Alan Wiggins

Alan Anthony Wiggins (February 17, 1958 – January 6, 1991) was an American professional baseball player.

He established a professional baseball single-season steals record, surpassing the previous minor league mark of 116 set by Allan Lewis in 1966, as well as Lou Brock's major league record of 118 in 1974.

Wiggins grew up in California and attended Pasadena City College before being drafted by the California Angels in 1977.

The California Angels selected Wiggins as the eighth overall pick of the January 1977 MLB amateur draft.

In 1977 Wiggins played junior college baseball at Pasadena City College, where he was a teammate of future major leaguers Matt Young and Rod Booker.

Bodet, who had moved to the Angels scouting staff just before the draft, joined other Angels staff members and worked out with Wiggins after the team selected him.

Angels coach Bob Clear told Wiggins that his excellent speed would help him to a high batting average even if his hitting skills were not that strong: "If you can hit .200, you can run the other eighty points. And if you can hit .280, you can lead off for anybody."

Wiggins signed with the Angels in May for $2,500 after what Bodet described as "a tough negotiation".

According to Bodet, Wiggins' mother "did not trust easily".

Wiggins played minor league baseball in 1977 for the Angels rookie-league affiliate in Idaho Falls, where he hit .271 and had 25 stolen bases in 63 games.

In 1978, with the ClassA Quad Cities Angels, Wiggins stole 26 bases in 49 games, but his batting average fell to .201.

Following a mid-season fight with one of his coaches, he was released by the Angels organization in June 1978.

Wiggins feared that his career was near its end, but he reached out to Los Angeles Dodgers scout Gail Henley.

After a workout in front of the Dodgers and manager Tommy Lasorda, Wiggins signed with the team before the 1979 season, receiving an invitation to spring training and then being assigned to the team's ClassA affiliate, the Clinton Dodgers.

In 95 games for Clinton, Wiggins hit .257, stole 43 bases, and converted to a shortstop after spending the previous two seasons as a second baseman.

He also appeared in the outfield and at all three of the other infield positions for Clinton.

He played in the minor league systems of the Angels and the Los Angeles Dodgers, setting a professional baseball single-season record with 120 stolen bases in 1980.

Playing with the ClassA Lodi Dodgers of the California League in 1980, Wiggins batted .288 and scored 108 runs while stealing 120 bases in just 135 games.

After the 1980 season, Wiggins' fourth year in the minor leagues, he was eligible to be selected by other teams in that year's Rule 5 draft.

The Rule 5 draft is a procedure that stops teams from hoarding young players in the minor leagues when those players might be able to make it to the major leagues with other organizations.

A team can protect a player from the Rule 5 draft by adding him to its major league roster.

The Dodgers decided not to protect Wiggins, and since he had once caught the eye of San Diego Padres general manager Jack McKeon, the Padres selected him in the draft.

Padres officials later said that they knew Wiggins had been arrested for possession of marijuana while with the Dodgers.

"It was known in our organization that he had a problem in the Dodger organization. They didn't want a part of it," Padres manager Dick Williams said.

He was a second baseman and outfielder in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the San Diego Padres and Baltimore Orioles between 1981 and 1987.

He made his major league debut with the San Diego Padres in 1981, and he became a regular player within two years.

In 1983 he set the Padres' single-season stolen base record, a mark that he extended the following season.

A speedy leadoff hitter, Wiggins had his best season with the pennant-winning Padres in 1984.

He batted one slot ahead of Tony Gwynn in the lineup that year, and the pair's offensive production helped the Padres win the National League Championship Series (NLCS) and advance to the World Series.

His 1984 stolen bases total (70) is still a team record.

During his major league career, Wiggins struggled with drug addiction, which resulted in several arrests and suspensions from baseball.

His drug problems prompted a 1985 trade from San Diego to Baltimore, where Wiggins spent three seasons.

After leaving baseball, he was diagnosed with AIDS, and he was the first MLB player known to die of the disease.

Long after his death, two of his children, Candice and Alan Jr., became professional basketball players.

Wiggins was born in Los Angeles, California, and his mother, Karla Wiggins, raised him as a single mother.

As a child, he played baseball with his friends at a park across from the Rose Bowl, and he was a fan of the Los Angeles Dodgers and their base-stealing shortstop, Maury Wills.

Wiggins graduated from John Muir High School in Pasadena, California, which was also the alma mater of Dodgers star Jackie Robinson.

Gib Bodet, a scout for the Montreal Expos, noticed Wiggins in high school.

Wiggins was 6 ft tall, which was taller than a typical infielder.

He was only an average hitter and fielder, but his speed stood out to Bodet.