Up
on the blog today, a fun card to add to the collection, a 1976 “not so
missing” card for 18-year Major League veteran Denny Walling, who
appeared in the first games of his Big League tenure during the 1975
season:
Walling played in six games for the Oakland A’s, hitting .125 with a hit
over eight at-bats, that being a double that drove in two runs.
He would go on to put in a very nice 18-year Big League career that saw
him play through the 1992 season, finishing up with a .271 batting
average, with 799 hits over 2945 at-bats, most for the Houston Astros
for whom he played between 1977 and 1988.
The most action he ever got in any one season would be 1986, helping the
Houston Astros reach the National League championship series against
the New York Mets, which was epic.
That season all Walling did was hit a career high .312 with 119 hits
over 382 at-bats, the only time over his career he’d reach triple-digits
in hits.
A man of all positions, Walling played all three outfield slots while
also putting in substantial time at third base and first base, with
third seeing the most action over his career.
Up
on the blog today we have a “not so missing” 1971 card for former St.
Louis cardinals pitcher Santiago Guzman, who played in parts of four
seasons between 1969 and 1972:
Guzman appeared in eight games for the Cardinals during the 1970 season,
the most action he’d see in any of his Big League campaigns.
Over those eight appearances he posted a record of 1-1 with an earned
run average of 7.24 in 13.2 innings of work, with three starts and a
complete game thrown in.
Originally up in 1969 as a 19-year-old, Guzman appeared in only 12 games
over his four seasons, with a high of those eight in 1970 when he
picked up his only Major League win.
After pitching in the Chicago White Sox organization during the 1973
season, Guzman was out of Pro Ball for good, finishing up with an MLB
record of 1-2 with an earned run average at 4.50 over 32 innings of
work, all for St. Louis.
Today
on the blog we have the fourth and final 1978 “fantasy” card of former
slugger Dave Kingman, celebrating his whirlwind 1977 season when he
played for four different teams, each one in a different league or
division.
This one is the California Angels edition:
Kingman only appeared in ten games for the Angels before getting moved
once again , this time to the eventual World Champion New York Yankees.
In his time with California, he hit two homers over 36 at-bats, driving
in four and hitting .194 with seven hits, two of them doubles.
With all of that he still hit 26 homers that season, with 78 runs batted
in and a “Dave Kingman-like” .221 batting average along with 143
strikeouts in 439 at-bats.
Of course he’d be “Kong” once again the following year with the Chicago
Cubs, hitting 28 homers before leading Major League ball in 1979 with 48
bombs, a career-high, and another HR title in 1982 when he hit 37 for
the New York Mets.
I was mesmerized and still am somewhat that the guy’s final year in the
Majors produced 35 home runs and 94 RBI’s, only to walk away after being
signed as a Free Agent by the San Francisco Giants that never led to
anything after some Minor League action.
The enigma that is “Kong”.
Today
on the blog we have a 1972 “traded” card for long-time Major League
catcher Tim McCarver, who found himself shipped North of the Border to
the Montreal Expos on June 14th of 1972:
McCarver started the year with the Philadelphia Phillies, for whom he
played the previous two seasons, and would only play this half season
with Montreal before heading back to his original MLB team, the St.
Louis Cardinals in 1973.
For his career, McCarver played in 1909 games, hitting .271 with 1501
hits over 5529 at-bats, with his best years in the mid-60’s with the St.
Louis Cardinals when he even finished second to teammate Orlando Cepeda
for National League Rookie of the Year and led the league with 13
triples the year before.
He’d play through the 1980 season, good for 21 years as a Big Leaguer,
before going on to an even more successful career as a baseball
broadcaster/commentator for almost 40 years, especially known for his
analytical approach.
One of my favorite quotes about him; “If you ask Tim McCarver what time
it is, he’ll explain how a watch works.”-Sports Writer Norman Chad.
Here’s
a nice “not so missing” card to add to the collection, my 1978 slab for
21-year Major League pitcher Rick Honeycutt, who started off his Big
League tenure with 10 appearances in 1977:
Honeycutt went 0-1 for the new Seattle mariner team in the Summer of
1977, posting a 4.34 earned run average over 29 innings as a
23-year-old, with three starts.
