1972 25TH ANNIVERSARY JACKIE ROBINSON SPECIAL: "WORLD CHAMPION"

Good day everyone!

On the blog today, we move on to the next stage of the great Jackie Robinson's historic career, this time his World Championship of 1955, the year "Dem Bums" finally beat their dreaded crosstown rivals, the New York Yankees:

Of course the image I used is his famous steal of home that Hall of Famer Yogi Berra swore to his last days that Jackie was out.

The momentum was all Dodgers this time, even though it took the Dodgers seven games to finally win it all.

The Yankees won the first two games of the Fall Classic, but the Dodgers reeled off three straight, marking the home team winning the first five games of the series.

After the Yanks came back to force a game seven in the sixth game, winning 5-1 behind Whitey Ford and his second win of the series, the Dodgers handed the ball to young Johnny Podres, who would go on to shut out the powerful Yankee line-up 2-0, giving the fans of Brooklyn their long-awaited win.

For Jackie, he didn't have the best of series, hitting only .182 with four hits over 22 at-bats, but he did score five runs, while stealing that ever-important base at home during Game 1.

Nevertheless, the man took home a World Championship while giving the fans of Brooklyn more to cheer about before having their hearts ripped from their chests just three years later when the team would move to Los Angeles.

THE NEWEST WTHBALLS SET: 1969 "GIMMIE A DO-OVER" AVAILABLE NOW

Good day everyone! Hope all of you are well!

Time for the newest WTHBALLS offering, my 1969 "Gimmie a Do-Over" set, which features 12 cards that are long overdue for a reworking, using new images instead of the recycled job Topps put out there way back when:

 

As you all know, with Topps and the MLBPA having a bit of a dispute back then, Topps got snarky and used a bunch of images from years prior to complete their 1969 set.

Sadly for us collectors, this also meant that players like Willie Mays, Carl Yastrzemski and Hank Aaron were part of the recycled bunch.

Well in this set, I tried to "fix" that problem, including the famous Aurelio Rodriguez card that originally showed the Angels batboy, and the horrendous Ken Harrelson card, which clearly showed him in a Kansas City Athletics uni, though designated a Red Sox player.

In addition to the 12 cards fixed here, I also included a deckle black and white card for Reggie Jackson AND a mini 1969 decal-style sticker of one of the cards.

I tried finding a printer that could handle actual rub-off decals, but only found one, and their minimum was 1000! Ha! "Too rich for my blood"!

Anyway, this set is $14 plus the usual $4.50 shipping, no matter how many packs you buy.

Of course, the usual paypal address: slogun23@gmail.com

Really a fun set to create and add to the WTHBALLS binder!

Thank you all for the continued interest and support!

Take Care

Gio

1971 "BASEBALL'S GREATEST MOMENTS": LUIS TIANT

Time to add "El Tiante", Luis Tiant to my extended "Baseball's Greatest Moments" missing extension set, celebrating both he and perhaps the greatest Topps odd-ball set ever made:

I celebrated the man's incredible 1968 campaign, which would have earned him a Cy Young Award in any other season but the 1968 "Year of the Pitcher".

Of course, we know that with Denny McLain winning 31 games and leading the Detroit Tigers to a World Championship, he had that award wrapped up, as well as the MVP.

But for Tiant, it was a year to remember, as he gave the Cleveland Indians a 1-2 punch on the mound any team would envy, teaming up with flamethrower Sam McDowell.

All Tiant did that season for the Cleveland Indians was go 21-9 with nine shutouts over 32 starts, 19 of which he completed, and sport a sparkling 1.60 E.R.A. along with 264 strikeouts!

He also threw nine shutouts while tossing  while allowing only 5.3 hits per nine innings, with a stellar 0.871 WHIP.

Forget Cy Young Award, those are MVP numbers!

By the time he finished his career in 1982, 18 years later, he finished with a 229-172 record, with a 3.30 E.R.A., 49 shutouts and 2416 strikeouts, with two seasons of sub-2.00 E.R.A., four 20-win campaigns as well as three 200+ strikeout years.

After getting 30.9% support in his first year on the Hall of Fame ballot in 1988, he never got close again to those numbers, topping out at 18.0% in his final year of eligibility in 2002.

Do I think he's a Hall of Fame pitcher? Tough call based on statistics alone. However I do feel that when you add in his personality, his long-lasting mark on the game in that time and place, he should be in.

1971 TOPPS ROOKIE ALL-STARS: JOHN ELLIS

Up on the blog today, we look at the next unreleased 1971 Topps Rookie All-Star card from a very desirable rare prototype set, John Ellis of the New York Yankees:

Ellis had a decent 1970 season for the Yanks, appearing in 78 games while hitting .248, easily signifying a "down" year for rookie first baseman if you ask me.

He'd go on to play thirteen years in the Majors, generally at first or behind the plate as a catcher, never truly a full-timer except for the 1973 and 1974 seasons while with the Cleveland Indians.

By the time he hung them up after the 1981 season, Ellis finished with a .262 career average, with 699 hits in 2672 at-bats, with 69 homers and 391 runs batted in, playing for the Yankees, Indians and Texas Rangers.

