Brock, Lou

byname of Louis Clark Brock

(born June 18, 1939, El Dorado, Arkansas, U.S.) professional National League baseball player whose career 938 stolen bases (1961–79) set a record that held until 1991, when it was broken by Rickey Henderson.

Brock followed his childhood interest in baseball by playing at Southern University in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, where he both pitched and played in the outfield. He threw and hit left-handed. He was signed to a contract by the Chicago Cubs in 1961 and played on their farm teams before moving to the major leagues in 1962. With the Cubs his outfield playing was erratic, and his speed on the bases was unproductive; when he went into a hitting slump in 1964 (.251 in 52 games), he was traded to the St. Louis Cardinals, where he hit .348 for the rest of the season (.315 in all). Thereafter he led the league in stolen bases (1966–69 and 1971–74), stealing 50 or more bases each year (1965–76). His batting average was .300 or higher for eight seasons and .293 in his career. In 1974 he stole 118 bases, a new season record until 1982, when Rickey Henderson stole 130. Brock hit .414 in the 1967 World Series and .464 in the 1968 series. He retired after the 1979 season and was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1985.