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By Jon Paul Hoornstra
Contributing Sports Writer
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Davey Lopes, a four-time All-Star infielder who won a World Series with the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1981, died April 8. He was 80.
"The Dodgers mourn the loss of Davey Lopes, who passed away today at age 80," the Dodgers wrote on their X account. "Lopes was a member of the team’s record-setting infield of the 1970s and 1980s and one of the finest base-stealers in MLB history. Our condolences go out to his family and friends."
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Lopes played 16 MLB seasons with the Dodgers (1972-81), Oakland A's (1982-84), Chicago Cubs (1984-86) and Houston Astros (1986-87).
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After retiring as a player, Lopes embarked on a long career as a coach. He managed the Milwaukee Brewers for three seasons (2000-02) and also coached on the staffs of the Brewers, Dodgers, Washington Nationals, Texas Rangers, San Diego Padres, Baltimore Orioles, and Philadelphia Phillies.
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Lopes won the only World Series championship of his playing career in 1981 with the Dodgers, the organization that drafted him out of Washburn University in Kansas in 1968.
Over parts of nine seasons, Lopes formed one-quarter of baseball's most dependable infields.
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Along with third baseman Ron Cey, shortstop Bill Russell, and first baseman Steve Garvey, the Dodgers were able to deploy the same regular infield from June 1973 until the final out of their Game 6 World Series win over the New York Yankees.
Lopes retired with 557 stolen bases, a .263 batting average, and a .349 on-base percentage. He twice led the National League in stolen bases (1975-76) and won a Gold Glove Award in 1978.
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Lopes won a World Series as a coach with the Phillies in 2008. When he finally retired after the 2017 season with the Nationals, it concluded a 45-year career in professional baseball.
"I always liked what I was doing," Lopes told MLB.com in 2018. "Once you have guys who will listen to certain things that you are trying to teach, like I did when I was in Philadelphia ... we had a lot of fun. We went to the World Series; we won it. We didn't quite win the second one. You have to have students and guys that love to play, want to learn and want to win. That's even more important. I had the opportunity to work with a lot of people. You don't do this thing alone."
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