1975 IN-ACTION: FELIX MILLAN

Today on the blog we go and add former All-Star Felix Millan to my 1975 "In-Action" thread, a sub-set I hope to release in two series in the near future:

 

Millan came to Shea from the Atlanta Braves, where he put up some excellent Major league seasons, getting names to three straight All-Star teams and winning two Gold Gloves.

While with the Mets he again was solid, collecting as many as 191 hits in a season (1975), which would stand for many years as the team record, hitting as high as .290 before a gruesome injury pretty much ended his career in 1977.

After Pittsburgh Pirates catcher Ed Ott tried to break up a double-play, Millan took exception to the slide and exchanged words, leading to Millan striking Ott with his fist.

Ott, who was a former wrestler, literally picked Millan up and slammed him down onto his knee, injuring Millan's shoulder so badly it ended his career. Just like that. Terrible.

All told, Millan played between 1966 and 1977, hitting .279 with 1617 hits in 5791 at-bats over 1480 games, scoring 699 runs and driving in 403 for the Braves and Mets.

1960'S SPECIAL SET: DEDICATED ROOKIE: 1968 NOLAN RYAN

On the blog today, a card from my custom 1960's special set, "Dedicated Rookies" released a few years ago already. One of the more popular sets I printed up over the years. This one a 1968 card for the great Nolan Ryan:

Ryan appeared in two games for the New York Mets in 1966 as a 19-year-old, tossing three innings and going 0-1 with a 15.00 earned run average with six strikeouts and three walks.

He would spend all of 1967 in the Minors before making it back for good in 1968, going 6-9 over 21 appearances with a 3.09 ERA in 134 innings, starting 18 and completing three.

Of course, the rest, as they say, is history, as he would go on to put in one of the most amazing careers in Major League history.

What really needs to be said about a guy who has become more myth than baseball legend?

300+ wins, 5700+ strikeouts, 60+ shutouts, and oh yeah SEVEN no-hitters, two of which came when he was well into his 40’s while with the Texas Rangers!

I used the 1974 template since he was fresh off his record-breaking 383 strikeout season of 1973, his second consecutive 300+ strikeout season, and on his way to make the Mets regret BIG TIME for letting him go.

I love thinking about the fact that he did all of this in the American League, with the designated hitter. Now imagine how many strikeouts he could have had in his prime pitching in the National League where the pitcher batted?!

Would it be safe to say you could add 20-30 strikeouts a season to his total?

Hey, you never know…

Nevertheless, the man became a baseball God, eventually finding his place in the Hall of Fame upon his first year of eligibility as an absolute no-brainer.

I just thank the skies above that I got to see him pitch in-person!

1977 N.L. CENTENNIAL: RON CEY

Up on the blog today, we add the "Penguin", Ron Cey to my on-going 1977 National League Centennial sub-set, celebrating the league's 100th anniversary of 1876:

Cey had perhaps his finest season in the Big Leagues in 1977, hitting the aforementioned 30 "jacks" while also driving in a career-best 110 runs for the eventual National League champs, as he also made his fourth straight All-Star team while finishing eighth in the MVP race.

Over 17 seasons you could pretty much pencil him in for about 25 home runs, 80-85 runs batted in, and a .275 batting average.
After the 1982 season he moved on to the Chicago Cubs where he’d play for another four seasons, then finish up his career with a single season in Oakland.
By the time he retired, he collected 1868 hits, with 316 home runs, 1139 RBIs and 977 runs scored with a .261 batting average.
He was named to the All-Star team six straight seasons between 1974 and 1979, and garnered MVP consideration five seasons, with four of them consecutive from 1974 to 1977.

The man was as solid and dependable as they came between 1973 and 1985!

"MINOR LEAGUE DAYS": LEGENDS EDITION: BABE RUTH

Good day everyone!

Exciting new thread on the blog today!

Decided that it would be fun to create a "Minor League Days" 1971 sub-set celebrating some of the all-time greats of "yesteryear", beginning with the greatest of the all, Babe Ruth:

I'll be creating black and white cards of some of the all-timers pictured in the Minor League uni's, following the design template of my modern day thread.

As for Ruth and his Minor League tenure, it was a brief one, spending the first part of the 1914 season between the Baltimore Orioles and the Providence Grays as a 19-year-old pitcher.

Over 35 games the stud would go 22-9 with 139 strikeouts over 244.2 innings, while other stats like ERA, complete games and shutouts are not available.

He would finish the year in the Majors, appearing in four games for the Boston Red Sox and go 2-1 with a 3.91 ERA over 23 innings, completing a game while striking out only three.

The man was mythical, playing so far above and beyond his contemporaries that it made him arguably the most famous person on earth, let alone in America.

I'm not a fan of all this talk today diminishing all that Ruth did over his career, as I believe the entire concept of "context" has been lost on those that like to say things like "...if he played today...".

2800+ hits, 714 homers, 2174 runs scored and 2214 runs batted in, all accomplished in only 8399 at-bats.