He would go on to pitch through the 1997 season, 21 years as both a
starter and a reliever, almost evenly split between the first half and
second half of his career respectively.
In 1983 he led the American League with a 2.42 ERA while with the Texas
Rangers in a season that saw him finish with the Los Angeles Dodgers in a
year that saw him post a career high 16 wins combined.
By the time he retired, he finished with a record of 109-143, with a
3.72 ERA over 797 appearances and 2160 innings of work, with 11 shutouts
and 38 saves along the way.
Here’s
a career-capping not so missing 1975 card for former All-Star and
Rookie of the Year runner up Jim Ray Hart, who finished up his Big
League tenure with 10 games as a New York Yankee in 1974:
Hart collected only one hit over 19 at-bats for an unsightly .053
batting average, closing out a career that actually started off
wonderfully with five excellent seasons between 1964 and 1968.
Over those seasons he topped 20 home runs every year, averaging 90 runs
batted in and hitting around .285 for the San Francisco Giants.
Between 1969 and 1974 he never played more than a part-time role,
playing with the Giants into the 1973 season before moving on to the
Yankees for the last two years of his career.
All told, he finished his 12-year career with 170 home runs, with a .278
batting average and 578 runs batted in over 1125 games, collecting 1052
hits in 3738 at-bats.
Up
on the blog today I have a 1972 “not so missing” card for former San
Francisco Giant pitcher Jim Willoughby, who made his Major League debut
in 1971 with two scant games:
The 22-year-old went 0-1 over those two games, pitching four innings to a
9.00 earned run average, with one of those appearances being a start.
He’d go on to play eight years in the Big Leagues, finishing up with a
career 26-36 record, with an ERA of 3.79 over 238 appearances, 28 of
those starts, with a shutout and 34 saves thrown in.
His best season could arguably be 1972 when he appeared in eleven games,
all starts, and completed seven games, going 6-4 with an ERA of 2.36
over 87.2 innings pitched.
Today’s
blog post presents my 1974 “not so missing” card for former pitcher
Mike Garman, who appeared in 12 games for the Boston Red Sox in 1973:
Garman didn’t factor in a decision for the BoSox in 1973 while posting an earned run average of 5.32 in 22 innings of work.
To that point he played in parts of four seasons in the Big Leagues, all
with Boston, never pitching more than those 22 innings in any one year.
He would pitch for nine-years in the Major Leagues, collecting 42 saves
and 22 wins (against 27 losses) generally out of the bullpen, as only
eight of his career 303 games were as a starter.
He’d also finish with a 3.63 ERA and 213 strikeouts in 433.2 innings,
with his only postseason action coming in 1977 as a member of the
National League champ Los Angeles Dodgers.
Today’s
post has a 1979 “not so missing” card for former San Diego second
baseman Mike Champion, who played the last of his Big League games
during the 1978 season:
Champion appeared in 32 games for San Diego that season, hitting .226 with 12 hits over 53 at-bats.
It was a far cry from the previous year when he was their full-time
second baseman, playing in 150 games and hitting .229 with 116 hits in
507 at-bats.
In 1976 he made his Major League debut as a 21-year-old, appearing in
eleven games for the Padres, hitting .237 with nine hits over 38
at-bats.
All told, he’d play in 193 games over his three-year career, hitting
.229 with 137 hits in 598 at-bats, with 42 runs scored and 49 runs
batted in between 1976 and 1978.
I’m
sure this one will hurt Cincinnati Reds fans a bit, but today’s blog
post has a 1973 “traded” card for All-Star Hal McRae, who went on to
have a very nice 19-year Major League career, 15 of those with the
Kansas City Royals, where he was traded from the Reds on November 30th
of 1972 for Roger Nelson and Richie Scheinblum:
Granted, Nelson was coming off a very surprising season where he posted
one of the lowest WHIPs in Major League history along with a sparkling
2.08 earned run average, and McRae was a 26-year-old who didn’t really
show all that much so far in parts of four Big League seasons.
But all McRae would end up doing is put in a 15-year run where he became
one of the best hitters in the league, with three All-Star nods, six
.300+ batting average seasons, and MVP consideration four times.
Definitely one of the more lopsided trades looking back for the era.
