In 1978, Cincinnati Reds’ second baseman, Joe Morgan, was first to hit 200 home runs and steal 500 bases.
Morgan was drafted to Houston in 1963 and played with the Astros until 1972, until he was traded to the Cincinnati Reds and played until 1979. He was traded back to the Astros for a year in 1980, and then traded to the San Francisco Giants in 1981 until 1982. He was traded to the Philadelphia Phillies for a year in 1983, and played his last year with the Oakland Athletics in 1984.Â
He had a total of 9,277 At-Bats, 1,650 Runs, 2,517 Hits, 268 Home Runs, 1,133 Runs Batted In, and 689 Stolen Bases. He had a batting average of .271, on-base percentage of .392, and on-base plus slugging percentage of .819.
He was a 10-time National League (NL) All-Star, five-time Rawlings NL Gold Glove recipient, three-time Reds Ernie Lombardi MVP Award, two-time NL MVP, two-time World Series Champion, and All-Star MVP in 1972. He was also the Astros MVP in 1970, 1982 Giants Willie McCovey Award recipient, Nl Silver Slugger in 1982, and inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1990 for his outstanding and incredible career.
His uniform number was retired with the Reds in 1998, and won the MLB Rawlings All-Time Gold Glove in 2007.
Unfortunately, Morgan passed away on October 11, 2020 from a non-specified polyneuropathy at 77-years-old. His legacy will live on forever and he will always be remembered.
