Lou Brock

At 81 years old, Lou Brock physical status not available right now. We will update Lou Brock's height, weight, eye color, hair color, build, and measurements.

Louis Clark Brock (born June 18, 1939) is an American professional baseball player.

He began his 19-year MLB (MLB) career in 1961 with the Chicago Cubs and spent the majority of his career as a left fielder for the St. Louis Cardinals.

He was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1985 and the St. Louis Cardinals Hall of Fame in 2014.

He is now a special instructor coach for the St. Louis Cardinals. In 1977, Brock was best known for breaking Ty Cobb's all-time major league stolen base record.

He was an All-Star for six seasons and a National League (NL) stolen base manager for eight seasons.

In 1968, he led the NL in doubles and triples.

In 1972, he served as the NL top singles champion and was runner-up for the NL Most Valuable Player Award.

Early life

Brock was born in El Dorado, Arkansas, to a family of sharecroppers. When he was two years old, his family moved to Collinston, Louisiana. Although his family did not have much money, he said he never felt ill because, "If you don't have something, you don't miss it." Brock grew up as a fan of the Brooklyn Dodgers, the team that featured Jackie Robinson, Don Newcombe, and Roy Campanella. Despite the fact that he did not participate in organized baseball until he reached the 11th grade, he learned a lot about the game from Cardinals radio broadcaster Harry Caray's description of how major league hitters stood at the plate. After attending high school in Mer Rouge, Louisiana, he obtained academic assistance, but when a low grade in his first semester he could forfeit his scholarship, he decided to apply for the school's baseball team in order to gain an athletic scholarship.

Personal life

Brock and his partner, Jackie, were both ordained ministers active at Abundant Life Fellowship Church in St. Louis, and he was a director on the board of YTB International. In the song "Check the Rhime" by the pioneering "jazz rap" hip-hop group A Tribe Called Quest, Brock's speed was referred to. When he received the Bobby Bragan Youth Foundation Lifetime Achievement Award on December 5, 2006, he was lauded for his contributions both on and off the track. Brock was the father of former University of Southern California Trojan and National Football League player Lou Brock Jr. Taylor Rooks, a sports journalist and broadcaster, is also the granduncle.

In October 2015, Brock's left leg was amputated below the knee due to a diabetic disease-related infection.

Brock revealed on April 13, 2017 that he had been diagnosed with multiple myeloma, a blood cancer that begins in the bone marrow's plasma cells. The cancerous cells had been found on July 28, 2017, according to Brock and his wife's blood tests, and they had been told by Mercy Hospital's doctors that they had received word from them. The cancer had been declining for a long time, according to Brock. "We got news that it was 25% down, then 50%, and then 75% gone," he said. The doctors were unethical.' "Cancer] is not there."

Brock died on September 6, 2020, at the age of 81.

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Baseball career

In his first year of college baseball, Brock had a.189 batting average, but he hit a.500 average the following year. During his junior year, Southern University captured the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics' baseball championship, and Brock was selected for the 1959 Pan American Games. When Brock decided to pursue a career in baseball, he headed to St. Louis to try out for the Cardinals, but the scout who had recommended him was in Seattle to sign Ray Washburn. He then decided to try out for the Chicago Cubs, who signed him as an amateur free agent in 1960. Assigned to play for the St. Germain. Cloud Rox, Brock, with a 3.61% batting average, won the 1961 Northern League batting championship.

Brock made his major league debut with the Cubs on September 10, 1961, at the age of 22. Brock was one of four players to play for the center-field bleachers at the old Polo Grounds in New York City since its 1923 reconstruction. In the first game of a doubleheader against the New York Mets on June 17, his blast struck Al Jackson, making him one of two people to clear the wall in consecutive days, with Hank Aaron arriving the next day. In 1953, Joe Adcock became the first person to hit a ball over the wall. Before the reconstruction, Babe Ruth returned to the old bleachers (as a distance). Brock was not known as a power hitter, although he aspired to be one.

Brock had a quick speed and base running instincts, but the Cubs' young right fielder struggled to impress the Cubs' leadership, batting for only.260 average in his first two seasons. The Cubs gave up on Brock and made him part of a trade with the St. Louis Cardinals in 1964 after losing patience with his growth. Ernie Broglio's last day contract, as well as Peter Spring, Jack Spring, and Paul Toth, saw Brock, Jack Spring, and Paul Toth travel to St. Louis for Broglio, Bobby Shantz, and Doug Clemens. Bing Devine, the Cardinals' general manager, wanted Brock at the insistence of Cardinals' manager Johnny Keane to boost team speed and solidify the Cardinals' lineup, which had been struggling after the retirement of left fielder Stan Musial in 1963. Many believed the arrangement was a heist for the Cubs at the time. Four years ago, Broglio had led the National League in victories, and he had won 18 games before the trade began.

