Today on the blog, we add Detroit Tigers first
baseman Norm Cash to my 1971 special All-Star Game set based on the
design of the game's ticket:
Though Cash was
actually not selected by fans in the All-Star voting, he ended starting
the game for injured Boog Powell, so I thought it'd be fun to include
him here in this set.
Cash really did put together a solid 17-year career that stands out
even more when you consider the modern "dead-ball" era he played in.
By the time he retired after the 1974 season he slammed 377 homers and drove in 1103 runs while collecting 1820 hits.
Not a bad compliment in the line-up to guys like Al Kaline and Willie Horton!
Of course, his monster season happened to be the same year of
Mantle and Maris and their pursuit of Babe Ruth's home run record, 1961.
That year Cash tore it up, as he led the league in batting with a
.361 average (the only time he batted .300 or better in a season oddly
enough), while also slamming 41 home runs and driving in 132 runs.
Even with a league-leading .487 on-base-percentage and 193 hits,
all it got him was a fourth place finish for MVP behind Maris, Mantle
and Orioles slugger Jim Gentile.
Timing, as they say, is everything…
