Kenny Lofton

Biography

Kenny Lofton (Kenneth Lofton) was born on May 31, 1967 in East Chicago, Indiana. He made his Major League debut on September 14, 1991 for the Houston Astros. In 1992, his rookie year, he hit .285 with 5 home runs and 42 RBI. Lofton played for the Houston Astros, Cleveland Indians, Atlanta Braves, San Francisco Giants, Chicago White Sox, Pittsburgh Pirates, Chicago Cubs, New York Yankees, Philadelphia Phillies and Los Angeles Dodgers over the course of his 17 year career.

Most people believe that Kenny Lofton's best season was 1996, when he stole 75 bases, hit for a .317 average and knocked in 67 runs.

Scouting Report

Statistics

Batting Stats

Fielding Stats

Awards

• 6-time All-Star (1994–99)
• 4-time Gold Glove Award (1993–96)
• Holds the MLB record (tie) for runs scored in the first inning in a season, (18) in 2000
• Holds the MLB record for stolen bases by a rookie, (66) in 1992
• Holds the MLB record for post-season stolen bases (34)
• Holds the MLB record for most different teams played on in the playoffs (6)

Transactions

• Selected by the Houston Astros in the 17th round of the free-agent draft (June 1, 1988 - signed June 16, 1988).
• Traded by the Houston Astros with Dave Rohde to the Cleveland Indians in exchange for Willie Blair and Ed Taubensee (December 10, 1991).
• Traded by the Cleveland Indians with Alan Embree to the Atlanta Braves in exchange for Marquis Grissom and David Justice (March 25, 1997).
• Granted free agency (October 28, 1997).
• Signed by the Cleveland Indians (December 8, 1997).
• Granted free agency (November 5, 2001).
• Signed by the Chicago White Sox (February 1, 2002).
• Traded by the Chicago White Sox to the San Francisco Giants in exchange for Felix Diaz and Ryan Meaux (July 28, 2002).
• Granted free agency (November 4, 2002).
• Signed by the Pittsburgh Pirates (March 14, 2003).
• Traded by the Pittsburgh Pirates with Aramis Ramirez and cash to the Chicago Cubs in exchange for Jose Hernandez, Matt Bruback, and a player to be named later (July 23, 2003); the Pittsburgh Pirates received Bobby Hill (August 15, 2003).
• Granted free agency (October 30, 2003).
• Signed by the New York Yankees (January 6, 2004).
• Traded by the New York Yankees to the Philadelphia Phillies in exchange for Felix Rodriguez (December 3, 2004).
• Granted free agency (November 2, 2005).
• Signed by the Los Angeles Dodgers (December 20, 2005).
• Granted free agency (October 31, 2006).
• Signed by the Texas Rangers (December 12, 2006).
• Traded to the Cleveland Indians for Single-A Catcher Max Ramirez (July 27, 2007)
• Granted free agency (November 13, 2007)

Trivia

• He was born to a single teenage mother; his father did not take part in his upbringing.
  • Additionally, Lofton was born prematurely, weighing three pounds at birth - he was so small that his mother was afraid to hold him.
• In college, he was the backup point guard (to Steve Kerr) on an Arizona Wildcats team that made it to the Final Four of the 1988 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament, and he set season and career school records for steals.
  • Lofton is one of only two men to play in a college basketball Final Four (1988, the first for the Arizona Wildcats) and a Major League Baseball World Series; the other is fellow East Chicago Washington High School alumnus Tim Stoddard, who was a member of the N.C. State team that won the 1974 NCAA Basketball Championship. Stoddard later pitched for the Baltimore Orioles in the 1979 World Series.
• In the 1995 ALCS against the Seattle Mariners, he came around to score from second base on a passed ball.
• In game four of the 2007 ALCS against the Boston Red Sox, Lofton earned his 34th career post-season stolen base, setting a new MLB record for playoff steals.

See also