But with what the Reds were about to embark on, becoming the “Big Red
Machine” juggernaut with the straight championships in 1975/1976,
they’re not looking back with too much pain at this one.
Today
we take a look at the original airbrushed image Topps used for former
MLB catcher Tom Haller’s 1973 card, as a member of the Philadelphia
Phillies:
Now, I could be wrong but it seems that the image is actually an older
one showing him as a member of the Los Angeles Dodgers, for whom he
played between 1968 and 1971.
In 1972 Haller actually suited up for the Detroit Tigers, from where the
Phillies purchased him on October 25th of 1972 along with Don Leshnock.
Well, funny thing is it turned out Haller never ended up playing for the
Phillies anyway, as he was released on February 14th, 1974 without ever
getting into an MLB game.
Thing is, I can’t seem to find any Minor League action for Haller during
the 1973 season, leaving me wondering what went on that season.
Anyone know?
About
time I go and give former All-Star shortstop Bill Russell of the Los
Angeles Dodgers a “nickname” card as part of my long-running” thread,
for his “Ropes” moniker:
Russell came up with the Dodgers along with their other All-Star infield
of Steve Garvey, Davey Lopes and Ron Cey, a rare instance that was
really fun to witness as a baseball fan through the 1970’s and 1980’s.
Originally up as a 20-year-old in 1969, he’d go on to play through the
1986 season before eventually getting a chance to manage the team for
parts of three seasons between 1996 and 1998.
For his playing career, Russell hit .263, with 1926 hits and 796 runs
scored, with three All-Star nods over 2181 games, again, all with the
Dodgers.
Time
to go and give former Major League catcher Jim Campanis a “not so
missing” 1971 card for his handful of games for the Kansas City Royals
during the 1970 season:
Campanis appeared in 31 games for the Royals in what was only their
second season as a Major league team, collecting seven hits over 54
at-bats for a forgettable .130 batting average.
Originally with the Los Angeles Dodgers between 1966 and 1968, he moved
on the Kansas City for their inaugural season of 1969 followed by 1970,
be fore putting in Minor League time until he made it all the way back
in 1973 for six games with the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Funny enough, Topps decided those six games was good enough for a slot
in their 1974 set, which I wrote about a long time ago on this blog,
almost seven years ago:
http://whentoppshadballs.blogspot.com/search/label/Jim%20Campanis
Up
on the blog today we have a “not so missing” 1976 card for former
pitcher Fred Beene, who closed out his seven-year Big League career with
19 games with the Cleveland Indians in 1975:
Beene went 1-0 for the Tribe during the 1975 campaign, with a bloated
6.94 ERA over 46.2 innings of work with one start and a save thrown in.
His finest season would be 1973 while with the New York Yankees when he
went 6-0 out of the bullpen with a sparkling 1.68 ERA over 91 innings,
with a save and four spot starts sprinkled in.
By the time he finished his Big League career, he ended up 12-7, with an
ERA of 3.63 over 112 appearances and 288 innings of work, with eight
saves and six starts along the way between 1968 and 1975.
Up
on the blog today is the FIFTH card I have created for Marvin Lane,
former outfielder for the Detroit Tigers, who put in a generally
part-time five-year Big League career between 1971 and 1977. This card
closes out that career, a 1973 edition:
Between 1971 and 1974 he played 72 games, the bulk of which was in 1974
when he played in 50 games, batting .233 with 24 hits and 16 runs scored
while driving in nine, all career-highs.
He actually spent all nine years of his pro career in the Detroit
organization, and when when he retired for good after the 1977 season he
finished with a Major League batting average of .207, with 37 hits in
179 at-bats, with three homers and 17 RBIs, scoring 23 runs.
Thought
it’d be fun to create a 1974 coach card for former All-Star catcher
John Roseboro since I found this image recently. So here goes:
Before I get into his bio, please let me explain why it will be so
short. With all the stuff going on regarding the Coronavirus, and all
the terrifying news blasting us 24/7 lately, I’m really trying my
hardest to stay motivated to keep this blog and Twitter feed going, much
to my dismay.
Anyway, without getting into the intense anxiety enveloping me with it
all, seems the only way I can keep it going is with creating the cards,
and just posting them up. The bio’s will suffer a bit.
My apologies, but here we go.
