20-20 club.
Jeff Heath, Indians, 1941
24 HR, 20 3B, 32 2B, 18 SB
Heath wasn't much of a basestealer, reaching double-digits only once and getting caught stealing (48) almost as many times as he was successful (56) during his career. And yet, he nearly earned a rare place in history in 1941.
Kiki Cuyler, Pirates, 1925
18 HR, 26 3B, 43 2B, 41 SB
The 1925 season saw two future Hall of Famers come close to joining Schulte in the 20-20-20-20 club. Cuyler's 18 homers ended up being a career best for the outfielder.
Goose Goslin, Senators, 1925
18 HR, 20 3B, 34 2B, 27 SB
Goslin hit 20-plus home runs three times in his career, including 37 in 1930. But like Cuyler, he finished two homers short of the mark -- and thus, the 20-20-20-20 club -- in '25.
George Sisler, Browns, 1920
19 HR, 18 3B, 49 2B, 42 SB
Sisler regularly ranked among the league leaders in triples, doubles and steals, but the 1920 campaign was as close as he would get to the 20-homer plateau in his Hall of Fame career.
Who's Next?
Since 2007, there have been 103 occurrences of a player recording 20 homers, 20 doubles and 20 steals in the same season. But the rarity of the triple has made membership in the 20-20-20-20 club difficult to come by. In fact, only one other player (Cristian Guzman) besides Rollins and Granderson has notched 20 triples in a season since 2000, and just 27 players in that stretch have even reached 10 three-baggers in a single year. As a result, the odds are against seeing a 20-20-20-20 season anytime soon. But that doesn't mean it's impossible.
The 20-20-20-20 club is similar to the 40-40 club in that membership requires someone both fast and powerful. However, you won't find Ronald Acuña Jr., Mike Trout, Christian Yelich or Cody Bellinger on the list below. That's not to say they can't do it, it's just that it is more difficult to collect 20-plus triples and 20-plus doubles when more than half of your extra-base hits are home runs, which was the case for all four players last season.
Keeping that in mind, here are nine players who could potentially join the 20-20-20-20 club in the coming years.
Ozzie Albies, Braves: Albies has recorded 24 homers with 40-plus doubles in each of the past two seasons, and he had eight triples with 15 steals in 2019. The 23-year-old is at least on the 20-20-20-20 radar.
Mookie Betts, Dodgers: Betts hasn't collected more than five triples in a single campaign since 2015 (eight), but he has reached the 40-double mark in five straight years, with an average of 27 home runs and 24 steals per season in that span.
Byron Buxton, Twins: If Buxton, one of the fastest players in baseball, can put it all together and stay healthy for a full season, who knows what we might see.
Tommy Edman, Cardinals: Edman's debut season yielded 11 homers, seven triples, 17 doubles and 15 steals in 92 games, and the speedy 24-year-old could be a fixture in St. Louis' lineup in 2020.
Garrett Hampson, Rockies: Hampson was one of eight players with a Sprint Speed of at least 30 ft/sec last year, and he showed enough power (eight home runs in 299 at-bats) to suggest he could one day slug 20-plus homers, if he gets enough playing time. Also helping his case? Spacious Coors Field generally sees more triples than most parks.
Adalberto Mondesi, Royals: Despite playing only 102 games last season, Mondesi racked up an MLB-leading 10 triples with 20 doubles and 43 steals, registering an impressive Sprint Speed of 29.9 ft/sec along the way. He also slugged 23 home runs in 690 at-bats over 2018-19.
Luis Robert, White Sox: Robert hasn't even played a Major League game yet, but his dynamic skill set was on full display when he recorded 32 homers, 11 triples, 31 doubles and 36 stolen bases in the Minors last season.
Fernando Tatis Jr., Padres: At this point, nothing can be ruled out when it comes to the 21-year-old wunderkind.
Trea Turner, Nationals: A fractured right index finger limited Turner to 122 games last season, but he still set a career high with 61 extra-base hits and topped the 30-steal mark for the fourth straight year.