To put that into context, if you gave him another HALF a career of at-bats, 4000 or so, that would match the great Hank Aaron's at-bat total, so what would Ruth's numbers be then?

Just something fun to think about.

And let us not forget a 94-46 record as a pitcher, with a 2.28 ERA over 163 games, including two 20-win seasons and an ERA title in 1916 with 1.75 including nine shutouts.

Just ridiculous. Greatest ever in my book.

1970'S ALL-DECADE TEAM: N.L. RHP TOM SEAVER

OK now!

Today we go and place my favorite player of the 1970's, Mr. Tom Seaver, on my National League "All-Decade" Team, about as easy a pick for me as there can be, the right-handed pitcher of the 1970's, something he was for the Major Leagues, let alone National League:

What needs to be said about the greatest New York Met to ever suit up?

The man would end up with a 311-205 record along with 61 shutouts and 3640 strikeouts to go with a brilliant 2.86 ERA over 20-seasons and 656 appearances, 647 of which were starts.

He was in prime form in the mid-70’s, putting together nine straight 200 strikeouts seasons while getting tabbed to ten all-star teams in his first eleven seasons.

God I loved Tom Seaver when I was a kid. More than any other pitcher of that era I was in awe of this man. He just seemed like a "super-hero" to me.

Just look at all my other posts dedicated to the man here on this blog. He was other-worldly to me growing up in New York City as a kid in the 1970's.

Even if he WAS a Met, to this young Yankee fan he was unquestionably the best pitcher in the game at that time.

Rest in Peace "Tom Terrific"!

 

1971 "BASEBALL'S GREATEST MOMENTS": VIDA BLUE

Today we go and add Oakland A's ace Vida Blue to my growing "missing" 1971 "Baseball's Greatest Moments" thread, celebrating his no-hitter the year before, giving everyone a glimpse into what to expect:

The game marked the “arrival” of the young Oakland A’s pitcher, who no-hit a very good Minnesota Twins line-up on September 21st, 1970.

Blue struck out nine with only one walk, facing the minimum 27 batters in his gem, giving him a 2-0 record with a 2.28 earned run average with the 6-0 win.
The offense supplied was pretty much all by lead-ff hitter Bert Campaneris, who went 2-for-5 with three RBIs, all on a three-run homer off Twins starter Jim Perry in the 8th inning.
Of course, we all know that the 21-year old lefty was just getting started, as he would take over the Majors the following season, going on to not only win the Cy Young Award, but take the league MVP Award as well with a 24-8 showing, along with a 1.82 earned run average and eight shutouts, with 301 strikeouts as the A’s were just about to become a three-peat world champion dynasty.
Blue would go on to six All-Star games, starting and winning one in each league, and eventually retire with 209 wins and a 3.27 ERA with 37 shutouts, posting three 20-win seasons over his 17-year career.
A true icon of 1970’s baseball.

1972 25TH ANNIVERSARY JACKIE ROBINSON SPECIAL: "MOST VALUABLE PLAYER"

Up on the blog today, we celebrate the 25th anniversary of jackie Robinson's Major league debut in 1947 with a card marking his 1949 MVP season:

After two brilliant seasons in 1947 and 1948, Robinson topped them both with a stellar 1949 campaign, taking home the league MVP Award after leading the league with a .342 average and 37 stolen bases, while also scoring 122 runs, with 203 hits, 38 doubles, 12 triples and 16 homers, driving in 124 runs and collecting 313 bases.

The man was all-world!

This performance helped get the Brooklyn Dodgers back into the World Series after missing out the previous year, though they once-again would fall to the New York Yankee juggernaut, who would go on to win five straight championships through the 1953 season.

Another incredible stat from his 1949 season: in 704 plate appearances that year, he only struck out 27 times!

Just amazing.

AIRBRUSHING THROUGH THE 1970'S: 1973 ANDY MESSERSMITH

Let's go and take a look at another airbrushing gem from the 1970's today, this one the 1973 card for former All-Star pitcher Andy Messersmith, who made his was "cross-town" from the California Angels to the Los Angeles Dodgers:

Not much to it here, just an airbrushed collar trim and a crayon-like hat that isn't the worst we've seen by any measure.

Messersmith would have a wonderful career by the time the mid-70’s were in full swing, having won 20-games for the second time in his career in 1974 when he posted a 20-6 mark along with a nice 2.59 earned run average and 221 strikeouts.
He’d finish second to teammate Mike Marshall and his historic season out of the bullpen for the Cy Young Award, and would also take home the first of two straight Gold Gloves.
In his seven seasons as a big league pitcher at that point, Messersmith’s highest season E.R.A. was 3.01, which he had in 1970 while with the California Angels.
In every other season in the Majors he posted E.R.A.’s under 3.00, and would finish his career with an amazing 2.86 mark after twelve years, with a record of 130-99 and 1625 strikeouts with 27 shutouts before injuries forced him to retire at the age of only 33 in 1979.
An underrated pitcher who sadly never got to play out his career to it’s fullest, he certainly maintained a top-notch level when he was healthy.

