On August 13, 1979, in a game against the Cubs, in front of a packed house at Busch Stadium, Lou Brock became the 14th player in the history of Major League Baseball to record 3,000 hits. The 40-year-old legend of the diamond came into the contest two hits shy of the magic number, and he moved one step closer with a first inning single. The epic moment came with a leadoff infield single in the fourth that deflected off of the Cubs starter Dennis Lamp. The game was stopped as the St. Louis crowd chanted "Lou" over and over again, while he was surrounded by teammates who celebrated the milestone by his side. Brock was only the second man to record 3,000 hits with the Birds on the Bat on his chest, with the first being Stan Musial who joined him on the field as the game was stopped. Brock stayed in the game through the top of the fifth, before being replaced with a pinch hitter in the bottom of the frame. He was also treated to a win in the bottom of the ninth, when his teammate Garry Templeton came up with a game winning sacrifice fly in the bottom of the ninth that gave the Cardinals a 3-2 victory on one of the very special days in the career of Lou Brock.The '79 season was the last season that Brock spent on the major league diamond. The man who was best known for his base thievery was sitting on 929 stolen bases that August day, and he would snag nine more bags to bring his career totals to 938. He cranked out 23 more hits after reaching 3,000. 2,713 of those hits came in a Cardinals uniform. It only seems appropriate that 3,000 came against the club that sent him to the Gateway City in 1964. The 16 years that followed that trade were 16 years of legendary achievements. One of those achievements came on this day in 1979.
Check out the box score here: http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/SLN/SLN197908130.shtml
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