Will DiMaggio’s Hit Streak Ever be Matched

Although it’s been 45 years since Joe DiMaggio electrified the baseball world by hitting in 56 consecutive games, several of baseball’s best hitters insist the record is not invincible.

Wade Boggs, Don Mattingly, Pete Rose and Kent Hrbek all believe that, with a little luck an a lot of perseverance, the record could be broken.

“I think a .400 season is almost unattainable, but I think 56 can be done,” said Mattingly, the 1984 American League batting champion and the 1985 runs-batted in leader. “It’s one of the things you should shoot for-that kind of consistency. That record is just the model of consistency. I think it is awfully tough and you’d need a lot of breaks but it can be done.”

Hrbek, slugging first baseman of the Minnesota Twins, lists Mattingly and Boggs as the two most likely candidates to give DiMaggio’s record a test.

“If you want to pick somebody to break DiMaggio’s record, Mattingly or Boggs are about the best choices,” said Hrbek.

“It all depends on how they want to pitch you. Look what happened to Randy Bass in the Japanese League last year. He had a shot at the league home run record on the last day of the season and thy walked him four times in a row.”

Boggs, who had 240 hits last year and hit in 28 consecutive games early in the season, thinks the pressure created by today’s media and the long distance travel-things DiMaggio did not have to worry about-could destroy the concentration necessary to break the record.

“It’s awful tough to carry on something like that,” said Boggs, the Boston Red Sox third baseman whose .368 average led the majors last year. “Once you get around the 35-game range the distraction from the media is awful tough. It tires you out as does the travel and coast-to-coast play. Luck is a big part of it. I get an awful lot of walks (96 last year) which help the club.

“If I go up there to swing the bat on bad pitches trying to get hits, it Won’t help.”

Rose has made the best run at DiMaggio’s record over the last 45 years. Rose, holder of baseball’s all-time hit record, established a modern National League record in 1978 by hitting in 44 consecutive games. His streak was stopped by Larry McWilliams and Gene Garber of the Atlanta Braves and Rose points to quality relief pitchers as the main obstacle a hitter faces in chasing DiMaggio.