September 7 has produced two memorable Dodgers milestones, separated by nearly four decades but linked by the same kind of headline-grabbing power on the bases and in the box.
Back in 1962, Maury Wills put his name in the record book by stealing his 82nd base of the season, breaking the modern National League mark in the Los Angeles Dodgers’ 10-1 loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates. The previous NL standard belonged to Cincinnati Reds left fielder Bob Bescher, who swiped 81 bags in 1911.
Wills did plenty else that night, too. He finished 2-for-3 with a walk and accounted for four stolen bases while reaching base three times, but he never crossed the plate. Los Angeles’ lone run came on a solo homer by Frank Howard.
The season kept building from there for the 1962 MVP. Wills would finish with 104 steals, a National League record that lasted 12 years until St.
Louis Cardinals left fielder Lou Brock ran it up to 118. On the bigger MLB scale, Oakland Athletics Hall of Famer Rickey Henderson owns the modern record with 130 stolen bases in 1982.
The source also notes that Cincinnati Red Stockings outfielder Hugh Nicol stole 138 bases in 1887, though that total came under an older scoring rule that credited stolen bases differently.
Over 14 big league seasons, Wills piled up 586 stolen bases, including 490 with the Dodgers. He was a seven-time All-Star and also spent two seasons with the Pirates and one with the Montreal Expos.
The same date brought another Dodgers milestone in 2001, when Shawn Green launched two homers against the Cardinals to become the club’s single-season home run leader with 44. He also went 4-for-5, scored three runs, drove in three, and added a stolen base in a 7-1 Dodgers win.
Green would finish that season with 49 home runs, and his Dodgers record stood until Shohei Ohtani broke it in 2024 with 54. Ohtani then topped that the following season with 55.
In five seasons with Los Angeles, Green hit .280/.366/.510 with 183 doubles, 162 home runs and 509 RBI in 798 games. He ended his career with 328 home runs.
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