Milestone moment: From Southern to Cooperstown
Editor’s note: This is part of a weekly series looking at Louisiana Sports Hall of Famers and great moments in Louisiana sports history.
Arkansas native and Mer Rouge transplant Lou Brock became the 20th player in Major League Baseball history to enter the Baseball Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility.
Brock, a former standout for the Southern University baseball team, walked-on in order to gain a collegiate scholarship to pay for school, but even he did not realize the magnitude to which his potential could climb. His ability became truly undeniable following his sophomore season, where he raised his batting average to .500; .300 points higher than his freshman campaign.
As a member of the Jaguars, Brock led Southern University to its first NAIA baseball championship and was named to the All-SWAC team in 1960, his second consecutive appearance.
Brock’s success on the diamond led to the United States baseball team selecting him to play in the Pan American games, where he performed so well that he was offered a $30,000 signing bonus by the Chicago Cubs. Brock accepted the offer, and spent only one year in the minor leagues before being called up to the MLB at the end of the ’61 season.
The Cubs ended up trading Brock to the St. Louis Cardinals following the 1964 season. He went on to be a six-time All-Star, two-time World Series champion, a career .293 hitter, and one of 29 players to ever garner 3,000 hits.
For more on Louisiana sports history and Hall of Famers visit the LaSportsHall.com website. You can learn more at the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame Museum in downtown Natchitoches which is open Tuesday-Saturday.