DEDICATED ROOKIE: 1975 DENNIS LEONARD

Today on the blog, we have a 1975 "dedicated rookie" for Kansas City Royals ace Dennis Leonard, who made his Big League debut in 1974:

Leonard appeared in five games for K.C. that season, four of those starts, going 0-4 with a bloated 5.32 earned run average over 22 innings of work.

Lucky for the Royals however, this was going to change in a big way, as Leonard would become their anchor on the mound, posting three 20-win seasons as they ascended to become a powerhouse later in the decade.

The man was a stud between 1975 and 1981, finishing near the top of the A.L. for wins each year while taking the mound every fourth or fifth day without fail, logging a boatload of innings, even leading the league in the strike-shortened 1981 season with 201.2 over his 26 starts.

Sadly arm injuries kicked in during the 1982 season, something he’d never recover from, missing the 1984 season and retiring soon after in 1986.

Over 12 seasons in the Majors, Leonard would finish with 144 wins and a 3.70 ERA over 312 appearances, with 23 shutouts and 1323 strikeouts, tossing 2187 innings which included two seasons of 290+ (1977/1978).

 

NOT REALLY MISSING IN ACTION: 1970 STEVE GARVEY

On the blog today, a custom card I released months ago as part of my Series 13 set, a "not so missing" 1970 card for should-be Hall of Famer Steve Garvey:

Garvey made his Major League debut in 1969 as a 20-year-old, appearing in three games, going 1-for-3 at the plate.

Of course, we all know that the man would go on to be a perennial All-Star first baseman, and for ME, a lock for the Hall of Fame.

The fact that he was the premier first baseman in the National League from the mid-70’s through the mid-80’s, an All-Star year in and year out doesn't seem to matter to most however.
Modern metrics be damned, the man topped 200-hits six times, took home the NL MVP in 1974, won four Gold Gloves and strung together a run of 1207 consecutive games played, which is still the NL record.
The anchor of the powerhouse Los Angeles Dodgers teams of the era, they took over from Cincinnati as the preeminent team in the Senior Circuit in the late-70s, reaching the World Series three times over five seasons between 1977 and 1981, winning it all that final year, beating the New York Yankees and exacting some sweet revenge for their two losses in 77/78.
I’ve said it once, I’ve said it a few hundred times: the fact that this man is NOT in the Hall of Fame, representing his era of Major League baseball, is a joke. Flat out nonsense. Beyond the numbers, the personality, the leader of a team that was shattering attendance records, helping popularize the game further, the man was an All-Star year in-year out.
In my book, seeing that the most support he ever received was 42.6%, which was in his second-year of eligibility in 1994, is nothing short of a mark on what the Hall of Fame is.

That goes for Dave Parker and Dale Murphy as well!

1977 N.L. CENTENNIAL: RICHIE ZISK

Today on the blog we go and add slugger Richie Zisk to my long-running 1977 National League Centennial thread, celebrating the league's 100th anniversary of 1976:

Zisk would make his MLB debut in 1971 with seven games before coming back in 1972 with 17 appearances for the Pittsburgh Pirates.
But in 1973 he made quite the impression, hitting a cool .324 over 103 games, giving everyone an idea of what was to come.

1974 saw him elevate his game, hitting 17 homers with a .313 average and 100 runs batted in, his first of two such seasons over his career.

He was sent from the Pittsburgh Pirates to the White Sox in the Rich Gossage deal in 1977, and had one of his best years in the Majors in his only season there, hitting a career high 30 home runs and 101 runs batted in.

He was named All-Star for the first time, and was part of the "South Side Hit Men" lineup that included Oscar Gamble, Eric Soderholm and Chet Lemon, fan favorites who hit a (then) high 192 homers as a team.

He would end up playing 13 seasons under the Big League sun, for the Pirates, Chicago White Sox, Texas Rangers and Seattle Mariners between 1971 and 1983, hitting 207 homers, with 792 RBIs and 681 runs scored, hitting .287 over 1453 games and 5144 at-bats.

1971 "BASEBALL'S GREATEST MOMENTS": RON SANTO

On the blog today, my "missing" 1971 "Baseball's Greatest Moments" card for Chicago Cubs great Ron Santo, Hall of Fame third baseman:

Between 1964 and 1968 the man reeled in five straight Gold Gloves for his great defensive work, while also putting in stellar offensive seasons that saw him average 30 home runs and 100 runs batted in.

By the time he hung up his spikes after the 1974 season, Santo established himself as one of the all-time greats at third base.

A wonderful 15 year career that saw him suit up for the Cubs for all but his final season, Santo was about as solid as you could ever want, especially during the modern "dead-ball" era of the mid-1960's through the mid-1970's.

He walloped 342 lifetime homers, along with 1331 runs batted in, 1138 runs scored and a .277 batting average.

Four times he drove in more than 100 runs, with another four years of 90+. As I stated earlier he he also hit 30+ homers four straight years, between 1964-1967, as well as topping .300 four times.

A nine time all-star and five time Gold Glover, it's a shame it took so long for him to be acknowledged as such, getting inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2012, two years after he passed away.

