1981 DRAKE'S BIG PITCHERS: JIM PALMER

Today on the blog we spotlight my 1981 "Drake's Big Pitchers" card for Hall of Famer Jim Palmer, part of my custom set released in 2025:

Palmer’s road to Cooperstown was a bit rocky at first, with a couple of jumps and starts because of injuries between 1964 and 1968.
As a matter of fact we’d probably be looking at a 300-game winner if not for over a season of missed time between 1967 and 1968.
Though he had a great first professional season in 1964 as an 18-year-old, going a combined 15-5 in the O’s system, he found himself on a Major League mound in 1966, still a teen, going 5-4.
In 1966 he’d improve to a record of 15-10 for the surprising eventual World Champs, shocking everyone with a sweep of the reigning champion Los Angeles Dodgers, with Palmer contributing a complete game shutout.
But injuries derailed him until 1969 when he hit his stride, going 16-4 with a 2.34 ERA and six shutouts, completing 11 of 23 starts.
From there, all the man did was top 20-wins in eight of the next nine seasons, winning three Cy Young Awards, the first American League pitcher to do so, helping the Orioles to another championship in 1970, eventually finishing with a career 268-152 record along with a brilliant 2.86 ERA and 53 shutouts before he was done in 1984.

CAREER-CAPPER: 1985 JIM PALMER

Let's venture into the 1980s again and have me post up my 1985 "career-capper" for the great Jim Palmer, who finished up his incredible Hall of Fame career in 1984:

Palmer’s road to Cooperstown was a bit rocky at first, with a couple of jumps and starts because of injuries between 1964 and 1968.
As a matter of fact we’d probably be looking at a 300-game winner if not for over a season of missed time between 1967 and 1968.
Though he had a great first professional season in 1964 as an 18-year-old, going a combined 15-5 in the O’s system, he found himself on a Major League mound in 1966, still a teen, going 5-4.
In 1966 he’d improve to a record of 15-10 for the surprising eventual World Champs, shocking everyone with a sweep of the reigning champion Los Angeles Dodgers, with Palmer contributing a complete game shutout.
But injuries derailed him until 1969 when he hit his stride, going 16-4 with a 2.34 ERA and six shutouts, completing 11 of 23 starts.
From there, all the man did was top 20-wins in eight of the next nine seasons, winning three Cy Young Awards, the first American League pitcher to do so, helping the Orioles to another championship in 1970, eventually finishing with a career 268-152 record along with a brilliant 2.86 ERA and 53 shutouts before he was done in 1984.

 

"CLASSIC BASEBALL" CUSTOM WTHBALLS SET: JIM PALMER

Let's go an add the great Jim Palmer to my future custom WTHBALLS "Classic Baseball" set, shall we?

Palmer’s road to Cooperstown was a bit rocky at first, with a couple of jumps and starts because of injuries between 1964 and 1968.
As a matter of fact we’d probably be looking at a 300-game winner if not for over a season of missed time between 1967 and 1968.
Though he had a great first professional season in 1964 as an 18-year-old, going a combined 15-5 in the O’s system, he found himself on a Major League mound in 1966, still a teen, going 5-4.
In 1966 he’d improve to a record of 15-10 for the surprising eventual World Champs, shocking everyone with a sweep of the reigning champion Los Angeles Dodgers, with Palmer contributing a complete game shutout.
But injuries derailed him until 1969 when he hit his stride, going 16-4 with a 2.34 ERA and six shutouts, completing 11 of 23 starts.
From there, all the man did was top 20-wins in eight of the next nine seasons, winning three Cy Young Awards, the first American League pitcher to do so, helping the Orioles to another championship in 1970, eventually finishing with a career 268-152 record along with a brilliant 2.86 ERA and 53 shutouts before he was done in 1984.

 

WTHBALLS GUM PACK CUSTOM SET: JIM PALMER

Good day all!

On the blog today, my Jim Palmer "mini Gum pack" card from my fun custom set released a few months back truly on a whim:

 

Just a fun card design to whip up and create of the top stars of the 1970's, in a really fun pack-of-gum package harking back to my days chewing gum like a maniac when I was a kid. I was never caught without a pack of gum on me around the age of ten!

Palmer’s road to Cooperstown was a bit rocky at first, with a couple of jumps and starts because of injuries between 1964 and 1968.
As a matter of fact we’d probably be looking at a 300-game winner if not for over a season of missed time between 1967 and 1968.
Though he had a great first professional season in 1964 as an 18-year-old, going a combined 15-5 in the O’s system, he found himself on a Major League mound in 1966, still a teen, going 5-4.
In 1966 he’d improve to a record of 15-10 for the surprising eventual World Champs, shocking everyone with a sweep of the reigning champion Los Angeles Dodgers, with Palmer contributing a complete game shutout.
But injuries derailed him until 1969 when he hit his stride, going 16-4 with a 2.34 ERA and six shutouts, completing 11 of 23 starts.
From there, all the man did was top 20-wins in eight of the next nine seasons, winning three Cy Young Awards, the first American League pitcher to do so, helping the Orioles to another championship in 1970, eventually finishing with a career 268-152 record along with a brilliant 2.86 ERA and 53 shutouts before he was done in 1984.

