In baseball

statistics Statistics (from German language, German: ''wikt:Statistik#German, Statistik'', "description of a State (polity), state, a country") is the discipline that concerns the collection, organization, analysis, interpretation, and presentation of ...

, an error is an act, in the judgment of the official scorer, of a fielder misplaying a ball in a manner that allows a

batter Batter or batters may refer to: Common meanings * Batter (cooking), thin dough that can be easily poured into a pan * Batter (baseball), person whose turn it is to face the pitcher * Batter (cricket), a player who is currently batting * Batter ...

baserunner In baseball, base running is the act of running from base to base, performed by members of the team at bat. Base running is a tactical part of the game with the goal of eventually reaching home base (home plate) to score a run. Batters strive to ...

to advance one or more bases or allows an

at bat In baseball, an at bat (AB) or time at bat is a batter's turn batting against a pitcher. An at bat is different from a plate appearance. A batter is credited with a plate appearance regardless of what happens during their turn at bat, but a batt ...

to continue after the batter should have been put out. Third base is the third of four stations on a

baseball diamond A baseball field, also called a ball field or baseball diamond, is the field upon which the game of baseball is played. The term can also be used as a metonym for a baseball park. The term sandlot is sometimes used, although this usually refers ...

which must be touched in succession by a baserunner in order to score a

run Run(s) or RUN may refer to: Places * Run (island), one of the Banda Islands in Indonesia * Run (stream), a stream in the Dutch province of North Brabant People * Run (rapper), Joseph Simmons, now known as "Reverend Run", from the hip-hop group ...

for that player's team. A third baseman, abbreviated 3B, is the player on the team playing defense who fields the area nearest third base, and is responsible for the majority of plays made at that base. The third baseman requires good reflexes in reacting to batted balls, often being the closest

infielder An infielder is a baseball player stationed at one of four defensive "infield" positions on the baseball field. Standard arrangement of positions In a game of baseball, two teams of nine players take turns playing offensive and defensive roles. ...

(roughly 90–120 feet) to the batter. The third base position requires a strong and accurate arm, as the third baseman often makes long throws to first base. The third baseman sometimes must throw quickly to second base in time to start a

double play In baseball and softball, a double play (denoted as DP in baseball statistics) is the act of making two outs during the same continuous play. Double plays can occur any time there is at least one baserunner and fewer than two outs. In Major Leag ...

, and must also field fly balls in both fair and foul territory. In the scoring system used to record defensive plays, the third baseman is assigned the number 5. The list of career leaders is dominated by players from the 19th century, when fielding equipment was very rudimentary; baseball gloves only began to steadily gain acceptance in the 1880s, and were not uniformly worn until the mid-1890s, resulting in a much lower frequency of defensive miscues. The top 19 players in career errors all began playing in the 19th century, all but four of them playing their entire careers before 1900; none were active in the major leagues after 1911. Only two of the top 29 were active after 1929, and none were active after 1946. Through 2021, the top 129 single-season totals were all recorded before 1906, and only five of the top 316 were recorded after 1942. To a large extent, the leaders reflect longevity rather than lower skill.

Ron Santo Ronald Edward Santo (February 25, 1940 – December 3, 2010) was an American Major League Baseball (MLB) third baseman who played for the Chicago Cubs from 1960 through 1973 and the Chicago White Sox in 1974. In 1990, Santo became a member of the ...

, who leads all post-1950 third basemen with 317 errors, won five

Gold Glove Award The Rawlings Gold Glove Award, usually referred to as simply the Gold Glove, is the award given annually to the Major League Baseball (MLB) players judged to have exhibited superior individual fielding performances at each fielding position in bo ...

s for fielding excellence. Arlie Latham, who set a major league record with 1,573 career games at third base – none of them after 1896 – is the all-time leader in career errors committed as a third baseman with 822, more than twice as many as any player who reached the major leagues after 1900; he is the only third baseman to commit more than 700 career errors.

Billy Nash William Mitchell Nash (June 24, 1865 – November 15, 1929) was a Major League Baseball third baseman. He played 15 seasons in the majors, from to . He served as player-manager of the Philadelphia Phillies in , and in 1901 he umpired 101 games ...

, whose career ended in 1898 after setting the National League record for games at third base, is second all-time; he is the only other third baseman to commit more than 600 errors. Evan Longoria, who had 152 errors through the 2021 season to place him tied for 131st all-time, is the leader among active players.

Key

List

Other Hall of Famers

References

Baseball-Reference.com
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