If it wasn't for long time teammate Ernie Banks, we'd be calling Santo "Mr. Cub".

1960'S CAREER CAPPER: 1968 WHITEY FORD

Good day everyone.

On the blog today, we have my 1968 "Career Capper for New York Yankees legend Whitey Ford, from my dedicated set of 1960's cappers released a few years back:

What needs to be said about quite possibly the greatest Yankee pitcher of all?

Cy Young winner in 1961, winner of 236 games against only 106 losses (a nifty .690 winning percentage), a 2.75 career earned run average, and a member of six world championship clubs.

He led the league in wins three times, winning percentage three times, ERA twice, shutouts twice, and was named to eight all-star teams during his 16-year career.

His 10 World Series wins (along with his eight losses) are Major League high marks to this day, and who knows how much more he could have padded all of his numbers had he not lost two seasons to the military in 1951 and 1952!

When the Hall of Fame came calling he was inducted on his first try, getting named to 284 of 365 ballots in 1974.

Obviously there's so much more to get into with Whitey, but I could end up writing a book here if I did, so I'll leave it up to the Wikipedia's out there to fill anyone in who wants to learn more.

I only wish Ford didn't try to hang on those last couple of years in 1966 and 1967, when he went a combined 4-9, thus eliminating the chance of him being only the second pitcher to this day to retire with 200+ wins and LESS than 100 losses (the other being 19th-century pitcher Bob Caruthers, who finished at 218-99 between 1884-1893).

Oh well, I know I'm nitpicking here…It's the nerd in me I guess.

REVISITING A POST FROM 10 YEARS AGO: ACCIDENTAL PHOTO BOMBING: PART VII

Good day everyone!

For those of you who are new to the blog, you may not know that one of my favorite early threads was my "Photobombing" series, showcasing cards that had famous players as secondary figures on baseball cards from the decade.

It ran for a bit before I used up all the cards that had this feature, but today I wanted to take a look at one of them, this from August of 2013.

Here's the original post, as written way back when:

I haven't uploaded a "photo-bombing" post in a while. Long overdue.
So today I spotlight the 1972 Rick Wise and the 1973 Jim Fregosi cards, which collectively have a Hall of Fame battery lurking in the background.
First up is the 1972 Rick Wise (#43) card:

 

While you have Wise frozen in time with this lame follow-through pitching pose, there are three teammates gathered in the background, and one of them is Hall of Fame pitcher and future American politician Jim Bunning (#14). He's talking to pitcher Bill Wislon (#37) and most likely a Spring training invitee since I can't find any record of a player who wore #54 for them that year.
What's interesting is that the photo is from 1971 and was Bunning's last year in the Majors. He wasn't included in the 1972 set. So he snuck in there after he hung up the cleats.
Another interesting note is that Wise would be suiting up for another team in 1972, the Cardinals, as he was dealt to St. Louis for Steve Carlton before the season started.

Next up we have an awesome card from the 1973 set: (#525). What a great card. This is "action" done right:

We have Fregosi obviously looking back at a foul pop that went into the stands, as none other than Johnny Bench of the Reds looking on. I love the fact that you also see all the Mets in the dugout watching the action. I wish I could make out who the they are, but I've tried enhancing the image as best I could and didn't recognize any of them.
One of my favorite cards from the set right here.
Interesting coincidence is that both Rick Wise and Jim Fregosi are long remembered as being the "bust" part of two separate historically lopsided trades.
As stated earlier, Wise was traded to the Cardinals for Steve Carlton, who went on to a Hall of Fame career mainly on what he did with Philadelphia, and Fregosi was traded to the Mets for future Hall of Famer Nolan Ryan, who immediately became a superstar with the Angels in 1972.

OPC VARIATION: 1977 ALAN ASHBY

Up on the blog today, we take a look at another OPC to Topps image variation, this time the 1977 cards of former catcher Alan Asbhy:

Such a nice shot of Ashby in the Blue Jay uni as opposed to the Topps airbrushed card we see here.

Understandably Topps had to scramble and get creative with a bunch of players as the Blue Jays and Seattle Mariners were set to make their Major League debut in 1977, giving us some airbrushed gems that year.

As for Ashby, after being traded to the Jays from the Cleveland Indians in November of 1976, he would go on to put in two seasons for the expansion team before moving on to play for the Houston Astros for the next eleven years.

I never realized that his career led him all the way to the doorsteps of the 1990 decade, finishing up with 22 games for the Astros in 1989 after 17-years as a Major League catcher.

In those 17 seasons he batted .245 while playing in 1370 games, collecting 1010 hits with 90 home runs and 513 runs batted in over 4123 official at-bats. After his baseball career ended as a player he hung around the game as a coach in the Astros system as well as a broadcaster for the Astros in both radio and television.

1972 25TH ANNIVERSARY JACKIE ROBINSON SPECIAL: "MAJOR LEAGUE DEBUT"

Today on the blog, the next stage in the iconic career of the great Jackie Robinson in my 1972 25th anniversary sub-set celebrating his Major League debut, his Big League debut of 1947:

To much hoopla, both good and sadly bad, Robinson was set to make his Major League debut as the first African-American player since the late 19th Century.

