Hall of Famer Lou Brock has passed away

Lou Brock, Hall of Fame outfielder for the St. Louis Cardinals, has passed away, per reports. He was 81.

Brock was signed by the Chicago Cubs out of Southern University, and made his major league debut in 1961. He was dealt to the St. Louis Cardinals in the middle of 1964 in a six player deal that brought Ernie Broglio and Bobby Shantz to Chicago.

The deal was panned for the Cardinals at the time, but Brock emerged soon after the deal as one of the best base stealers in baseball. He led the league in steals eight times between 1966 and 1974, with his then all time single season record 118 stolen bases coming in 1974. With 3023 career hits he is 28th all time in that category, along with being second all time in steals.

Although no cause of death has been released, Brock had been battling health issues in recent years, including multiple myeloma, a form of blood cancer.