Miami – Marlins second baseman Luis Aries is chasing history in 2023.

400 average in June. The late Hall of Famer Ted Williams was the last player in American League/National League history to hit . 400, doing so in 1941 (. 406).

The 26-year-old Arraez could become the first player since 1900 to be the AL and NL batting champion in consecutive seasons. As a member of the Twins in 2022, Arraez captured the 2022 AL batting title with a . 316 average. He was then acquired by the Marlins on January 20, 2023, in a right-hander trade for Pablo Lopez.

Highest batting average in a team’s first 61 games, since 1941 based on current qualifying rules:

Chipper Jones (2008): .418
Larry Walker (1997): .416
Paul O’Neill (1994): .411
Rod Carew (1983): .411
Stan Musial (1948): .408
Ted Williams (1948): 407
Tony Gwen (1997): .405
Ted Williams (1941): .403
Roberto Alomar (1996): .399 (ahead of Arraez by the next decimal place)
Luis Araz (2023): 399

Be sure to check out this space for a daily tracker of Arraez’s progress.

June 5: 3 for 4 (.399)
Aries homered to second for a 9-6 win over the Royals at Depot Park before collecting batters for his last three batters. He hit an RBI double down the line in the third, produced an RBI single to center in the fourth and a left single in the sixth. It was Aries’ 25th multi-hit game of the season, and his eighth with at least three strikeouts.