And so on Opening Day, April 15th, Jackie was penciled in at first base against the Boston Braves at Ebbets Field, and history was made, though I wish there was NO history that needed to be made in the first place.

Jackie went 0-for-3 at the plate with a run scored, as the Brooklyn Dodgers would go on to win the game 5-3.

I cannot even begin to imagine the difficulty in that alone, yet still managed to put in 10 great years as a Major League all-star second baseman, winning Rookie of the Year in 1947, league MVP in 1949, six all-star nods, and a batting title in 1949 when he hit .342.

Before he made baseball history in 1947, he suited up with the Kansas City Monarchs of the Negro Leagues in 1945 while he was still in college.

He played in only 47 games, but excelled, hitting .387 with 5 home runs and 13 stolen bases, even appearing in the East-West All Star Game.

At this point talking about statistics seems trivial in relation to the sheer impact he had to the sport and American culture.

It still crushes me when I remember that the man was still only 53 years of age when he passed away, imagining if he would have lived another 20, 30 years and gracing us into the 21st Century.

An American Legend.

AIRBRUSHING THROUGH THE 1970'S: 1974 MIKE CALDWELL

Good day all!

Been a while since I spotlighted an airbrushing gem of the 1970's here on the blog, so I thought we'd take a look at the 1974 Mike Caldwell masterpiece:

Not the worst paint job, certainly not the best either.

Coming up with the San Diego Padres in 1971, Caldwell put in three years with the team before finding himself "up the road" in San Francisco before the 1974 season, so Topps managed to create this beauty before the cards went to press.

He would have his first successful year that season, posting a record of 14-5 and a 2.95 ERA over 31 appearances, 27 of them starts, tossing two shutouts.
He’d struggle over the next two years before starting the 1977 season with the Cincinnati Reds, appearing in 14 games as a reliever before being traded to the Milwaukee Brewers for two Minor Leaguers on June 15th.
In Milwaukee he would find his groove, going on to pitch seven-plus years for the “Brew Crew”, posting double-digit win totals six times including his magnificent 1978 campaign, which saw him go 22-9 with a 2.36 ERA over 34 starts, completing 23 of them and tossing six shutouts.
If it were not for a man named Ron Guidry that season, Caldwell would have taken home the American League Cy Young Award, finishing second while also finishing twelfth in the MVP race.
By the time he retired after the 1984 season, Caldwell ended up with a career 137-130 record along with a 3.81 ERA in 475 appearances, 307 of them starts, with 23 shutouts, 18 saves and a brilliant 1982 World Series performance in a losing cause when he went 2-0 over three games, posting a 2.04 ERA including a shutout against the St. Louis Cardinals.

1971 TOPPS ROOKIE ALL-STARS: BILLY CONIGLIARO

Today on the blog, we take a look at the unreleased 1971 Topps Rookie All-Star card for Billy Conigliaro, younger brother of Tony:

As stated earlier, Topps proposed a sub-set designed as you see here featuring the 1970 Rookie All-Star team, but never went on to produce the cards.

Originally larger poster board mock ups, some got out and made it to the open market years ago.

As for younger brother Billy, after a promising rookie year in 1970 that saw him slam 18 home runs while batting .271 in only 114 games, he could never quite match that production again, finding himself with the Milwaukee Brewers in 1972 and the Oakland A’s in 1973, playing a total of 100 games combined those two seasons before finding himself out of baseball for good.

He put in parts of five seasons in the Majors, hitting .256 over 347 games, with 40 homers and 128 runs batted in, scoring 142 runs between 1969 and 1973.

 

1970'S ALL-DECADE TEAM: A.L. OUTFIELDER JIM RICE

On the blog today, my final outfielder for my American League team of the decade of the 1970s, and I went with Boston's Jim Rice:

It was such a close race for my third and final spot in the A.L. outfield between three teammates: Rice, Fred Lynn and Carl Yastrzemski, but for me Rice was at the head of the pack.

I'm STILL amazed with Rice's run from 1977 through 1979! Even though he only pulled in one M.V.P., he was an absolute terror at the plate.

Over 200 hits each year, along with 39, 46 and 39 homers, as well as averaging 124 runs batted in and a .320 average.

Then you notice that the dude hit 15, 15 and 6 TRIPLES those years, leading the league in homers AND triples in 1978.

I mean, that is just plain RAKING at the plate!

Man, Rice used to terrify me as a young Yankee fan. He was just plain brutal to opposing pitchers, and it was a shame that he had to wait so long to get elected into Cooperstown. 

By the time Rice was done in the Big Leagues, he'd finish with 2400+ hits, 382 homers, 1451 runs batted in and a .298 lifetime average.

Five times would he finish in the running for Most Valuable Player besides the year he took it home.

Absolute STUD!

