Time to add the great Frank Howard to my on-going "On-Card All-Star" thread, celebrating "Hondo's" 1969 start in the Midsummer Classic representing the Washington Senators:
Howard was smack dab in the middle of an incredible run, topping 40 homers three straight seasons with a career best in 1969 of 48, while driving in over 100 with a high of 126 in 1970.
Those
efforts got him top-10 finishes in the league MVP voting each year,
finishing 8th, 4th and 5th respectively between 1968 and 1970.
An absolute beast at the plate, he would be the last Big League player
until Jay Buhner (1995-97) to hit 40+ homers three years in a row from
1968-1970, with a high of 48 in 1969, though leading the league in 1968
and 1970 with 44.
He was also one of the early players to join the 30-home runs in each league club, hitting 31 with the Dodgers in 1962 before reaching the plateau again in 1967 when he slammed 36 taters.
All told, he finished his career with 382 homers over 16 seasons, before moving on to a coaching and managerial career, making him somewhat of a baseball lifer.
I loved him when he was with the New York Yankees later in his coaching career! I mean, how often do you get to appreciate a guy who was so nasty as a player that he had TWO great nicknames: “The Capital Punisher”, and “Hondo”!
He was also one of the early players to join the 30-home runs in each league club, hitting 31 with the Dodgers in 1962 before reaching the plateau again in 1967 when he slammed 36 taters.
All told, he finished his career with 382 homers over 16 seasons, before moving on to a coaching and managerial career, making him somewhat of a baseball lifer.
I loved him when he was with the New York Yankees later in his coaching career! I mean, how often do you get to appreciate a guy who was so nasty as a player that he had TWO great nicknames: “The Capital Punisher”, and “Hondo”!