Andrew Blankstein of the Los Angeles Times reports that 69-year-old former Dodgers center fielder Willie Davis was found dead in his apartment this morning:
According to the report “authorities said there was nothing to indicate foul play and it appears that Davis died of natural causes.” Jon Weisman of ESPN.com has a nice tribute to the Los Angeles Dodgers’ all-time leader in hits and runs.
Davis ... became one of the Dodgers’ early stars after the team moved to Los Angeles from Brooklyn in 1958. Known for his offense, Davis played center field for the Dodgers for 13 seasons starting in 1961. He hit in a team record 31 consecutive games in 1969 and batted .305 or above three years straight in the late 1960s and early 1970s.
[...]
After baseball, Davis made headlines in 1996 when he was arrested at his parents’ home near Gardena for allegedly threatening to kill them and burn down the house unless they gave him $5,000. Davis was armed with a set of throwing knives and a samurai sword, officials said.