1970'S ALL-DECADE TEAM: A.L. RHP JIM PALMER

Good day everyone!

On the blog today, we have my pick, and I'm sure most everyone else in this matter, for the American League right-handed pitcher of the 1970s, Jim Palmer, Baltimore Orioles Hall of Famer:

Honestly, there is no way it could be anyone else, as the man was just incredible not only in the 1970s, but over his stellar career.

Palmer’s road to Cooperstown was a bit rocky at first, with a couple of jumps and starts because of injuries between 1964 and 1968.
As a matter of fact we’d probably be looking at a 300-game winner if not for over a season of missed time between 1967 and 1968.
All the man did was top 20-wins in eight of the next ten seasons of the 1970s, winning three Cy Young Awards, the first American League pitcher to do so, helping the Orioles to a championship in 1970, and eventually finishing with a career 268-152 record along with a brilliant 2.86 ERA and 53 shutouts before he was done in 1984.

Over that magical decade of the 1970s, he was an All-Star six times, got MVP support seven seasons, and took home four Gold Gloves.

Truly one of the All-Time greats of the game!

 

EXPANDED LEAGUE LEADERS: 1979 A.L. VICTORIES

On the blog today, we move on to the American League’s top winning pitchers for 1978 on an “expanded league leader” card, showcasing the top three players in each statistical category instead of the two top league leaders as Topps issued for a few years during the decade:

Of course, we begin with Mister “All-World” as far as pitchers go for 1978, the New York Yankees Ron Guidry, who put in an all-time year on the mound, leading Major League ball with his 25 wins.

Guidry was unstoppable that season, cruising to an incredible 25-3 record, helping the Yankees win their second straight championship while setting a new MLB record .893 winning percentage for 20+ win seasons, which still stands today.

Along with his 25 wins, “Louisiana Lightning” led the league with his nine shutouts and 1.74 earned run average, while finishing second with 248 K’s, a new Yankee record that stood until last season when Gerrit Cole topped the mark.

Of course, all of this led to Guidry taking home the league’s Cy Young Award, while finishing second in the MVP race to Jim Rice, who put in an equally superb year from the offensive side of the game.

In second place with 22 wins is a guy who happened to have his best MLB season at the wrong time, as he would have easily taken home the Cy any other year, Mike Caldwell of the Milwaukee Brewers, who went 22-9 with a brilliant 2.36 ERA and six shutouts, completing 23 of his 34 starts.

A solid starter between 1978 and 1983, the man had it all working in his first full year with the Brewers, tossing 293.1 innings and even picking up a save over his 37 appearances.

Originally somewhat of a journeyman pitcher in the National league between 1971 and 1977, he found his home in Milwaukee, playing the last eight years of his 14-year career there, even leading them to a World Series appearance in 1982 as well as a playoff in the strike-shortened 1981 campaign.

Tied for third with 21 wins apiece, Kansas City Royals pitcher Dennis Leonard and Baltimore Orioles legend Jim Palmer, who each put in solid years for their respective teams.

For Leonard, it was his second straight 20-win season for the A.L. West juggernaut Royals, posting a record of 21-17 over 40 starts, with an ERA of 3.33 over 294.2 innings of work, with 20 complete games and four shutouts.

After a 14-win season in 1979 he’d be back in the 20-win circle again in 1980, going 20-11, making it three times in four years the ace reached the elite level, as well as a 13-win season in 1981, just one off the league lead because of the strike.

For Palmer, it was “business as usual” for the Orioles Hall of Famer, posting his eighth 20-win season in nine years with a wonderful 2.46 ERA and six shutouts over 38 starts, just missing the 300-inning mark with 296, which broke his string of three such seasons between 1975 and 1977.

The man was top-three as far as pitchers are concerned for the 1970’s, in my book only behind Tom Seaver, but with Steve Carlton elbowing his way in the conversation.

A great group of hurlers here!

 

EXPANDED LEAGUE LEADERS: 1978 A.L. VICTORIES

On the blog today, we move on to the American League and their top three winning pitchers for 1977, displayed on an “expanded” 1978 league leader card:

 

This card is unique that all three pitchers shown were tied for the league lead with 20 wins, beginning with the Minnesota Twins Dave Goltz.

The Twins’ ace had a career year in 1977, posting a record of 20-11 over 39 starts, with 19 complete games and a couple of shutouts, striking out 186 over 303 innings.

