Few things are rarer in baseball than a 40/40 season. Only four players throughout history have possessed elite power and speed while also remaining healthy enough to hit 40 home runs and steal 40 bases, with none coming since 2006. They are:
Jose Canseco (1988, Oakland Athletics)
Barry Bonds (1996, San Francisco Giants)
Alex Rodriguez (1998, Seattle Mariners)
Alfonso Soriano (2006, Washington Nationals)
As of Sunday, July 16, Acuña Jr. has 43 steals and 23 round-trippers. Those stats would put him on pace for 41 homers and an incredible 77 stolen bases. If the outfielder sustains this pace, he would be the first player in MLB history to have at least 40 homers and at least 50 steals in the same season. As of now, the most steals in a 40/40 season is 46 by Alex Rodriguez in 1998 with the Seattle Mariners.
[Shusterman: Inside Ronald Acuña Jr.’s ‘mythical’ run toward history]
Read on for more about every 40/40 season in MLB history as well as where each player stood through 92 games in that season (as many games as Acuña Jr. has played thus far this season).
Braves OF Ronald Acuña Jr. is the front-runner for the 2023 NL MVP award
1988: Jose Canseco, Oakland Athletics: .307/.391/.569/.959; 42 HR, 40 SB
Through 92 games: .287/.382/.530/.911; 24 HR, 22 SB
1988 was a banner year for Canseco. He displayed a combination of power and speed rarely seen in baseball and delivered the first 40/40 season in MLB history. Moreover, he also hit over .300 for the only time in his career and led the AL in slugging percentage. Canseco won the American League MVP award and eventually helped the Athletics reach the World Series. They came up just short that year, losing the series 4-1 to the Los Angeles Dodgers.
1996: Barry Bonds, San Francisco Giants: .308/.461/.615/1.076; 42 HR, 40 SB
Through 92 games: .294/.420/.567/.986; 24 HR, 20 SB
Barry Bonds has a lot of records, but the first half of his career saw an elite power-speed combination that younger fans who saw him break home-run records were not privy to. In 1996, Bonds finished with 40 steals, the third time in his career he had 40 or more, to go along with 42 dingers. However, despite posting the second-ever season with 40 long balls and 40 thefts, he was unable to crack the top three in MVP voting. Coming off winning the 1990, 1992 and 1993 MVP’s, the standard was a little bit higher for the dynamic outfielder.
Despite his incredible play, the Giants finished in last place in the NL West and missed the playoffs, a likely reason he failed to garner more MVP support.
1998: Alex Rodriguez, Seattle Mariners: .310/.360/.560/.919; 42 HR, 46 SB
Through 92 games: .304/.355/.569/.924; 27 HR, 24 SB
The all-time stolen base leader in 40/40 seasons, Rodriguez topped 40 steals for the first and only time in his career when he swiped 46 bags to go along with swatting 42 big flies. Those numbers helped A-Rod earn MVP votes for the second time in his career but he somehow finished just ninth in the voting despite also leading the AL in hits for the season (213) as well as being top-five in RBI (124), total bases (384), runs scored (123) and extra-base hits (82).
However, despite his greatness, Rodriguez and the Mariners finished under .500 and failed to qualify for the playoffs. A surefire reason for the lack of MVP votes despite the historic season.
2006: Alfonso Soriano, Washington Nationals: .277/.351/.560/.911; 46 HR, 41 SB
Through 92 games: .278/.351/.568/.919; 28 HR, 21 SB
The first player to ever hit 45 or more home runs with 40 or more steals in a season, Soriano is the most recent player to deliver a 40/40 campaign. Even more impressive, it was his only season in Washington and his 46 homers are still a single-season franchise record to this day. It also happened to be the only time in his career that Soriano topped 40 long balls and the last time he even surpassed 35 big flies. Moreover, it was also the last time he reached 40 stolen bases in his career.
All those numbers and his franchise record, however, were not enough to garner MVP support — as like the teams of two previous 40/40 players, the Nationals didn’t make the playoffs and finished in last place in the NL East.
2023: Ronald Acuña Jr., Atlanta Braves: .333/.414/.593/.1.007; 41 HR, 77 SB (on-pace stats)
Through 92 games: .333/.414/.593/1.007; 23 HR, 43 SB
Acuña Jr. is on-pace to deliver one of the most exciting seasons in baseball history. He already is tied for the league lead in steals while also connecting on 23 big flies.
Should he pass 60 steals, it would be just the eighth time in Braves franchise history someone reached 60 steals. He’s the presumptive 2023 NL MVP. And if Atlanta remains dominant, he could be the first NL player to produce a 40/40 season and have his team make the playoffs.
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