Brock's career turned around dramatically after being traded to the Cardinals. For the remainder of the 1964 season, he was in left field and batted.348.331. He stole 33 bases. The Cardinals were 28–31, in eighth place in the National League at the time of the trade, behind the Cubs, who were 27–27 and in sixth position. On the last day of the season, Brock aided the Cardinals from behind to win the National League pennant. The Cardinals won the 1964 World Series in seven games over the favored New York Yankees, who were in their 14th World Series in 16 years (and their last in 14 years). When he finished in tenth place in voting for the 1964 National League Most Valuable Player Award, Brock's contributions to the Cardinals' championship season were acknowledged. In comparison, Broglio played only seven games for the Chicago Cubs before retiring from baseball after the 1966 season. The trade between Brock and Broglio is considered one of the most lopsided deals in baseball history.

Brock completed Maury Wills' six-year tenure as the National League's stolen base champion with 74 thefts in 1966. In David Halberstam's book, Johnny Keane begged Brock to forego home runs in favour of stealing bases. Brock went on to lead the National League in robbed bases eight times in a nine-year span between 1966 and 1974 (former teammate Bobby Tolan led the league in steals in 1970).

Brock began the 1967 season by hitting five home runs in the first four games of the season, becoming the first player to do so (Barry Bonds tied this record in 2002). By mid-June, he had been hitting for a.328 average and was gaining his position as the National League's starting left fielder for the National League in the 1967 All-Star Game. With a career-low 206 hits and a.299 batting average throughout the season, he continued to lead the league in stolen bases and runs scored as the Cardinals captured the National League pennant by ten and a half games. Brock was the first player to rob 50 bases and 20 home runs in the same season. In the 1967 World Series, Brock ran for a.414 average, 8 runs, and tied for the first time in a World Series with seven stolen bases.

As Brock once more led the league in stolen bases as well as in doubles and triples, the Cardinals captured the National League pennant for the second year in a row. Brock had three stolen bases in Game 3 and scored a double, triple, home run, and four runs batted in Game 4 to help the Cardinals get a three-game advantage over the Tigers in the 1968 World Series. Going into Game 5 with a 3–2 lead, the Cardinals appeared to be on the verge of winning their second straight World Series. Although Brock's base running abilities had been a factor in the previous four games, his carelessness may have cost the Cardinals a lot more. After Brock's double, he attempted to score standing up on Julián Javier's single to left, but Willie Horton threw him out with a strong throw to home plate. As Mickey Lolich shuts out the Cardinals for the final eight innings, the Tigers won the game by three runs in the seventh inning. Brock had another critical error in Game 7 when he was picked off base by Lolich, causing the Cardinals to rally. The Tigers fought back from being down three games to one behind behind Mickey Lolich's stellar pitching skills to win the series. Brock stole seven bases and was the leading hitter in the series, batting average of 6.464 runs and 5 runs batted in.

Brock had six seasons as a result, with 190 hits or better starting in 1969. In May 1971, he was named NL Player of the Month for the first three times in his career, with a.405 batting average and 8 stolen bases. He tied for his 50th base of the season in August 1973, marking the ninth time he had stolen 50 or more bases in a season. Brock received his second NL Player of the Month Award in August 1974, one of just four times the award was given to a player who slugged below.500.

Brock enhanced Maury Wills' technique in 1972 by, rather than attempting to maximize lead off distance, focusing on starting with little energy. In a later Sports Illustrated article, "Brock got off the rolling ball," states the author, "base-stealing tends to be overrated as a factor in team success."

Brock tied Wills' single-season stolen bases mark of 104 with a second-inning take of second base, then claimed sole possession of the record with another swipe of second in the seventh inning. With a new major league single-season single-season record of 118 stolen bases, he finished the season. In the voting for the 1974 National League Most Valuable Player Award, Brock came in second second, second to Steve Garvey.

Brock set a new franchise stolen base record against the San Diego Padres on August 29, 1977, beating Ty Cobb's career record of 892 stolen bases and becoming the all-time major league stolen base leader. Cobb's record had been one of the best in baseball, and some analysts, including Babe Ruth's record of 714 career home runs, had considered unbreakable. Brock held the record until May 31, 1991, when it was broken by Oakland Athletics Rickey Henderson, who would go on to steal 1,406 bases.

