Monday, September 30, 2024

NOT REALLY MISSING IN ACTION: 1973 MARCELINO LOPEZ

On the blog today, a "not so missing" 1973 card for former pitcher Marcelino Lopez, who closed out a decent 8-year Major League career in 1972, appearing in four games with the Cleveland Indians:


Originally up as a 19-year-old with the Philadelphia Phillies for four games in 1963, he was runner-up for the American League rookie of the year award two years later as a member of the California Angels when he posted a record of 14-13 over 35 games, posting a 2.93 earned run average with 122 strikeouts and eight complete games.
He'd never reach those numbers again during the rest of his career, moving on to the Baltimore Orioles in 1967, Milwaukee Brewers in 1971 and that last stop in Cleveland in 1972.
Overall, he appeared in 171 games, with 93 of those starts, posting a final record of 31-40 with a 3.62 ERA in 653 innings of work.
Along the way he also tossed three shutouts and saved two games, striking out 426 batters while walking 317.