Goltz had a nice run between 1974 and 1979, posting double-digit wins, with the 20 in 1977 his career-best, as were his strikeout totals and games started.

Sadly, after a 1979 season when he went 14-13, he moved on to the Los Angeles Dodgers, and suffered career-derailing injuries that pretty much ended his career by 1983, still only 34 years of age.

Tied with his 20 wins in 1977, Kansas City Royals ace Dennis Leonard, who had a very nice season for the A.L. West champs, posting the first of what would be his three 20-win seasons over his career, which was also curtailed by injuries by the mid-80s.

Leonard went 20-12 for the Royals in 1977, completing 21 of his 37 starts while tossing five shutouts over 292.2 innings of work.

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.

The third and final pitcher to tie for the league-lead with his 20 wins, all-time great Jim Palmer of the Baltimore Orioles, who posted yet another “Palmer-esque” year.

The man was indeed a win-machine, posting his seventh (of eight!) 20-win seasons in 1977, completing a league-leading 22 of his 39 starts and posting 319 innings of work, also tops in the A.L. that year.

Those numbers were good enough for a second place finish in the Cy Young race that year, getting beaten out by reliever Sparky Lyle of the New York Yankees.

If not for the Yankee reliever’s great season, Palmer would have been the first pitcher in Major League history with four Cy Young Awards instead of Philadelphia Phillies great Steve Carlton some five years later.

It was the third year in a row Palmer led the league in wins, on his way to 268 total over his 19-year career that also included 53 shutouts and a brilliant 2.86 ERA.

Well there you have it!

Onto the top National League strikeout men of 1977 next week!

1971 BASEBALL'S GREATEST MOMENTS: JIM PALMER 1966 WORLD SERIES SHUTOUT

Today’s blog post has another addition to my new thread adding to the great 1971 Topps “Baseball’s Greatest Moments” set, this time adding Baltimore Orioles Hall of Fame pitcher Jim Palmer, celebrating his 1966 World Series shutout at the age of 20:

 

The Orioles stunned the baseball world with a four-game sweep of the defending champion Los Angeles Dodgers, led by a quartet of young pitchers, including the 20-year-old Palmer.

Palmer was facing off against all-world starter Sandy Koufax, who was coming off another incredible season that saw him win 27 games while posting an incredible 1.73 ERA, good enough for an unprecedented third Cy Young Award.

Palmer was up for the challenge, as he would match zero’s with Koufax through the first four innings, until the Dodgers defense allowed Baltimore to break though.

Palmer in the meantime kept tossing zero’s, eventually winning the game 6-0, with a complete game shutout that gave the Orioles a two-games-to-none lead in the Series, straight to the aforementioned sweep and the unlikely championship.

He scattered four hits in the game, while striking out six batters, this nine days short of his 21^st birthday, becoming the youngest pitcher to win a World Series game.

Just a sign of what the young righty was to do on a Big League mound over the next 16 or so seasons, leading straight to Cooperstown and his place as a “Hall of Fame” pitcher.

EXPANDED LEAGUE LEADERS- 1977 A.L. WINS

On the blog today, we move on to the American League’s top three pitchers in terms of victories for the 1976 season, shown on an “expanded” 1977 league-leader card:

 

 

We begin with Baltimore orioles great Jim Palmer, who paced the A.L. for the second straight year in wins, this time with 22 after leading in 1975 with 23, both seasons leading him to take home the Cy Young Award.

Palmer paired those 22 wins with a 2.51 ERA over 40 starts, with 23 complete games and six shutouts, along with 159 strikeouts over a league-leading 315 innings of work.

This would give him three Cy Young Awards in four seasons, first taking home the award back in 1973 when he also finished second in the MVP race, going 22-9 with a leading 2.40 ERA over 38 games.

Right behind Palmer with 21 wins, “El Tiante” Luis Tiant, who was churning out winning season after winning season for the Boston Red Sox after being pulled from the trash heap back in 1972.

Tiant posted his fourth and final 20-win season, going 21-12 over 38 games, with a 3.06 ERA and three shutouts, his third 20-win season in four years, with just an 18-win season breaking the streak in 1975.

Incredible to think back in 1970, still only 29 years of age, it looked like his career was over after losing 20 games with the Indians in 1969, appearing in only 18 games for the Minnesota twins in 1970, then going 1-7 for Boston in 1971.

1972 saw Tiant return to his great form, leading the A.L. with a 1.91 ERA while going 15-6 over 43 appearances, tossing six shutouts while also saving three, eventually putting in 19 years and winning 229 games.

In third place with 20 wins, another Oriole starter, Wayne Garland, who had his breakthrough season in 1976, and sadly also his breakdown season, going 20-7 over 38 games, with four shutouts and a brilliant 2.67 ERA.

