Editing Mark McGwire (section)

==Honors, records and achievements==
Known as one of the top sluggers of his era, McGwire ended his career with 583 home runs, which was fifth-most in history when he retired. When he hit his 500th career home run in 1999, he did so in 5,487 career at-bats, the fewest in major league history.<ref name="atbatto500hr">{{cite web|url=http://www.baseball-almanac.com/hitting/hi500c.shtml|title=500 Home Run Details|publisher=Baseball-Almanac.com|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150216025541/http://www.baseball-almanac.com/hitting/hi500c.shtml|archive-date=February 16, 2015|access-date=February 3, 2015}}</ref> He led all of MLB in home runs in five different seasons: 1987 and each season from 1996 to 1999. His total of 245 home runs from 1996 to 1999 is the highest four-season home-run output in major league history. In each of those four seasons, he exceeded 50 home runs, becoming the first player to do so. He was also the first player to hit 49 or more home runs five times, including his rookie-season record of 49 in 1987. With a career average of one home every 10.61 at-bats, he holds the MLB record for most home runs per at-bat, leading second-place Babe Ruth by more than a full at-bat (11.76).<ref name="atperhr">{{cite web|url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/leaders/ABpHR_career.shtml|title=Career Leaders & Records for at bats per home run|website=Baseball-Reference.com|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090228202538/http://www.baseball-reference.com/leaders/ABpHR_career.shtml|archive-date=February 28, 2009|access-date=November 7, 2012}}</ref>

As of 2015, McGwire owned three of the four lowest single-season AB/HR ratios in MLB history, which covered his 1996, 1998 and 1999 seasons; they were actually the top three seasons in MLB history until Bonds broke his single-season home-run record in 2001. McGwire's 1997 season ranked 13th.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/leaders/at_bats_per_home_run_season.shtml |title=Single-season leaders & records for AB per HR |work=Baseball-Reference.com |access-date=June 18, 2015 |archive-date=June 28, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150628220551/http://www.baseball-reference.com/leaders/at_bats_per_home_run_season.shtml |url-status=live }}</ref> Considered one of the slowest runners in the game, McGwire had the fewest career triples (six) of any player with 5,000 or more at-bats, and had just 12 stolen bases while being caught stealing eight times.

===Honors and distinctions===
In a 1999 list of the 100 greatest baseball players, ''[[The Sporting News]]'' ranked McGwire at number 91. The list had been compiled during the [[1998 in baseball|1998 season]] and included statistics through the [[1997 in baseball|1997 season]]. That year, he was elected to the [[Major League Baseball All-Century Team]]. In 2005, ''The Sporting News'' published an update of its list with McGwire at number 84.

A five-mile stretch of [[Interstate 70 in Missouri]] in St. Louis and near Busch Stadium was named Mark McGwire Highway to honor his 70-home-run achievement, along with his various good works for the city. In May 2010, St. Louis politicians succeeded in passing a state bill to change the name to Mark Twain Highway.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.post-gazette.com/sports/pirates/2010/07/06/McGwire-learning-the-art-of-coaching-as-hitting-instructor-with-the-Cardinals/stories/201007060207|work=Pittsburgh Post-Gazette|first=J. Brady|last=McCollough|title=McGwire learning the 'art of coaching' as hitting instructor with the Cardinals|date=July 6, 2010|access-date=June 24, 2020|archive-date=June 27, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200627133415/https://www.post-gazette.com/sports/pirates/2010/07/06/McGwire-learning-the-art-of-coaching-as-hitting-instructor-with-the-Cardinals/stories/201007060207|url-status=live}}</ref>

===National Baseball Hall of Fame consideration===
McGwire first became eligible for [[National Baseball Hall of Fame & Museum|Hall of Fame]] voting in 2007. For election, a player needs to be listed on 75% of ballots cast; falling under 5% removes a player from future consideration. Between 2007 and 2010, McGwire's performance held steady, receiving 128 votes (23.5%) in [[Baseball Hall of Fame balloting, 2007|2007]], 128 votes (23.6%) in [[Baseball Hall of Fame balloting, 2008|2008]], 118 votes (21.9%) in [[Baseball Hall of Fame balloting, 2009|2009]], and 128 votes (23.7%) in [[Baseball Hall of Fame balloting, 2010|2010]]. The [[Baseball Hall of Fame balloting, 2011|2011 ballot]] resulted in his first sub-20% total of 115 votes (19.8%), and McGwire's total votes continued to decline (112 votes (19.5%) in [[Baseball Hall of Fame balloting, 2012|2012]], 96 votes (16.9%) in [[Baseball Hall of Fame balloting, 2013|2013]], 63 votes (11.0%) in [[Baseball Hall of Fame balloting, 2014|2014]] and 55 votes (10.0%) in [[Baseball Hall of Fame balloting, 2015|2015]]) until he was eliminated after receiving only 54 votes (12.3%) in [[Baseball Hall of Fame balloting, 2016|2016]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/awards/hof_2016.shtml|title=2016 Hall of Fame Voting - Baseball-Reference.com|website=Baseball-Reference.com|access-date=March 27, 2018|archive-date=February 8, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180208134659/https://www.baseball-reference.com/awards/hof_2016.shtml|url-status=live}}</ref>

