Games played (most often abbreviated as G or GP) is a statistic used in team sports to indicate the total number of games in which a player has participated (in any capacity). In Major League Baseball, this statistic applies to players who appear at any point in a game, either as a starter or as a replacement.
Ty Cobb was the first player to reach 3,000 games played. Cobb's record of 3,035 games played lasted for 46 seasons until Hank Aaron would break the record. Aaron's record was subsequently broken by Carl Yastrzemski in 1983 and finally broken the following season by Pete Rose, who currently holds the record for most games played at 3,562. Rickey Henderson, Eddie Murray, Stan Musial, Albert Pujols, Willie Mays, and Cal Ripken Jr. are the only other players to play in over 3,000 career games. Most of the players that played over 2,000 games were known for their productive hit qualities (all members of the 3,000-hit club are in the top 100 whereas not all hitters with 500 home runs are there); Ron Fairly is the only player in the top 100 of games played to have less than 2,000 hits, having collected 1,913 hits in 2,442 games played.
As of September 27, 2026, no active players are in the top 100 for career games played. The active leader is Freddie Freeman, tied for 105th all-time with 2,332 career games.
Key Rank Rank amongst leaders in career games played. A blank field indicates a tie. Player (2026 Gs) Number of games played during the 2026 Major League Baseball season. G Total career games played.*Denotes elected to National Baseball Hall of Fame. BoldDenotes active player.A player is considered inactive if he has announced his retirement or has not played for a full season.
List
Stats updated as of September 27, 2026. RankPlayer (2026 Gs)G1Pete Rose3,5622Carl Yastrzemski*3,3083Hank Aaron*3,2984Rickey Henderson*3,0815Albert Pujols3,0806Ty Cobb *3,0357Eddie Murray*3,026Stan Musial*3,0269Willie Mays*3,00510Cal Ripken Jr.*3,00111Barry Bonds2,98612Dave Winfield*2,97313Omar Vizquel2,96814Rusty Staub2,95115Adrián Beltré*2,93316Brooks Robinson*2,89617Robin Yount*2,85618Craig Biggio*2,85019Al Kaline*2,83420Rafael Palmeiro2,83121Harold Baines*2,83022Eddie Collins*2,82623Reggie Jackson*2,82024Frank Robinson*2,80825Miguel Cabrera2,79726Honus Wagner*2,79427Tris Speaker*2,78928Alex Rodriguez2,78429Tony Pérez*2,77730Derek Jeter*2,74731Mel Ott*2,73032George Brett*2,70733Graig Nettles2,70034Darrell Evans2,68735Paul Molitor*2,68336Ken Griffey Jr.*2,67137Rabbit Maranville*2,67038Ichiro Suzuki*2,65339Joe Morgan*2,64940Andre Dawson*2,62741Lou Brock*2,61642Dwight Evans2,60643Luis Aparicio*2,59944Luis Gonzalez2,59145Willie McCovey*2,58846Carlos Beltrán*2,58647Steve Finley2,58348Gary Sheffield2,57649Ozzie Smith*2,57350Paul Waner*2,549 RankPlayer (2026 Gs)G51Iván Rodríguez*2,543Jim Thome*2,54353Ernie Banks*2,52854Julio Franco2,52755Cap Anson*2,52456Bill Buckner 2,517Sam Crawford*2,51758Gary Gaetti2,50759Babe Ruth*2,50360Tim Raines*2,50261Carlton Fisk*2,499Chipper Jones*2,49963Johnny Damon2,49064Dave Concepción2,488Billy Williams*2,48866Nap Lajoie*2,48067Max Carey*2,47668Rod Carew*2,469Vada Pinson2,46970Dave Parker*2,46671Fred McGriff*2,46072Ted Simmons*2,45673Bill Dahlen2,44374Ron Fairly2,44275Tony Gwynn*2,44076Wade Boggs*2,43977Chili Davis2,43678Harmon Killebrew*2,43579Roberto Clemente*2,43380Willie Davis2,42981Bobby Abreu2,42582Luke Appling*2,42283Zack Wheat*2,41084Mickey Vernon2,40985David Ortiz*2,40886Buddy Bell2,40587Sam Rice*2,404Mike Schmidt*2,40489Mickey Mantle*2,40190Jake Beckley*2,39291Eddie Mathews*2,39192Lou Whitaker2,39093Bobby Wallace*2,38394Enos Slaughter*2,38095Roberto Alomar*2,37996Torii Hunter2,37297George Davis*2,368Al Oliver2,36899Nellie Fox*2,367100Willie Stargell*2,360
Notes
Bibliography MLB official list
References