Dodgers star transformed baseball with base stealing

Alight-hitting shortstop, Maury Wills spent nearly a decade in the minor leagues honing his limited skill set, studying the tendencies of pitchers and teaching himself to hit from either side of the plate.

When the Dodgers finally pulled him up to the big leagues, it all paid off in spectacular fashion as he helped take them to three World Series titles in four tries and nearly single-handedly reintroduced base stealing as a major offensive weapon in the game.

An integral part of the 1960s Dodgers, Wills went on to lead the National League in steals six times, earned two Gold Gloves for his fielding and beat out Willie Mays for the league’s most-valuableplayer award in 1962, when he mesmerized the baseball world by setting a record with 104 stolen bases, eclipsing the 47year-old mark of

Associated Press BRILLIANT ON THE BASEPATHS Wills is safe at third against the Cardinals in 1965. He helped the Dodgers capture three World Series titles and set a record with 104 steals in 1962.