Editing Rickey Henderson (section)

===Career milestones===
[[File:Rickey Henderson 2011 (cropped).jpg|thumb|upright|Henderson at the [[National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum|Hall of Fame]] parade in 2011]]
{{As of|2024}}, Henderson ranks first all-time in runs scored (2,295) and stolen bases (1,406), fourth in career games played (3,081), 13th in at bats (10,961), and 26th in hits (3,055). He has the second-highest career [[power–speed number]], behind [[Barry Bonds]], at 490.4.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/leaders/power_speed_number_progress.shtml |title=Progressive Leaders & Records for Power-Speed # |website=[[Baseball Reference]] |access-date=January 24, 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://research.sabr.org/brj/index.php/thunder-and-lightning |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130415210240/http://research.sabr.org/brj/index.php/thunder-and-lightning |url-status=dead |archive-date=April 15, 2013 |title=Thunder and Lightning |publisher=Research.sabr.org |first1=Michael |last1=Sciarretta |access-date=January 24, 2013 }}</ref> Henderson reached 20+ homers and 50+ steals in the same season a record four times.<ref>{{cite web|first=John|last=DiFonzo|title=César Cedeño|publisher=Society For American Baseball Research|url=https://sabr.org/bioproj/person/cesar-cedeno/|access-date=December 29, 2024}}</ref> His record for most career walks (2,190) has since been broken by Barry Bonds; Henderson is now second but continues to hold the record for most unintentional walks (2,129).<ref name="HOFPlaq"/> While his career batting average of .279 is considered somewhat modest for a leadoff hitter, his walks helped him post a stout .401 on-base percentage (OBP) for his career. He posted an OBP of at least .400 in 16 separate seasons, with a high mark of .439 in his 1990 MVP season. Henderson averaged 115 walks per 162 games over his career.<ref name="BaseballReferenceRickyHenderson" />

Henderson also holds the record for most home runs to lead off a game, with 81;<ref name=wancho/> [[George Springer]] is second with 60 going into the 2025 season.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.mlb.com/news/most-career-leadoff-home-runs-in-mlb-history | title=Most career leadoff home runs in MLB history | website=[[MLB.com]] }}</ref> During the 2003 season, Henderson surpassed Babe Ruth for the career record in secondary bases (total bases compiled from [[extra base hit]]s, walks, stolen bases, and times [[hit by pitch]]). In 1993, he led off both games of a doubleheader with homers. At the time of his last major league game, Henderson was still in the all-time top 100 home run hitters, with 297. [[Bill James]] wrote in 2000, "Without exaggerating one inch, you could find fifty Hall of Famers who, all taken together, don't own as many records, and as many ''important'' records, as Rickey Henderson."<ref>James, ''The New Bill James Historical Baseball Abstract'', 654</ref>

Henderson's record for the most postseason stolen bases was broken by [[Kenny Lofton]]'s 34th career steal during the [[2007 ALCS]];<ref>{{cite web|title=Kenny Lofton sets postseason record for stolen bases|publisher=ESPN|agency=Associated Press|url=https://www.espn.com/espn/wire?section=mlb&id=3066983|date=October 27, 2007|access-date=August 28, 2008}}</ref> Henderson is the only American League player to steal more than 100 bases in a single season (having accomplished the feat three times),<ref name=wancho/> and he is the all-time stolen base leader for the Oakland A's.<ref>{{cite web|title=Celebrating 40 Years of Oakland Athletics|work=MLB.com|url=http://oakland.athletics.mlb.com/oak/fan_forum/anniversary.jsp|access-date=August 29, 2008|archive-date=September 22, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080922074605/http://oakland.athletics.mlb.com/oak/fan_forum/anniversary.jsp|url-status=dead}}</ref>

In 1999, before breaking the career records for runs scored and walks, Henderson was ranked number 51 on ''[[The Sporting News]]''' list of the 100 Greatest Baseball Players,<ref>{{cite web|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/19990508010320/http://www.sportingnews.com/baseball/100/index-51.html|title=Baseball's 100 Greatest Players|work=The Sporting News|archive-date=May 8, 1999 |date=May 8, 1999|url=http://www.sportingnews.com/baseball/100/index-51.html}}</ref> and was a nominee for the [[Major League Baseball All-Century Team]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://static.espn.go.com/mlb/news/1999/1023/129008.html|title=All-Century Team final voting|work=[[ESPN.com]]|date=October 23, 1999|access-date=July 7, 2010}}</ref> In 2005, ''The Sporting News'' updated their 100 Greatest Players list, and Henderson had inched up to number 50.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://baseballevolution.com/top100s/sportingnews2005.html|title=Baseball Evolution – The 2005 Sporting News Top 100|first=Scott Asher|last=Keith|website=baseballevolution.com}}</ref> On January 12, 2009, Henderson was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in his first year on the ballot, receiving 94.8% of the vote.<ref name=Manoloff/> This was the 13th highest percentage in major league history.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/awards/hof.shtml|title=MLB Baseball Hall of Fame Inductees|work=[[Baseball Reference]]|access-date=July 7, 2010}}</ref>

Asked to choose the best player in history, Henderson declined, saying, "There are guys who have done different things very well, but I don't know of anyone who mastered everything." Offered the chance to assess his own placement among the game's greats, he said, "I haven't mastered the homers or RBI. The little things, I probably mastered." Of his various records and achievements, he values his career-runs-scored mark the most: "You have to score to win."<ref name=Manoloff/>