After Roseboro’s very nice 14-year MLB career as an All-Star catcher
with the Los Angeles Dodgers, Minnesota Twins and Washington Senators,
he went on to coaching, with a stint for the California Angels in the
mid-70’s.
One of the games better defensive backstops in the 1960’s, he took home
two Gold Gloves while making the All-Star team four-times.
As a member of the Dodgers, Roseboro was a 3-time World Champion (1959,
1963 and 1965), getting to catch Hall of Famers Sandy Koufax, Don
Drysdale and Don Sutton during the Dodger hey days of the decade.
Check out Roseboro’s career statistics here:
https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/r/rosebjo01.shtml
The
next “nickname” card in my long time thread is a 1976 edition for
former manager and rookie of the year player Al Dark, aka “Swamp Fox”,
who was leading the Oakland A’s at the tail-end of their magnificent run
of championships in the mid-70s:
Dark was coming off of two straight first-place finishes when this card
would have seen the light of day in 1976, with the A’s winning 90 and 98
games respectively in 1974 and 1975.
In 1974 he led them to what was their third straight World Series
championship when they beat the Los Angeles Dodgers, securing them as
one of the great baseball dynasties.
Funny enough, after that 1975 season that had them win 98 games, Dark
was let go as manager after the team was beaten in the A.L. Championship
series by the Boston Red Sox, and with Free Agency looming, the Oakland
A’s would see themselves go from elite team to cellar-dwellers
overnight.
As a player, Dark cannot be overlooked, as he was a versatile player who
played almost every position throughout his 14-year Big League career,
winning the 1948 Rookie of the Year Award while finishing third in MVP
voting.
He’d end up collecting over 2000 hits, hitting .289 and scoring 1064
runs, all while entering the league at the age of 26 (after 15 games in
1946) because of World War II. If not for the war he had a decent shot
at 3000 hits, among other milestones like 1500 runs and 500 doubles.
Thought
it’d be fun to re-do the 1972 Ron Perranoski card, since the original
had a rather funny “airbrush” job done to it. Take a look:
Looks like the fine people at Topps went over the photo negative with a Sharpie, then painted on the classic Detroit “D”.
Anyway, here’s what I came up with after finding this nice photo of him in a Detroit uni:
Perranoski really made a name for himself with his tenures for the Los
Angeles Dodgers and Minnesota Twins, which spanned 1961 through the 1970
seasons before playing out the final three years of his career with the
Detroit Tigers, Angels, and a brief return with L.A.
He had some really good seasons during his career, including 1963 with
the Dodgers when he went 16-3 with a 1.67 ERA and 21 saves over 69
appearances and 129 innings pitched. Those numbers were good enough for a
fourth place finish in the National League’s MVP race that year.
Some years later he would end up leading the American League in saves
with 31 and 34 in 1969 and 1970 respectively, giving the Twins a solid
closer as they were fighting for the newly formed American League West
championship.
By the time he retired after that 1973 campaign, Perranoski finished
with a record of 79 and 74, with 178 saves and a very nice 2.79 ERA over
737 appearances and 1174.2 innings of work.
All but one of those appearances were out of the bullpen.
Today’s
blog post has a “not so missing” 1974 card for “Pig Pen” Jim Dwyer, his
third card on this blog over the years, one representing his Big League
debut of 1973 with the St. Louis Cardinals:
Dwyer appeared in 28 games for the Cardinals over the Summer of 1973,
hitting .193 with eleven hits over 57 at-bats, with seven runs scored.
He would go on to play 18 seasons in the Majors, hitting .260 generally
as a guy off the bench for no less that seven teams: Orioles, Cardinals,
Twins, Expos, Red Sox, Mets and Giants between 1973 and 1990.
By the time he retired after the 1990 season, he appeared in 1328 games
with 271 at-bats and 719 hits, good for a lifetime .260 average.
The highpoint of his career had to be as an often worked platoon guy off
the bench for the 1983 World Champion Baltimore Orioles, when he hit
.286 for the O's with 17 doubles and eight home runs in only 196
at-bats.
Time
to go and give former Major Leaguer Doug Howard his third “missing”
custom here on the blog, with a 1976 edition for his brief time spent
with the St. Louis cardinals in 1975:
Howard appeared in 17 games for the Redbirds in 1975, hitting .207 with
six hits over 29 at-bats while putting in some First Base duties
defensively.
