Runs produced is a baseball statistic that can help estimate the number of runs a hitter contributes to his team. The formula adds together the player's runs and run batted in, and then subtracts the player's home runs.[1]

Home runs are subtracted to compensate for the batter getting credit for both one run and at least one RBI when hitting a home run.

Unlike runs created, runs produced is a teammate-dependent stat in that it includes Runs and RBIs, which are affected by which batters bat near a player in the batting order. Also, subtracting home runs seems logical from an individual perspective, but on a team level it double-counts runs that are not home runs.

To counteract the double-counting, some[who?] have suggested an alternate formula which is the average of a player's runs scored and runs batted in.

Here, when a player scores a run, he shares the credit with the batter who drove him in, so both are credited with half a run produced. The same is true for an RBI, where credit is shared between the batter and runner. In the case of a home run, the batter is responsible for both the run scored and the RBI, so the runs produced are (1 + 1)/2 = 1, as expected.

All-time Major League Baseball leaders

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Player Career length Runs produced[2]
Ty Cobb 1905–1928 4,066
Hank Aaron 1954–1976 3,716
Babe Ruth 1914–1935 3,673
Cap Anson 1871–1897 3,501
Barry Bonds 1986–2007 3,461
Albert Pujols 2001-2022 3,429
Stan Musial 1941–1963 3,425
Alex Rodriguez 1994–2016 3,411
Lou Gehrig 1923–1939 3,390
Honus Wagner 1897-1927 3,367

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Thorn, J. and Palmer, P., Total Baseball: The Official Encyclopedia of Major League Baseball, 4th Edition, p. 2550, Penguin Books, New York, 1995, ISBN 0-670-86099-9
  2. ^ "Runs Produced All-Time Leaders on Baseball Almanac". www.baseball-almanac.com. Baseball Almanac. Retrieved 25 October 2021.