Brock was still best known for base-stealing and starting Cardinals rallies. Wills is reported to have looted Wills' base-stealing instead of reducing his leads and going hard. He was also a game film novice. Brock discovered weaknesses in 1964 when he was filming pitchers from the dugout to investigate their windups and pickoff moves to find pitholes.

Brock sank into a hitting slump early in the 1978 season, losing the left fielder's position. However, he recovered his starting job in 1979 with a.345 batting average. When he hit a.433 batting average, Brock was named Player of the Month for the month of May 1979.

Brock, the Chicago Cubs' fourteenth Major League Baseball player to reach 3,000 hits on August 13, 1979, in a game against the team he traded him. Carl Yastrzemski climbed the same plateau about a month ago and was immediately welcomed by Massachusetts native and Speaker Tip O'Neill to the White House. Brock was reported to have been dissatisfied that he hadn't been sent a similar invitation. Brock said that even if he had been invited, he would not go to the White House. However, after consideration, he decided that repentance was the right option and accepted a belated invitation to speak with the President. Brock retired at the end of the season after posting a.304 batting average in his last season, his highest score in his career at the age of 40. He was named National League Comeback Player of the Year at the end of the season, marking the first player to be so honoured in his final Major League season.

Career statistics

Brock played in 2,616 games and collected 3,023 runs in 10,332 at bats, a.343 on-base percentage, and a.410 slugging percentage, with a.293 batting average. Brock, a six-time All-Star, has achieved over.300 eight times during his career. He finished his career with a.959 career fielding percentage.

Brock had 118 until it was surpassed by Rickey Henderson with 130 in 1982. He also held the major league record for a career stolen bases with 938 until it was also broken by Henderson in 1991. He led the National League in stolen bases for eight years and eight others in a row. Brock is also the National League's top base stealer in career.

Brock's.391 World Series batting average is the highest for anyone who played over 20 series games. His 14 stolen bases in World Series play are also a series record. Brock's 13 hits in the 1968 World Series tied a single-series record set by Bobby Richardson against his Cardinals' team in 1964, which was later tied in 1986 by Marty Barrett.

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Awards, honors and life after baseball

Brock received numerous awards during his playing career. In January 1968 he was named the recipient of the Babe Ruth Award as the outstanding player in the 1967 World Series. Brock was honored with The Sporting News Player of the Year Award in 1974. In the wake of his record-setting 118 stolen bases during the 1974 season, Brock was named the winner of the Roberto Clemente Award in March 1975, for best exemplifying the game of baseball both on and off the field. In 1977 he was awarded the Lou Gehrig Memorial Award as the player who best exemplified Lou Gehrig's ability and character. In 1978, the National League announced that its annual stolen base leader would receive the Lou Brock Award, making Brock the first active player to have an award named after him.

In October 1979, Brock was named the National League's Comeback Player of the Year. In December 1979, he was named as the recipient of the Hutch Award, given to the player who best exemplifies the fighting spirit and competitive desire of Fred Hutchinson. On September 9, 1979, the St. Louis Cardinals retired Brock's jersey number 20, an honor that had been bestowed upon only three other players; Stan Musial, Dizzy Dean, and Bob Gibson. In 1983, he was inducted into the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame.

Brock was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1985, his first year of eligibility. He was inducted into the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame in 1992. Brock was inducted into the St. Louis Walk of Fame in May 1994 and, in 1995 he was inducted into the Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame. In 1999, he was ranked Number 58 on The Sporting News' list of the 100 Greatest Baseball Players, and was nominated as a finalist for the Major League Baseball All-Century Team. In 2014, Brock and 21 other former players and personnel were inducted into the new St. Louis Cardinals Hall of Fame Museum.

After retiring from baseball, Brock prospered as a businessman, especially as a florist in the St. Louis area. He briefly worked as a color analyst for Monday Night Baseball on ABC in 1980, and for Chicago White Sox telecasts the following year. Brock regularly appeared at Cardinals games. When he stepped onto the field he was always greeted by a loud, low-pitched cheer of "Loooouuuuuuuuuuuu". He also lent his name to a unique rainhat, shaped like a miniature umbrella, meant to be worn at games during showers in lieu of retreating to the concourse. The product was called the "Brockabrella".

During the 1980s and 1990s, Brock was a spring training baserunning instructor with various MLB clubs, including the 1982 Cardinals, 1987 Minnesota Twins, 1988 Los Angeles Dodgers and 1993 Montreal Expos. The first three of those four teams won the World Series.