 

1977 N.L. CENTENNIAL: RANDY JONES

Time to add 1976 Cy Young Award winner Randy Jones to my on-going 1977 N.L. Centennial sub-set, celebrating the 100th anniversary of the Senior League during our Bicentennial Year of 1976:

 

Jones’ season in 1976 was brilliant, as he cruised to a record of 22-14, with an ERA of 2.74, leading the league in wins, starts with a whopping 40, complete games with 25 and innings pitched with 315.1.
Along the way he also tossed five shutouts, starting the All-Star game for the N.L., and ending up 10th in MVP voting at the end of the year.

Jones made his Big League debut in June of 1973 and went on to post a record of 7-6, with a nice 3.16 earned run average over 20 appearances, 19 of them starts.
Though he would have a forgettable sophomore season in 1974 which saw him lead the National League with 22 losses, along with an ERA of 4.45, we all know how that could have easily been different had he pitched for a better team.
Regardless, over the next two seasons he arguably could have taken home the Cy Young BOTH times, as he’d go on to post records of 20-12 and 22-14, leading the league in ERA with a 2.24 in ‘75 and posting another nice 2.74 mark in his Cy season.

Though he’d play through the 1982 season, he’d never again taste success in the Majors, never winning more than 13 games in any season between 1977 and 1982, finishing with a record of 100-123, with a 3.42 earned run average over 305 appearances.

1971 "BASEBALL'S GREATEST MOMENTS": RICHIE ALLEN

Good day everyone!

On the blog today, another "missing" 1971 Greatest Moments card, this time celebrating Dick (Richie) Allen and his fantastic Rookie of the Year winning 1964 season:

His rookie year was phenomenal, as he'd score 125 runs, collect 201 hits, lead the league with 13 triples, while collecting 38 doubles, hit 29 homers and drive in 91 runs, and hit .318, finishing seventh for the MVP Award.

Needless to say, he took home the Rookie of the Year in 1964, and in 1972 would take home the MVP trophy while with the White Sox when he paced the American League with 37 homers and 113 RBI's, while just missing out on the Triple Crown, batting .308, just ten points off the league-leading mark by perennial winner Rod Carew.

By the time he left the game at the age of 35, Allen hit over 350 homers, batted .292 and scored 1099 runs with 1119 RBI's.

The seven-time all-star also led his league in triples once, walks once, on-base-percentage twice and slugging three times.

I'm not saying the man is a lock-tight Hall of Fame candidate, but I do think in light of some of the guys already in, HE should also be in there.

The fact that the most support he got was an 18.9% showing in 1996 seems like a joke to me.

What do you all think?

VINTAGE CUSTOM SPOTLIGHT: 1950 DRAKE'S "EXTENDED" SET: LUKE APPLING

Today's blog post has us taking a look at my 1950 "missing" Drakes card for Hall of Famer Luke Appling, part of my fun custom set produced in 2020 in deluxe "floating frame" packaging:

One of the All-Time great shortstops of the game who is sadly overlooked, Appling was a two-time batting champ over his 20 year career, spanning 1930 through 1950, with pretty much two seasons lost to military service in 1944 and 1945.

The six-time All-Star hit as high as .388 in 1936, which gave him the first of two batting championships, with his second coming in 1943 when he hit .328.

Sadly for him, after that second title he was shipped off to his military service before coming back to hit .300+ the final five of his six Big League seasons.

By the time he retired, he hit .310 over 2422 games, with 2749 hits in 8856 at-bats, finishing runner-up to two MVP Awards while garnering support in nine other seasons.

In 1964 he was selected for the Hall of Fame , named to 189 of 201 ballots.

"Old Aches and Pains"!

SPECIAL 1969 "TEAM" CEREAL EXTENSION SET: REGGIE JACKSON

On the blog today, we have my 1969 Nabisco Team Flakes "missing" card for the man himself, Reggie Jackson:

 

Hope to have this cereal box printed up in the coming months, as a special bonus custom release on the WTHBALLS imprint!

Jackson truly arrived with his 1969 season, exploding for 47 home runs with a league-leading 123 runs scored, while driving in 118 runs.

He also led the league with his .608 slugging percentage and 20 intentional base-on-balls, making his first All-Star game at the age of 23.

Those numbers got him a fifth-place finish in the MVP race at season's end, and we all know he was FAR from finished.

Truly one of the eternal icons of the game, the man was just destined for baseball greatness since his days at Cheltenham High School in Pennsylvania.
Recruited by pro teams and colleges alike, he went on to Arizona State where he was actually on a football scholarship.
Of course we all know the story of the 1966 amateur draft, where the New York Mets held the #1 pick, and opted for high school catcher Steve Chilcott instead of who many considered the true #1 overall amateur, Jackson.
With the second pick, the Kansas City Athletics (later Oakland) picked the slugger and the rest is history, as he would eventually lead the organization to three straight championships between 1972-1974 before being traded in a blockbuster to the Baltimore Orioles where he’d play for one season in 1976.
As a highly coveted free agent before the 1977 season, Jackson signed with the New York Yankees, and with Reggie in NYC, the legend exploded as he helped the Yankees to two championships in 1977-78.
With his larger than life persona, New York ate it up and before you knew it, he was known around the world, even getting his own candy-bar by the end of the decade.
For a kid like me growing up in Brooklyn in the ‘70’s, Reggie was like a God, larger than life, and before he finished up his career in 1987, putting in 21 seasons, he would put together a Hall of Fame career with 563 homers, 1702 runs batted in, an MVP Award in 1973, and five championships.
Add to that 14 all-star nods, four home run titles, a legendary homer in the 1971 All-Star Game against Dock Ellis, his 1977 World Series performance, and you can see why he goes down as one of the most well-known baseball personalities the game has ever seen!