A second path for entering the Hall of Fame is through the Hall's "Era Committees" structure, formerly known as the [[Veterans Committee]], which may consider retired players whose eligibility has fallen outside of the traditional 10-year ballot period. <ref>{{cite web |title=Era Committees |url=https://baseballhall.org/hall-of-famers/rules/eras-committees |access-date=May 13, 2025 |website=[[National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum]]}}</ref>  Entry into the Hall of Fame requires a "yes" vote from 12 of the 16 committee members.  The last committee vote was in December 2022, in which McGwire did not receive the required number of votes. The next vote is anticipated in December 2025.

===Records===
{| class="wikitable"
|-
|+ '''MLB and team records'''
|-
!Accomplishment
!Record
!Date(s)
!Refs
|-
! style="background:#dde;" colspan="4"| Major League Baseball records
|-
| Fewest at-bats to 500 career home runs
| style="text-align:center;"| 5,487
| style="text-align:center;"| 1999
| <ref name=atbatto500hr/>
|-
| Fewest career at bats per home run
| colspan="2" style="text-align: center;" | 10.6
| <ref name=atperhr/>
|-
| Home runs in a four-season period
| style="text-align:center;"| 245
| rowspan="3" style="text-align: center;"| 1996–1999
|
|-
| Consecutive 50-HR seasons
| style="text-align:center;"| 4<sup>†</sup>
|
|-
| 50-HR seasons
| style="text-align:center;"| 4<sup>††</sup>
|
|-
| Consecutive 60-HR seasons
| style="text-align:center;"| 2<sup>†</sup>
| rowspan="2" style="text-align: center;"| 1998–1999
|
|-
| Home runs in a two-season period
| style="text-align:center;"| 135
|
|-
| Single-season highest RBI/H ratio
| style="text-align:center;"| 1.014
| style="text-align:center;"| 1999
|
|-
! style="background:#dde;" colspan="4"| Oakland Athletics records
|-
| Lowest career AB/HR ratio
| colspan="2" style="text-align: center;"| 12.1
|
|-
| Career HR
| colspan="2" style="text-align: center;"| 363
|
|-
| Lowest single-season AB/HR ratio
| style="text-align:center;"| 8.1
| style="text-align:center;"| 1995, 1996
|
|-
! style="background:#dde;" colspan="4"| St. Louis Cardinals records
|-
| Lowest career AB/HR ratio
| colspan="2" style="text-align: center;"| 7.9
|
|-
| Highest career OPS
| colspan="2" style="text-align: center;"| 1.222
|
|-
| Highest career OPS+
| colspan="2" style="text-align: center;"| 180
|
|-
| Highest career SLG
| colspan="2" style="text-align: center;"| .683
|
|-
| Lowest single-season AB/HR ratio
| style="text-align:center;"| 7.3
| rowspan="4" style="text-align: center;" | 1998
|
|-
| Most HR in a season
| style="text-align:center;"| 70
|
|-
| Most times on base in a season
| style="text-align:center;"| 320
|
|-
| Most bases on balls in a season
| style="text-align:center;"| 162
|
|}

{{Small|† – ''tied with [[Sammy Sosa]]''}}

{{Small|†† – ''tied with [[Babe Ruth]] and [[Sammy Sosa]]''}}

===Playing career totals===
In 16 seasons playing major league baseball (1986–2001), McGwire accumulated the following career totals:<ref name="BaseballRefMain" />

{{col-begin|width=auto}}
{{col-break}}
* [[Games played|G]] 1,874
* [[At bat|ABs]] 6,187
* [[Run (baseball)|Runs]] 1,167
* [[Hit (baseball)|Hits]] 1,626
* [[Double (baseball)|Doubles]] 252
* [[Triple (baseball)|Triples]] 6
* [[Home run|HR]] 583
* [[Runs batted in|RBI]] 1,414
* [[Grounded into double play|GIDP]] 147
* [[Base on balls|BB]] 1,317
* [[Intentional Walk|IBB]] 150
{{col-break|gap=3em}}
* [[Hit by pitch|HBP]] 75
* [[Sacrifice bunt|SH]] 3
* [[Sacrifice fly|SF]] 78
* [[Strikeout]]s 1,596
* [[Stolen base|SBs]] 12
* [[Caught stealing|CS]] 8
* [[Batting average (baseball)|BA]] .263
* [[On-base percentage|OBP]] .394
* [[Slugging percentage|SLG]] .588
* [[On-base plus slugging|OPS]] .982
* [[OPS+#Adjusted OPS (OPS+)|OPS+]] 162
{{col-end}}