Davey Lopes, the Dodgers' Speedster Who Redefined Base Stealing, Dies at 80

Baseball lost a legend Wednesday. Davey Lopes, the four-time All-Star who anchored one of the most dominant infields in Los Angeles Dodgers history and became one of the greatest base stealers the game has ever seen, passed away at age 80. The Dodgers were informed of his death in Rhode Island by his former wife, Lin Lopes.

A Dodgers Institution

Lopes spent 10 seasons with the Dodgers, and in that time, he became absolutely central to who the franchise was. He made his MLB debut on September 22, 1972, at age 27. The very next season, Lopes joined Steve Garvey, Bill Russell, and Ron Cey to form an infield that started together for 8 and a half consecutive years. That's the kind of continuity and excellence that builds championship teams.

He appeared in four World Series with the Dodgers and won the 1981 championship. In 1978, he had the best World Series of his career, launching two home runs in Game 1 against the New York Yankees. That same year, he won a Gold Glove. Lopes holds the franchise record for most games played at second base with 1,134 games, and his 1,145 games batting leadoff rank second in Dodgers history, only behind Maury Wills' 1,279.

The Man Who Stole Bases

But here's what made Lopes special: nobody in his era ran the bases like he did. He stole 418 bases as a Dodger, second in franchise history only to Wills' 490. That's elite company. What really stands out is his 83.1% career success rate (minimum 100 steals), the best in Dodgers history.

In 1975, Lopes recorded a then-MLB-record 28 consecutive steals without being caught. He led the majors with 77 steals that same year and the National League with 63 in 1976. On August 4, 1974, he became the first Dodger since Wills to steal four bases in a game. Twenty days later, he tied the National League record with five steals against the Cardinals. In 1978 alone, he stole 45 bases in 49 attempts. Across his career, he finished with 557 stolen bases, 26th all-time in MLB history.

Life After the Dodgers

After leaving Los Angeles, Lopes played for the Athletics (1982-84), Cubs (1984-86), and Astros (1986-87). He finished his regular season career with a .263 batting average, 155 home runs, 614 RBIs, 232 doubles, and 50 triples across 1,812 games.

Lopes managed the Milwaukee Brewers from 2000-02 and later coached with the Orioles, Padres, Nationals, Phillies, and Dodgers. He won a second World Series ring as the Phillies' first-base coach and returned to coach the Dodgers from 2011-15. He finished his coaching career as the Nationals' first-base coach in 2016-17.

He is survived by his brothers Patrick and John, and his sisters Jean, Judith, Mary, and Nina.

This article was created with AI assistance and reviewed by Seattle On Tap editorial staff. Always verify information with official team sources.