 

1971 TOPPS ROOKIE ALL-STARS: DAVE CASH

Up on the blog today, we take a closer look at the unreleased 1971 Topps Rookie All-Star card of Dave Cash, part of a fun sub-set that I wish Topps went ahead with way back when:

These were never released to the public, and were paste-up oversized designs on poster board, with some "leaking out" and making their way out for us to see.

Nice time-specific design and coloring!

Cash appeared in 18 games as a 21-year-old in 1969, hitting .279 with 17 hits over 61 official at-bats, with eight runs scored and four RBIs.

But in 1970 he'd show the Pirates what he'd end up doing throughout his career, HIT, as he'd put up a .314 batting average over 64 games.

He'd head over to the “City of Brotherly Love” in October of 1973 in a trade for pitcher Ken Brett, and did not disappoint the Phillie faithful, having his three best years as a Major Leaguer between 1974-1976.
In those three seasons Cash averaged over 200 hits a season, along with a .300 average while playing pretty much every single game, even setting the MLB record (since broken) of 699 at-bats during the 1975 season.
He’d sign with the Montreal Expos in the Winter of 1976 as a Free Agent, and would have one more very good year in 1977 before quickly having his career turn South.
After an injury-plagued 1979 season he found himself with the San Diego padres in 1980, where he hit .227 over 130 games, before retiring at only 32 years of age.
All told, Cash finished with a very nice .283 career average, with 1571 hits over 5554 at-bats and 1422 games between 1969 and 1980, stealing 120 bases and scoring 732 runs.

JAPANESE SPECIAL: 1979 ISAO HARIMOTO

Good day all!

On the blog today, the next Japanese legend to get the spotlight here, this time Hall of Fame outfielder Isao Harimoto:

Harimoto put in 23 seasons in the Japanese League, playing between 1959 and 1981, mainly for the Toei Flyers (Hokkaido).

He was Rookie of the Year in 1959, hitting .275 with 13 homers and 57 runs batted in over 125 games.

From then on he would turn into a legend of the game in japan, becoming the All-Time hit leader when he retired with 3085 hits, while also clubbing 504 home runs and driving in 1676 runs, while scoring 1523 himself.

To this day he is still the only player in Japanese history to collect 3000+ hits over a career.

He would top 20 homers 16 times, with five of those seasons 30+, while finishing up with a career average of .319, hitting .300+ 16 times.

He won seven batting titles, hitting as high as .383 (1970), and was selected for the "Best Nine Award" 16 times, as well as an MVP Award in 1962 when he hit .333 with 31 homers and 99 RBIs.

He is also the only member of the Japanese 3000/500/300 club, finishing with 319 career stolen bases, something only Willie Mays and Alex Rodriguez have done here in the United States.

In 1990, he was duly elected to the Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame.

 

VINTAGE CUSTOM SPOTLIGHT: 1950 DRAKE'S "EXTENDED" SET: LARRY DOBY

Hello everyone!

On the blog today, we march right along and showcase my "missing" 1950 Drakes card for Larry Doby, part of my custom set released a couple years back in fun deluxe "floating frame" packaging:

Doby began his professional career at the age of 18, suiting up for the Newark Eagles at second base in 1942, putting in parts of three seasons before heading off to the Military in 1945.

He'd be back to playing ball in 1946 with Newark, and would lead the Negro Leagues with 85 hits, 10 triples  and 138 total bases while making his first All-Star team.

In 1947, just a few months after Jackie Robinson broke the MLB color-barrier playing for the Brooklyn Dodgers in the National League, Doby would do the same in the American League, donning the uniform of the Cleveland Indians, appearing in 29 games.

Though his initial start with Cleveland was a bit rough, to the tune of a .156 batting average over 32 at-bats, Doby would immediately find his stroke in 1948, hitting .301 for the eventual World Champions, scoring 83 runs while hitting 14 homers with 23 doubles and nine triples, even garnering some MVP attention at season's end.

He would make seven All-Star teams while with Cleveland, with MVP consideration in four of those campaigns.

He'd lead the A.L. in homers twice with 32 in both 1952 and 1954, while leading the league with 126 RBIs in the latter season, one of five seasons he'd top 100.

Never given enough praise for his ground-breaking MLB debut, often overshadowed by Jackie Robinson's debut just before him, I'm happy to see his place in Big League history getting more and more attention as time passes.

Thankfully, he was also given his rightful place in the Hall of Fame, having been selected for enshrinement in 1998, though far too late in my opinion, but at least before he passed away, which he did on June 18th of 2003 at the age of 79.