The following season he would appear in 39 games for the Cleveland Indians, and batted .211 with 19 hits in 99 official at-bats.
It was the most time he saw in any of his five seasons in the big league, and his only season as an Indian.
He came up with the California Angels in 1972 and played for them three
years before moving on to the St. Louis Cardinals in 1975, but he never
did appear in a Topps set, even with his 97 career games and 233
at-bats.
All told he finished with a career .212 batting average, with 46 hits
over 217 at-bats in 97 games, with 19 runs scored and 22 runs batted in.
Fun card to add to the 1979 “not so missing” collection, a 1979 edition for former Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Myron White:
White appeared in seven games for the Dodgers during the 1978 season,
which ended up being the sum total of his Big League tenure.
After starting his pro career in 1975 as a seventeen year old in the Los
Angeles system, White finally got the call and played his first game on
September 4th of 1978, and proceeded to go 2-for-4 at the plate with a
run scored and an RBI.
But come 1979 it was back to the Minors for him, which is where he
stayed for the next three seasons, all in the Dodgers system, until he
retired after 1981.
Aside from those seven games in 1978, he spent the entirety of his pro
career in the Dodgers Minor League system between 1975 and 1981.
Came
across a nice image of former infielder Billy Grabarkewitz in a Chicago
Cubs uniform, so I thought it’d be fun to do-over his 1975 Topps card,
since the original was a classic airbrush job. So here you go.
But first the original as-issued card:
And now my re-do:
Grabarkewitz was unknowingly at the tail-end of his Major League career,
starting the 1974 season as a member of the Philadelphia Phillies
before moving on to the Cubs after being purchased on July 10th.
After hitting a combined .226 for both teams over 184 plate appearances,
he’d play in only six games the following season with the Oakland A’s,
going 0-2 at the plate, which would end up being the last of his Major
League tenure.
Oddly enough, in a career that lasted seven seasons, all but one was as a
platoon or part-time player, never appearing in more than 87 games,
except for 1970.
In that 1970 season with the Los Angeles Dodgers, Grabarkewitz was an
All-Star when he hit .289 with 17 homers, 19 stolen bases, 92 runs
scored and 84 runs batted in while playing every infield position but
First Base.
In a terrible case of bad luck, the Dodgers had an entire infield of
future All-Stars just about coming up in Ron Cey, Davey Lopes, Bill
Russell, Bill Buckner and Steve Garvey, so it seems Grabarkewitz was
squeezed out.
Nevertheless, he finished his career with a .236 career average, with 28
homers and 141 RBIs over 466 games and 1161 at-bats, with 274 hits and
189 runs scored between 1969 and 1975.
Up on the blog today, we have a “not so missing” 1971 card for former pitcher Tom Hilgendorf of the St. Louis Cardinals:
Hilgendorf just completed his second season as a Big Leaguer, appearing
in 23 games for the Cards and posting a record of 0-4 with an earned run
average of 3.92, all out of the bullpen.
He’d spend the 1971 season in the Kansas City Royals Minor League system
before making it back to a Big League mound in 1972 as a member of the
Cleveland Indians.
For the ‘72 season Hilgendorf appeared in 19 games, five of which were
starts, while posting a 3-1 record with a nice 2.68 earned run average
over 47 innings pitched.
Those three wins would be the first of his career after starting off 0-4
while with ther St. Louis Cardinals in 1969/1970, and he would go on to
collect 16 more wins before his brief career was up after the 1975
season with the Philadelphia Phillies.
All told Hilgendorf finished with a 19-14 record, with a 3.04 ERA and
173 strikeouts in 184 appearances and 313.2 innings, with 14 saves
thrown in, very nice numbers for the short amount of time he had in the
big leagues.
Today’s
blog post has a 1973 special celebrating the Texas Rangers and their
1st home game in franchise history, which is also the first official
American League game played in Texas, which was on April 21st of 1972:
Fun card to create since I came across an photo of the pre-game
ceremonies of that day, with none other than the great Ted Williams
front and center, followed by Lenny Randle, Dave Nelson and “Hondo”
Frank Howard , all wearing their cowboy hats!
