From Collinston LA to the Major's Lou Brock's Homegoing

Louis Clark Brock (June 18, 1939 – September 6, 2020) Lou Brock was an American professional baseball outfielder. He began his 19-year Major League Baseball (MLB) career with the 1961 Chicago Cubs but spent the majority of big league career as a left fielder for the St. Louis Cardinals. Brock was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1985 and the St. Louis Cardinals Hall of Fame in 2014.

Brock was best known for breaking Ty Cobb's all-time major league stolen base record in 1977. He was an All-Star for six seasons and a National League (NL) stolen base leader for eight seasons. Brock led the NL in doubles and triples in 1968. He also led the NL in singles in 1972, and was the runner-up for the NL Most Valuable Player Award in 1974.

Brock was born the seventh of nine children, in El Dorado, Arkansas, to a family of sharecroppers. His family moved to Collinston, Louisiana, when he was two years old. While his family didn't have much money, he said that he never felt poor because, "If you don't have something, you don't miss it." His introduction to baseball came by accident. Brock had spat on a teacher and for punishment had to write a book report about baseball, presumably to teach him about life beyond Collinston.

After attending Union High School in Mer Rouge, Louisiana, he received academic assistance to attend Southern University in Baton Rouge, but when a low grade in his first semester meant the possibility of losing his scholarship, he decided to try out for the school's baseball team in order to secure an athletic scholarship.

Southern University won the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics' baseball championship during Brock's junior year, and he was selected for the United States baseball team in the 1959 Pan American Games. When Brock decided to try for a professional baseball career, he traveled 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.

Brock made his major league debut with the Cubs on September 10, 1961, at the age of 22. In his rookie season of 1962, Brock became one of four players to hit a home run Brock was not known as a power hitter, but he did display significant power from time to time.

Brock had great speed and base running instincts, but the young right fielder failed to impress the Cubs management, the Cubs gave up on Brock and made him part of a trade with the St. Louis Cardinals.