Some guys get on base by any means necessary. Others? They’d rather swing at a pitch in the dugout than take four balls.
These are the hitters who made pitchers’ lives easier by refusing to draw a walk. Whether it was impatience, confidence, or just a deep aversion to trotting to first, these guys hacked at everything and lived with the consequences.
20. Starlin Castro
Castro always looked like he was trying to hit five balls at once. Walking was not part of the plan.
19. Kevin Pillar
Pillar treated every at-bat like it was a race against the clock. You could practically hear him thinking, “Why walk when I can ground out to short?”
18. Juan Uribe
Uribe was allergic to walks and possibly to pitch recognition. If it was in the zip code, he was swinging.
17. Bengie Molina
He had the bat speed of a refrigerator but still managed to avoid walks like they were taxes. Bengie just wanted to swing the bat and go home.
16. Adam Jones
Jones was a five-tool player who just left the walk tool in the garage. His plate discipline was more of a plate suggestion.
15. Alcides Escobar
Escobar once led off a postseason game by swinging at the first pitch and never looked back. Pitchers knew he wasn’t waiting around.
14. Freddy Galvis
Galvis never met a breaking ball in the dirt he didn’t want to chase. He was all vibes, no vision.
13. Jeff Francoeur
“Free-swinging” doesn’t do Francoeur justice—he was a walk-proof tornado at the plate. You knew what you were getting every time: swing, miss, repeat.
12. Jonathan Schoop
Schoop saw baseballs like they were invitations to swing. And he RSVP’d yes every single time.
11. Pablo Sandoval
The Panda could hit pitches that bounced, but rarely took one that missed. Walks were about as common for him as salads.
10. Salvador Perez
Perez has power, leadership, and zero desire to take four balls. He swings like he’s being paid per whiff.
9. Ronny Cedeño
Cedeño could have stood in the box with the bat on his shoulders and still avoided walks. But that bat was always moving, usually toward a bad pitch.
8. Vladimir Guerrero
A Hall of Famer, yes, but patience wasn’t part of his skill set. Vlad could hit anything—so he swung at everything.
7. Dee Strange-Gordon
Dee had speed to burn, but didn’t want to jog to first. His game was slash and dash, not stand and stare.
6. Ivan Rodriguez
Pudge could rake, but he swung like he had dinner reservations. His OBP always lagged behind his talent.
5. Andrelton Simmons
An elite glove and elite refusal to take a walk. Simmons acted like the strike zone was a suggestion.
4. A.J. Pierzynski
Pierzynski didn’t care about working the count—he just wanted to get the at-bat over with. Patience was for other people.
3. Yasiel Puig
Puig played baseball like a caffeinated bull in a china shop. Waiting for the right pitch was never on the agenda.
2. Joe Carter
Carter hit a lot of homers, but walks were barely a footnote. He wasn’t trying to walk off games—he was trying to end them with one swing.
Read More: MLB Swingers: Ranking the Top 7 Prettiest Swings in History
1. Tony Armas
Armas made swinging at bad pitches an art form. If you needed someone to hack at three straight sliders in the dirt, he was your guy.
Read More: The 30 Most Effortless Swings in MLB History
