Hall of Famer and Major League Basketball’s all-time stolen base leader Rickey Henderson passed away aged 65 on Saturday. The family did not reveal a cause for Henderson’s death but instead thanked the staff at the University of California and San Francisco Medical Center.
A statement from Rickey’s wife Pamela and three daughters read, “A legend on and off the field, Rickey was a devoted son, dad, friend, grandfather, brother, uncle, and a truly humble soul… Rickey lived his life with integrity, and his love for baseball was paramount. Now, Rickey is at peace with the Lord, cherishing the extraordinary moments and achievements he leaves behind.”
Major League Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred while talking about Hendrson’s passing in a statement said, “For multiple generations of baseball fans, Rickey Henderson was the gold standard of base stealing and leadoff hitting… Rickey was one of the most accomplished and beloved Athletics of all-time. He also made an impact with many other clubs during a quarter-century career like no other. Rickey epitomized speed, power and entertainment in setting the tone at the top of the lineup. When we considered new rules for the game in recent years, we had the era of Rickey Henderson in mind.”
Rickey Henderson’s career record:
Born in Oakland, California, Henderson was first drafted by the Oakland A’s in 1976 and made his debut in 1979. He was named an All-Star for the first time in 1980 and would go on to reach the milestone nine more times during his career.
Henderson played for nine different clubs in 24 Major League Basketball seasons from 1979 to 2003. He had four stints with the Oakland A’s and also won a World Series title with them in 1989.
He holds the MLB record for career stolen bases with 1,406, 468 more than Lou Brock’s record. Henderson also holds the record for most stolen bases in a single season with 130. To put that in perspective, no other player has ever reached 100 steals in a season.
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