Maurice Morning "Maury" Wills (born October 2, 1932 in Washington, DC) is a former Major League Baseball shortstop and switch-hitter batter who played in the National League with Los Angeles Dodgers (1959-66, 1969-72), Pittsburgh Pirates (1967-68) and Montreal Expos (1969).

Luis Aparicio had been stealing bases in the American League for several years prior to Wills's insurgence in 1960. In his first-full season, Wills hit .295 and led the league with 50 stolen bases, being the first NL player to do it since Max Carey stole 51 in 1923.

Wills stole 104 bases in 1962 to establish a new record in baseball breaking the old 96-mark set by Ty Cobb in 1915. Beside this, he hit .299, led the league in triples (10), and was selected the NL Most Valuable Player beating out Willie Mays by seven points.

A winner of the Gold Glove in 1961 and 1962, Wills was selected five times for the All-Star Game. After retiring, he managed the Seattle Mariners (1980-81).

In 14-seasons career, Wills batted .281 with 20 home runs, 458 RBI, 2134 hits, 1067 runs, 177 doubles, 71 triples, and 586 stolen bases in 1942 games.

Highlights

• 5-time All-Star (1961-63, 1965-66)
• MVP (1962)
• Twice Gold Glove (1961-62)
• 6-time led league in stolen bases (1960-65)
• Led league in triples (1962)
• 7th MLB player to hit home runs from each side of the plate in a game (1962)
• Won the Hickok Belt award (1962)

External links

• Official web site
• Player and managerial careers at Baseball Reference