Justin Upton: All-Star, future member of 3,000 hit club?
Jul 25, 2011, 10:47 PM | Updated: 11:49 pm
Justin Upton is putting together what is easily his best season as a pro.
Having won the National League’s Player of the Week award for the second time, the 23-year-old has seen his batting average rise to .301 while hitting 17 home runs and tallying 57 RBI.
The most surprising thing about that paragraph? The fact that Upton is just 23.
“I believe that this kid has the ability to be a great player in this league for a long time,” Sports 620 KTAR’s John Gambadoro said.
How great?
“Justin Upton is 23 years old and he’s got over 500 hits,” Gambadoro added. “I believe this kid has the potential to be a 3,000 hit player.”
That is quite a projection, as only 28 players in the history of the game have amassed more than 3,000 hits.
Upton is presently at 529, and the most he’s had in any single season are the 158 he collected in 2009. But if he can stay healthy and keep improving at the plate it would seem nothing is out of reach for the D-backs star.
