Actually making contact with a baseball that is hurtling toward you at more than 90 miles per hour is about as tough of a task as possible.

So, naturally, making routine contact with the ball, including more home runs than any of your contemporaries must be nigh-on impossible, right?

Well, not for the greats of the game it wasn't.

Each season, Major League Baseball batters have their home run and runs batted in figures counted, so too their batting averages.

And for those skilled enough to hit the most runs, drive in more than any of their peers and round out the year with the most potent average of all, the illustrious Triple Crown is on offer.

In the professional era, the award has only been handed out on 18 occasions, meaning that for those that hold the hot bat, a place in the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, NY is all but assured.

From the game's pioneers to a contemporary champion out of Venezuala, here are the 16 baseballers to have topped the home run, RBI and batting charts in a single season.

1. Paul Hines (1878) – Providence Grays – National League – 4 HR/50 RBI/.358 avg

2. Tip O'Neill (1887) – St Louis Browns – American Association – 14/123/.435

3. Hugh Duffy (1894) – Boston Beaneaters – National League – 18/145/.440

4. Nap Lajoie (1901) – Philadelphia Athletics – American League – 14/125/.426

5. Ty Cobb (1909) – Detroit Tigers – American League – 9/107/377

6. Heinie Zimmerman (1912) – Chicago Cubs – National League – 14/104/.372

7. Rogers Hornsby (1922) – St Louis Cardinals – National League – National League – 42/152/.401

8. Rogers Hornsby (1925) – St Louis Cardinals – National League – National League – 39/143/.403

9. Jimmie Foxx (1933) – Philadelphia Athletics – American League – 48/163/.356

10. Chuck Klein (1933) – Philadelphia Phillies – National League – 28/120/.368

11. Lou Gehrig (1934) – New York Yankees – American League – 49/165/.363

12. Joe Medwick (1937) – St Louis Cardinals – National League – 31/154/.374

13. Ted Williams (1942) – Boston Red Sox – American League – 36/137/.356

14. Ted Williams (1947) – Boston Red Sox – American League – 32/114/.343

15. Mickey Mantle (1956) – New York Yankees – American League – 52/130/.353

16. Frank Robinson (1966) – Baltimore Orioles – American League – 49/122/.316

17. Carl Yastrzemski (1967) – Boston Red Sox – American League – 44/121/.326

18. Miguel Cabrera (2012) – Detroit Tigers – American League – 44/139/.330