Freeman becomes the only active player with 2,500 hits

PITTSBURGH -- As Freddie Freeman just keeps rolling in his age-36 season, we have to keep reminding ourselves that we’re watching one of the game’s greats in real time.

The Dodgers' first baseman reached another major career milestone during Los Angeles' 12-3 win on Tuesday evening at PNC Park, becoming the only active player with 2,500 career hits. Entering this week’s series against the Pirates, the 17-year veteran needed just two hits to reach the mark.

Freeman reached the milestone by lining an RBI single to center field off rookie Brandan Bidois that capped a 10-run seventh inning.

“Ten years ago, I probably thought about it, but as you get older, you come to appreciate moments like this,” Freeman said. “I think when you’re going over the course of a 162-game season, that you don’t really have much time to reflect on milestones or records. Something like 2,500 hits is really special, and it means a lot to me. It’s significant.”

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Astros star Jose Altuve could join Freeman in the 2,500-hit club by season’s end, currently owning 2,430 hits in his 16th season and also at age 36.

Those two are well ahead of the rest of the pack. Andrew McCutchen, recently designated for assignment by the Rangers, sits in third with 2,280 hits. Yankees first baseman/DH Paul Goldschmidt is in fourth with 2,227 entering Tuesday.

Freeman’s milestone-clinching knock was his 69th of the season, putting him on pace for just over 160 on the season, should he stay healthy and productive. That’s an impressive mark for several reasons, but it’s also important in the sense that it puts him well on pace to crack the hallowed grounds of 3,000 career hits.

The Dodgers held a brief toast to Freeman after the game in the clubhouse. Many of his teammates encouraged him to shoot for 3,000.

“Everybody said we’d better get 500 more,” Freeman said with a smile. “We’ll start getting to work on it tomorrow,” Freeman said. “Hopefully, I can get there, but I only have one more year left on my contract, so you never know, and I also have four kids now. We’ll see what happens.”

It seems very likely that plenty of teams would still love to have Freeman in 2028.

“It’s harder than ever to get hits in today’s game, so it’s hard to imagine 2,500 hits, but Freddie is still going strong,” said Dodgers shortstop Mookie Betts, who has 1,791 career hits in 13 seasons.

The nine-time All-Star and 2020 NL MVP is likely already on his way to the Hall of Fame whenever his decorated career is done. But becoming just the 34th player to record 3,000 hits would help solidify his case. So, too, would reaching 400 career home runs. With 377 under his belt, that mark should be within range in the next two seasons.

Freeman also shows no signs of slowing down. His 46.4% hard-hit rate (batted balls at 95 mph or higher) in 2026 is in the 75th percentile, while his xwOBA is in the 83rd percentile.

Freeman recently told The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal that he intends to play three more seasons after this one, though the birth of his first daughter in April could alter those plans.

“If I can reach a couple of ‘em, that would be pretty cool,” Freeman told Rosenthal of personal accolades. “I just always viewed myself as trying to be the best hitter I can possibly be. I’ve never changed. There is so much about launch angles, trajectories, hitting home runs. I knew who I was. Being stubborn and knowing who I was, I didn’t want to change.”