They would go on to win that day, beating the California Angels 7-6 with
Dick Bosman getting the win along with a save by Paul Lindblad,
boosting the Rangers’ record to 2-3 at that time after starting the
season with four road games.
The Rangers would go on to post a record of 54-100 for the season, with
their top hitter being Toby Harrah and Larry Biittner hitting at a .259
clip, and their top pitcher being Rich Hand, who led the team with 10
wins while spot starter Mike Paul led the team with an excellent 2.17
ERA over 49 appearances and 161.2 innings pitched.
Fun
card to create for the blog here, a 1978 special featuring the Montreal
Expos brilliant young outfield trio of Andre Dawson, Warren Cromartie
and Ellis Valentine:
What a group of talented young players here!
With Cromartie the oldest at 23 years of age with the other two at 22,
these guys were primed for some great seasons, and 1977 showed just
that.
Andre Dawson marched straight to a National League Rookie of the Year
with 19 homers, 21 stolen bases and a .282 batting average, Warren
Cromartie also hit .282 with 175 hits, 41 doubles, 10 stolen bases and
only 40 strikeouts in 662 plate appearances, and Ellis Valentine hit 25
homers, with 76 runs batted in, 13 stolen bases and a .293 average.
While Dawson went on to a Hall of Fame career, all three had nice
careers, with Cromartie going to Japan after the 1983 season before
making a comeback in 1991 at the age of 37 with the Kansas City Royals,
hitting .313 over 69 games.
I’m sure any team would love to have these three anchoring their outfield!
Up
on the blog today we have a “not so missing” 1976 card for former
catcher Tom Lundstedt, who played the last of his MLB games during the
1975 season:
Lundstedt appeared in 18 games for the Minnesota Twins in 1975 after
playing the first two years of his career with the Chicago Cubs between
1973 and 1974.
In his 1975 action he batted .107 with three hits over 28 at-bats,
collecting the one and only run batted in of his Big League tenure, with
two runs scored.
Turns out he would retire from professional ball after 1975, finishing
up with a career .092 batting average with six hits in 65 at-bats, with
three runs scored, and RBI and nine walks.
Time
to go and create a 1975 “traded” card for long-time reliever Tug
McGraw, who found himself moving on to the “City of Brotherly Love” with
a December trade from the New York Mets:
McGraw was traded over to the division rival Philadelphia Phillies on
December 3rd of 1974 along with Doh Hahn and Dave Schneck for Mac
Scarce, John Stearns and Del Unser.
After putting in nine solid if not excellent seasons with the Mets
between 1965 and 1974, McGraw would go on to turn it up a notch and play
ten years for the Phillies, closing out his career after the 1984
season at the age of 39.
He would make the All-Star team twice, get MVP consideration three
seasons, and finish fifth in the Cy Young race in 1980 after helping the
Phillies to a World Championship.
In that season he had perhaps the best year of his career, posting a
record of 5-4 with a miniscule 1.46 earned run average over 57 games,
with 20 saves, before posting another four saves in the Post Season,
including the final out of the World Series against the Kansas City
Royals.
His final numbers were a career record of 96-92, with a 3.14 ERA over
824 appearances, with 180 saves and 1109 strikeouts in 1514.2 innings
pitched.
I can’t believe it’s already been 16 years since he passed away on
January 5th of 2004 from a brain tumor which was first diagnosed just
about a year earlier.
A true character of the game, he was only 59 years old.
R.I.P. Tug.
Today’s
blog post has a career-capping “not so missing” 1972 card for former
Kansas City Royals infielder Rich Severson, who played the last of his
brief two-year MLB career during the 1971 season:
Severson appeared in 16 games for the Royals in 1971, hitting an even
.300 with nine hits over 30 at-bats along with four runs scored and an
RBI while playing second, short and third on the defensive end.
His Big League debut was a year prior, during the Royals’ second season,
where he played in 77 games, hitting .250 with 60 hits over 240
at-bats, both scoring and driving in 22 runs.
He would end up spending the next two seasons in the Royals and
Philadelphia Phillies Minor League systems, retiring after the 1973
campaign.
All told, his two-year MLB career resulted in a .256 batting average,
with 69 hits over 270 at-bats, with 26 runs scored and 23 RBIs.
