Top 10 Cardinals Lead-Off Hitters

Each batter in the course of a lineup has his role. The number three and four hitters are your power hitters. Your number two hitter is a hybrid of your leadoff and number three hitters.

The leadoff hitter plays a special role. He has one simple rule – get on base by any means possible. That can be done with a hit, a walk, running out a dropped third strike or taking a fastball off the shoulder when you can’t catch it with your bat.

Regardless of how it happens, that is the leadoff man’s primary responsibility.

Ranked in the following slides are the St. Louis Cardinals top 10 leadoff hitters of all-time, based on their ability to get on and around the bases.

10. Julian Javier

The right-handed hitting second baseman Julian Javier spent 1960-1972 with the Cardinals. Javier hit the ball great against left-handed pitching and in his 12 years as a Cardinal amassed a .297 on-base percentage and a .258 batting average. On the surface that doesn’t sound amazing, but his 1,450 hits combined with 719 runs scored are what put him on the list.

9. Tom Herr

Tommy Herr, of “seat cushion” fame, was a fan favorite in St. Louis. From 1979 through 1988, Herr put up an impressive .349 on-base percentage and 498 runs scored. His batting average from that decade was .274, quite respectable for a career number when coupled with his 435 RBI.

8. Skip Schumaker

Skip Schumaker has become a solid leadoff man in his career. While he hasn’t spent his whole time in the top spot, his ability to take it over at any time is what has kept him in a Cardinals uniform for eight seasons. His .291 career batting average and .347 OBP make him an obvious candidate for the role.

7. Rafael Furcal

Rafael Furcal’s career as a leadoff man has been one of the best in recent years. Since the switch-hitting shortstop came to St. Louis he has put together a .321 OBP and a .275 BA. What makes Furcal so valuable is his ability as a switch-hitter and the flashes of power he has shown in his short time as a Cardinal. He’s only stolen 12 of his 311 career stolen bases with St. Louis because he has slowed a bit with age and injury. If he keeps up his pace, he could easily work his way up this list before he finishes his contract after the 2013 season.

6. David Eckstein

David Eckstein spent only three seasons in St. Louis, but in those three years he made a lasting impact. In addition to being the 2006 World Series MVP, he put together a Cardinals leadoff record .357 OBP and a .297 batting average. Eckstein wasn’t afraid to lean out in front of the ball to get on-base either, having taking 40 off of his body in the Gateway City.

5. Fernando Vina

Fernando Vina may have been one of the most under-appreciated second basemen in baseball. He seemed to get on-base every time he stepped to the plate. In four seasons, he was hit by 79 pitches. That, combined with his .285 batting average, gave him a .349 OBP. He was also able to surprise you with a touch of power from time to time. He had 18 home runs as the Cardinals leadoff hitter.

4. Garry Templeton

Garry  “Jumpsteady” Templeton did a different kind of “flip” than his replacement, Ozzie Smith, but regardless of fans feelings the offensively talented shortstop had big numbers as a Cardinals. He had a .305 batting average in the six years before he flipped St. Louis “the bird.” His 101 stolen bases and 443 runs scored made him a valuable asset until the slump that ended his time with the Cardinals.

3. Vince Coleman

Vince Coleman was a base-stealing machine. His batting average (.265) and OBP (.326) weren’t the best, but if he got on base, Coleman would score. In six years as a Cardinal, he stole 549 bases and scored 566 runs. He is still remembered fondly by fans who admired the role he played in the Whitey-ball era in Cardinals history.

2. Curt Flood

Curt Flood kicked off free agency and also did a fine job of kick-starting a lineup. Flood pieced together a .343 OBP with the Cardinals and a .293 batting average in his 12 years as a Cardinal. Flood could hit the ball, was a huge defensive addition and scored 845 runs on 1,853 hits. That’s the definition of a classic leadoff man.

In most other organizations, he would have made the top of the list, but not in St. Louis.

1. Lou Brock

Lou Brock is hands-down the greatest Cardinals leadoff man of all-time. He makes a solid case for the top few in all of baseball. Brock, in his 16 years as a Cardinal, spent most of his time stealing bases - 888 of them to be exact. Of course, with an on-base percentage of .347, you have a lot of opportunities to steal bases. Brock scored 1,427 runs and had 3,023 hits in his Cardinals career. On occasion, Lou can still be seen at the stadium, especially on Opening Day, wearing the special red jacket that only the big names wear: Stan Musial, Ozzie Smith, Whitey Herzog, Red Schoendienst, Bob Gibson, Bruce Sutter.

While some of the names on this list will change with time, it’s doubtful that Brock will ever see second place.