GGOATRANK
🇺🇸
Baseball · Outfielder · United States

Billy Hamilton

1888–1901 · Stole 914 bases and scored 198 runs in 1894, still a record.

Retired
Ranking model

100% titles, statistics, dominance, longevity and global competition depth.

Pure sporting data
88.5
Cultural & brand footprint 50/100 · total legacy 76.1
Career stolen bases
914
Career batting average
0.3
Runs in 1894
198
Batting titles
2
Career runs
1,697

Category profile

Dominance
88
Peak
96
Longevity
82
Honours
84
Statistics
94

Career timeline · Home runs per season

SeasonHome runs per seasonShare of career
18880.264
18890.301
18900.325
18910.34
18920.33
18930.38
18940.404
18950.389
18960.365
18970.343
18980.369
18990.309
19000.333
19010.287

Data sources

  • MLB.com
  • Baseball Reference
  • National Baseball Hall of Fame

Figures come from public records and are normalised per sport. See the methodology for category weights. Method

Why Billy Hamilton ranks #65 in Baseball

Billy Hamilton ranks 65th among Baseball athletes on GOAT Rank and 1193rd of 2289 across every sport in the index. The published GOAT Score of 88.5 is the weighted result of five verified category scores: Dominance 88, Peak 96, Longevity 82, Honours 84, Statistics 94. Those categories are normalised against the full Baseball reference universe of 262 records, not a shortlist, so the position reflects the whole sport rather than a handful of famous names.

The record covers 1888–1901 with 14 documented competitive seasons. The strongest single season in that series is 1894, which sets the Peak component at 96. Peak is the defining strength of the profile at 96 out of 100, and it carries 20% of the final score. The underlying career record includes career stolen bases 914, career batting average 0.344, runs in 1894 198, batting titles 2.

Immediately ahead sits Rube Foster on 88.5, a gap of 0.0 points. Directly behind is Willard Brown on 88.5. The position moves whenever the verified record moves: new titles, new seasons or a corrected source all feed straight back into the same formula, and every change is dated on this profile.

Billy Hamilton GOAT Score explained

Dominance88/100 · weight 25%
Measures how far Hamilton stood above the field while competing. Scored 88/100 against the full Baseball cohort.
Peak96/100 · weight 20%
Rates the best sustained stretch of the career, centred on 1894. Scored 96/100.
Longevity82/100 · weight 20%
Rewards staying at that level over time: 13 years of competition and 14 recorded seasons. Scored 82/100.
Honours84/100 · weight 20%
Counts documented titles, majors and awards in the verified record. Scored 84/100.
Statistics94/100 · weight 15%
Normalises the raw career numbers against everyone in the sport reporting the same metric. Scored 94/100.

Billy Hamilton — frequently asked

Is Billy Hamilton the GOAT?
Not on the current data. Billy Hamilton ranks 65th in Baseball with a GOAT Score of 88.5, behind Babe Ruth on 94.6.
What is Billy Hamilton's GOAT Score?
88.5 out of 100. It is the weighted sum of Dominance 88 (25%), Peak 96 (20%), Longevity 82 (20%), Honours 84 (20%), Statistics 94 (15%), computed from the verified career record.
Where does Billy Hamilton rank all time?
1193rd of 2289 eligible athletes in the cross-sport index, and 65th within Baseball.
Billy Hamilton vs Rube Foster: who ranks higher?
Billy Hamilton, on 88.5 against Rube Foster's 88.5 — a margin of 0.0 points.
Compare with Ruth