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Barry Bonds holds the record for being walked the most times in MLB history.
A base on balls (BB), also known as a walk, occurs in baseball when a batter receives four pitches that the umpire calls balls , and is in turn awarded first base without the possibility of being called out. The base on balls is defined in Section 2.00 of baseball's Official Rules,[ 1] and further detail is given in 6.08(a).[ 2]
The following table lists the top 100 career base on balls leaders in Major League Baseball history. Since 2007, Barry Bonds [ 3] [ 4] holds the record for most career walks drawn with 2,558. Rickey Henderson [ 5] (2,190), Babe Ruth [ 6] (2,062), and Ted Williams [ 7] (2,021) are the only other players to draw more than 2,000 walks in their careers. The active leader in walks is Joey Votto with 1,365.[ 8]
Rank
Rank among players in career walks. A blank field indicates a tie.
Player (2024 BB)
Name (walks in 2024 )
BB
Career walks
*
Elected to Hall of Fame
Bold
Active player[ a]
Joey Votto, the active leader and 34th all-time in career bases on balls.
Stats updated as of August 17, 2024.
Rank
Player (2024 BB)
BB
1
Barry Bonds
2,558
2
Rickey Henderson *
2,190
3
Babe Ruth *
2,062
4
Ted Williams *
2,021
5
Joe Morgan *
1,865
6
Carl Yastrzemski *
1,845
7
Jim Thome *
1,747
8
Mickey Mantle *
1,733
9
Mel Ott *
1,708
10
Frank Thomas *
1,667
11
Eddie Yost
1,614
12
Darrell Evans
1,605
13
Stan Musial *
1,599
14
Pete Rose
1,566
15
Harmon Killebrew *
1,559
16
Chipper Jones *
1,512
17
Lou Gehrig *
1,508
18
Mike Schmidt *
1,507
19
Eddie Collins *
1,499
20
Bobby Abreu
1,476
21
Gary Sheffield
1,475
22
Willie Mays *
1,464
23
Jimmie Foxx *
1,452
24
Eddie Mathews *
1,444
25
Frank Robinson *
1,420
26
Wade Boggs *
1,412
27
Hank Aaron *
1,402
28
Jeff Bagwell *
1,401
29
Dwight Evans
1,391
30
Tris Speaker *
1,381
31
Reggie Jackson *
1,375
32
Albert Pujols
1,373
33
Jason Giambi
1,366
34
Joey Votto (0)
1,365
35
Rafael Palmeiro
1,353
36
Willie McCovey *
1,345
37
Alex Rodriguez
1,338
38
Todd Helton *
1,335
39
Eddie Murray *
1,333
40
Tim Raines *
1,330
41
Manny Ramirez
1,329
42
David Ortiz *
1,319
Tony Phillips
1,319
44
Adam Dunn
1,317
Mark McGwire
1,317
46
Ken Griffey Jr. *
1,312
47
Fred McGriff *
1,305
48
Luke Appling *
1,302
49
Edgar Martínez *
1,283
50
Al Kaline *
1,277
Rank
Player (2024 BB)
BB
51
John Olerud
1,275
52
Ken Singleton
1,263
53
Jack Clark
1,262
54
Carlos Santana (47)
1,260
55
Miguel Cabrera
1,258
56
Rusty Staub
1,255
57
Ty Cobb *
1,249
58
Willie Randolph
1,243
59
Jimmy Wynn
1,224
60
Dave Winfield *
1,216
61
Pee Wee Reese *
1,210
62
Lance Berkman
1,201
63
Richie Ashburn *
1,198
64
Brian Downing
1,197
Lou Whitaker
1,197
66
Chili Davis
1,194
67
Billy Hamilton *
1,189
68
Charlie Gehringer *
1,186
69
Brian Giles
1,183
70
Craig Biggio *
1,160
71
Donie Bush
1,158
72
Max Bishop
1,156
73
Luis Gonzalez
1,155
74
Toby Harrah
1,153
75
Harry Hooper *
1,136
76
Jimmy Sheckard
1,135
77
Brett Butler
1,129
Cal Ripken Jr. *
1,129
79
Carlos Delgado
1,109
Andrew McCutchen (51)
1,109
81
Ron Santo *
1,108
82
Jim Gilliam
1,102
83
George Brett *
1,096
84
Paul Molitor *
1,094
85
Lu Blue
1,092
Stan Hack
1,092
87
Paul Waner *
1,091
88
Graig Nettles
1,088
89
Bobby Grich
1,087
90
Carlos Beltrán
1,084
91
Derek Jeter *
1,082
92
Mark Grace
1,075
Bob Johnson
1,075
Robin Ventura
1,075
95
Ozzie Smith *
1,072
96
Harlond Clift
1,070
Keith Hernandez
1,070
98
Bernie Williams
1,069
99
Bill Dahlen
1,064
100
Harold Baines *
1,062
^ A player is considered inactive if he has announced his retirement or has not played for a full season.
^ rule 2.00
^ rule 6.00
^ "Barry Bonds Career Stats" . Baseball Reference . Retrieved August 1, 2021 .
^ Jensen, Don. "Barry Bonds Bio" . Society For American Baseball Research . Retrieved August 1, 2021 .
^ "Rickey Henderson Career Stats" . Baseball Reference . Retrieved August 1, 2021 .
^ "Babe Ruth Career Stats" . Baseball Reference . Retrieved August 1, 2021 .
^ "Ted Williams Career Stats" . Baseball Reference . Retrieved August 1, 2021 .
^ "Joey Votto Stats, Height, Weight, Position, Rookie Status & More" . Baseball-Reference.com . Retrieved 2023-04-05 .
"Career Leaders & Records for Bases on Balls" . Baseball-Reference.com .
General Batting leaders
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Baserunning leaders
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