On
the blog today we have a “not so missing” 1970 card for former
“original Royal” player George Spriggs, who appeared in 23 games for
Kansas City in their inaugural 1969 season:
Spriggs hit .138 over those 23 games, which was a return to the Big
Leagues after spending all of 1968 in the Minors after playing parts of
1965 through 1967 with the Pittsburgh Pirates.
He would play in 51 games during the 1970 season, with 145 plate
appearances, by far the most of any one season in his five-year Big
League career, which would end up being his last.
In those 51 games he hit .208 with 27 hits and 12 runs scored and seven
runs batted in before moving on to the New York Mets organization, where
he’d play through 1972 in their Minor League system, before calling it a
career.
All told, Spriggs’ MLB career resulted in a .191 batting average, with
43 hits over 225 at-bats, with 35 runs scored and 12 RBIs.
Created
this card months ago and just realized that the player was actually on a
multi-player rookie card in that set, so my error makes this a
“dedicated rookie” instead of the intended “not so missing” card for
former Detroit Tigers pitcher Jim Foor:
Foor was actually on card #257 in the 1972 Topps set along with Tim
Hosley and Paul Jata, something that immediately occurred to me as I was
putting this post together.
Nevertheless, I don’t want to “waste” the effort, so here’s a “dedicated
rookie” for the 13-game Major League pitcher, who made his Big League
debut during the 1971 season with three games.
Over those three games, Foor didn’t factor in a decisions and pitched to
an eye-gouging 18.00 earned run average over one single inning, walking
four and giving up two hits while also striking out two.
He’d be back in 1972 with seven appearances for Detroit, going 1-0 with
an ERA of 14.73 over 3.2 innings, all out of the bullpen for the
American League East champ Tigers.
In 1973 he’d find himself a member of the Pittsburgh Pirates, appearing
in three games and not factoring in a decision, throwing 1.1 innings of
scoreless ball.
However, after another three seasons of Minor League work in the Kansas
City, St. Louis and Oakland systems through the 1976 campaign he’d call
it a career, finishing up with a record of 1-0 over 13 appearances, with
an ERA of 12.00 in six innings of work, all out of the ‘pen.
Up
on the blog today, I wanted a shot a re-doing my much earlier “missing
card” for Kansas City Royals pitcher Roger Nelson, which I created
almost SEVEN years ago (time flies!):
Now the first one I created wasn’t all that bad, but this image here is
an actual Topps photo, so it just completes what I wanted to accomplish
for the guy who would go on to post one of the best WHIP-seasons of our
lifetime!.
Here’s my original post written up on June 13th, 2013:
“Quick, if someone were to ask you to name the top 3 "WHIP" pitching
seasons since 1970, I'm sure at some point you can guess the names Pedro
Martinez or Greg Maddux if you don't already know the answer.
Martinez set the MLB record with a .737 WHIP in 2000 (unreal considering
it was smack in the middle of steroid-era baseball), while Maddux
turned in an incredible .810 WHIP in 1995. Both were Cy Young award
winners those years, and both were already considered the top pitchers
in the game.
Now, if you were to take a guess at #3 on the WHIP list post-1970, how
long would it take for you to name Roger Nelson of the 1972 Royals!?
Yes, journeyman pitcher and one of the original Royals from their debut 1969 season, Roger Nelson.
He of the nine-year, 29-32 career, pulled off an amazing, yet
unappreciated season in 1972 where he posted a 2.08 E.R.A., with 10
complete games out of 19 starts, for a team that went 76-78.
Yet despite the valiant effort, he ended up sporting a paltry 11-6
record by season's end, though six of those 11 wins were by shutout.
But what really set this season apart from so many others was his WHIP
(Walks+Hits/Innings Pitched), which is so valued in today’s game.
In 1972 Nelson recorded an amazing .871 WHIP, easily finishing ahead of
Hall of Famers Catfish Hunter, Gaylord Perry and Jim Palmer. Definitely
one of those trivia questions that can win you some money in a bar one
night!
Now, as if the poor guy's season isn't respected enough, turns out Topps
didn't even have a card for him in the 1972 set even though he had
cards from 1968-1971, and 1973-1975. But for his best season in the
Majors, nothing. That is, until today.”
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