Kenneth Lofton (born May 31, 1967) is an American former Major League Baseball (MLB) center fielder. Lofton was a six-time All-Star (1994–1999) and four-time Gold Glove Award winner (1993–1996), and is ranked 15th among all-time stolen-base leaders with 622. During his career, he played for the Houston Astros, Cleveland Indians, Atlanta Braves, Chicago White Sox, San Francisco Giants, Pittsburgh Pirates, Chicago Cubs, New York Yankees, Philadelphia Phillies, Los Angeles Dodgers, and Texas Rangers.
Lofton attended the University of Arizona on a basketball scholarship. The Wildcats made it to the Final Four in 1988. He did not join the school's baseball team until his junior year.
Lofton made 11 postseason appearances, including World Series appearances in 1995 and 2002 with the Indians and Giants, respectively. From 2001 to 2007, Lofton did not spend more than one consecutive season with a team. For his career, the Indians were the only team he played with for longer than one season and the only franchise he played for more than once. Lofton played 9+1⁄2 seasons with the Indians, helping the organization win six division titles. In 2010, he was inducted into the Cleveland Indians Hall of Fame.
During his professional baseball career, Lofton's single-season stolen-base count led the American League (AL) on five occasions and all of MLB three times. In 1994, he led the AL in hits, and in 1995, he led the majors in triples. Lofton holds the all-time postseason stolen-base record with 34, having broken Rickey Henderson's record in 2007. Of his base running, Frank White said, "Lofton has out-thought a lot of major-league players" and later, "a smart, complete baseball player."
Lofton was raised by his widowed grandmother, Rosie Person, in East Chicago, Indiana. His mother, Annie, had Lofton while she was in high school; he weighed just 3 lb (1.4 kg) at birth. His mother moved to Alabama after she graduated and lost contact with Lofton during his childhood. Of his father, Lofton said, "We, as a family, don't even talk about it." Person had glaucoma, and because of her failing eyesight, was unemployed. She refused to go on welfare, but did collect Social Security as a result of her husband's death in 1960 (of bronchial pneumonia). When Lofton made the majors, he built a new home in East Chicago for his grandmother and other family members.
Lofton attended Washington High School in East Chicago and played on the school's baseball team as a pitcher and center fielder. He was an all-state basketball player.
Lofton is distantly related to the actor Cirroc Lofton, who played Jake Sisko in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.
College basketball and baseball
Lofton accepted a scholarship from the University of Arizona to play college basketball for the Arizona Wildcats. For the Wildcats, Lofton was the backup point guard (to Craig McMillan and Steve Kerr) on a team that made it to the Final Four of the 1988 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament. He was the starting point guard the following year when the Wildcats made it to the Sweet Sixteen. Lofton is one of only two men to play in a college basketball Final Four (1988) and an MLB World Series. (The other is fellow East Chicago Washington High School alumnus Tim Stoddard.) He left as the Wildcats' leader in career steals (a record eventually broken). "In strength and agility drills, he just killed it. He's a guy who could have played pro football or basketball or baseball," said former Wildcats teammate Bruce Fraser.
Lofton tried out for the Arizona Wildcats baseball team during his junior year. He played in five baseball games and recorded one official at-bat while at Arizona, but his speed and potential were recognized by baseball scouts, including the Houston Astros' Clark Crist. The Astros later selected Lofton in the 17th round of the 1988 MLB draft. He played minor-league baseball during the summer while completing his basketball eligibility at Arizona. The Astros organization asked Lofton to play minor-league baseball in the Florida Instructional League, but Lofton declined, citing a promise he had made to his grandmother to obtain his degree.
Lofton earned a degree in studio production at the University of Arizona while playing minor-league baseball for the Houston Astros. He credits his post-MLB success, as owner of FilmPool, Inc., to that education. Lofton is also a member of Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity.
Lofton batted .214 in 48 games as an outfielder for the Auburn Astros of the New York–Penn League, but recorded 26 stolen bases in 30 attempts. Lofton returned to Auburn in 1989 and hit .263 with 26 steals in 34 games. He then hit .329 with 14 steals in 22 games for the Asheville Tourists in the South Atlantic League. As his college basketball career came to an end, Lofton expanded his baseball skills, finishing second in the league in hitting at .331 while adding 62 steals for the Osceola Astros in the Florida State League. He also drew 61 walks and improved defensively (.974 fielding percentage) and played in 123 games with Osceola.
After spring training in 1991, he went directly to the Triple-A Tucson Toros of the Pacific Coast League. His 168 hits led the league. He hit .308 with 30 steals and 52 walks for Tucson with 19 doubles and a team-high 17 triples. The Toros won the PCL championship and Lofton made the league's All-Star team. On September 14, 1991, the Astros promoted Lofton to the majors.
In his major league debut with the Houston Astros on September 14, 1991, he went 3-for-4 with a double and scored three runs against the Cincinnati Reds. He hit .203 in 20 games for the remainder of the Astros' regular season. With Steve Finley already serving as Houston's centerfielder, Lofton was traded during the off season to the Cleveland Indians with Dave Rohde for catcher Eddie Taubensee and right-handed pitcher Willie Blair. "I know they gave up on me and now I'm glad they did. One man's trash is another man's treasure", Lofton said of the Astros' trading him.
During his first season with Cleveland, in 1992, Lofton hit .285. His 66 stolen bases broke the all-time record for an AL rookie and was the most by an MLB rookie since Vince Coleman stole 110 in 1985. His season's stolen-base count, which led the AL, also broke a franchise record (previously set by Miguel Diloné in 1980). Indians first-base coach Dave Nelson helped Lofton refine his baserunning technique and helped him learn how to be successful with bunting. Over his career, Lofton became one of the best bunters in baseball history. Lofton finished second (to the Milwaukee Brewers' Pat Listach) in AL Rookie of the Year balloting. After one season with Cleveland, Lofton agreed to a four-year, $6.3 million contract. The following season, Lofton broke his own Cleveland single-season stolen-base record, recording 70 (which led MLB). Lofton was selected to his first career All-Star Game during the 1994 season.
His development and impact in the league led Brewers manager Phil Garner to say, "I remember how raw he was, and I've never seen anybody develop into that type of player that fast." Garner, who saw Lofton play in the minors, added, "He went from a guy who could hardly get the ball past the infield to a guy who could hit the ball consistently. He always had good speed, but got lousy jumps and didn't run the bases well. He has turned into a dominant player." The regular season was stopped abruptly with the MLB strike, which also led to the cancellation of the World Series. For the season, Lofton again led the AL with 60 stolen bases. His 160 hits on the season were highest in the AL and his .349 batting average was a career-best. He finished fourth in Most Valuable Player Award voting. When the strike began in August, the Indians were in second place by one game in the AL Central to the Chicago White Sox. Indians general manager John Hart said of Lofton, "What a representative for our team and our city. He has the opportunity to be a George Brett-type player here, someone who is synonymous with a franchise." Lofton joined fellow Indians Carlos Baerga, Albert Belle, and Jim Thome to form "the backbone of some Indians teams that were as dominant as any."