Those numbers got him a big contract with the Cleveland Indians the following year, only to see him falter and lose 19 against 13 wins, with an ERA a full run higher.

Arm troubles derailed his career, never even approaching double-digit wins the rest of the way, retiring in 1981, still only 30 years of age, with 55 wins, almost half the total won in 1976.

There you have the big-three winners of the A.L. for 1976, on an “expanded” league-leader card.

Next week we move on to strikeouts.

1970 "IN-GAME ACTION" JIM PALMER

On the blog today, we add Hall of Famer Jim Palmer to my 1970 "In-Game Action" thread, part of what will be a 50-card, two-part set, with Series One just released:

 

Palmer was coming off a 1969 season that saw him come back from a season and a half injury hiatus in 1967 and 1968, almost curtailing his career at only 20 years of age.

His 1969 season saw him go 16-4, leading the league with his .800 winning percentage, while completing 11 of 23 starts, with six shutouts and 123 strikeouts.

On August 13th of the 1969 season, he crowned his comeback with an 8-0 no-hitter against the up-and-coming Oakland A's at memorial Stadium, improving his record to 11-2 at that time.

From there, all the man did was top 20-wins in eight of the next nine seasons, winning three Cy Young Awards, the first American League pitcher to do so, helping the Orioles to another championship in 1970, eventually finishing with a career 268-152 record along with a brilliant 2.86 ERA and 53 shutouts before he was done in 1984.

Easily the premier pitcher in the American League for the 1970's, I always paired him up with New York Mets great Tom Seaver as my favorite hurlers from the decade for their respective leagues as a kid.

EXPANDED LEAGUE LEADERS: 1974 A.L. WINS

On the blog today to close out another week, my 1974 expanded league leader card for the American League's top three winners of 1973:

 

Leading the pack is Chicago White Sox knuckleball wizard Wilbur Wood, who had an insane run in the mid-70's.

For the 1973 season Wood led the league for the second year in a row with 24 wins, while he also led with his 48 STARTS and 359.1 innings pitched.

Yep, you read that right! The man tossed what would today be almost TWO seasons' worth of innings for today's starters in one season.

And to top it off that wasn't even close to his 1972 innings total, when he pitched an astounding 376.2 innings over 49 starts, throwing eight shutouts while going 24-17.

A converted reliever, I always thought his 1968 season for Chicago was one of the all-time great reliever seasons when he went 13-12 over 88 appearances, with a sparkling 1.87 ERA and 16 saves over 159 innings of work.

Just amazing!

Right behind Wood with 23 wins in 1973 was Detroit Tigers pitcher Joe Coleman, who set a career-high after winning 19 and 20 wins the previous two years.

Coleman, another workhorse, started 40 games for the Tigers, completing 13 and throwing two shutouts on his way to a 3.53 ERA over 288.1 innings, striking out 202 batters, the third straight year he topped 200 K's.

In 1974 he'd go 14-12 over 41 starts, throwing 285.2 innings with a 4.32 ERA, but it seems the heavy workload took its toll, as he would fall big-time in 1975, going 10-18 with a bloated 5.55 ERA over 31 starts before becoming an arm out of the bullpen for the remaining four years of his 15-year career.

In third place with 22 wins, Hall of Famer Jim Palmer, who topped 20+ wins eight years during the 1970's. Just amazing.

It was the fourth straight year Palmer reached 20 wins, going 22-9 with a league-leading 2.40 ERA over 38 appearances, all but one starts, with six shutouts and 158 strikeouts.

Those numbers got Palmer his first Cy Young Award, and a second place finish in the MVP race.

Of course we all know he'd go on to win two more Cy's, while finishing second twice more along with a third place finish thrown in.

One of the All-Time greats!

Well there you have it, the top winners in the Junior Circuit for 1973, celebrated here.

EXPANDED LEAGUE LEADERS: 1974 A.L. EARNED RUN AVERAGE

Up on the blog today, we move on to the American League and their top 1973 E.R.A. trio, featuring a couple of Hall of Famers and a nice surprise starter:

 

We begin with the Baltimore Orioles Jim Palmer, who took home the first of his two career E.R.A. crowns with a 2.40 finish for 1973.

It was also the year he took home the first of his three Cy Young Awards, finishing 22-9 with six shutouts, 19 complete games and 158 strikeouts, even picking up a save along the way.

It was the fourth of what would be an incredible eight 20-win seasons for the ace, eventually finishing with 268 wins over 19 seasons, with those three Cy Young Awards, four Gold Gloves, and five other top-5 finishes in the Cy Young race.

Right behind him with a 2.52 E.R.A. is Hall of Famer Bert Blyleven, who led the American League with nine shutouts in 1973, as he would finish with a record of 20-17, the only 20-win season of his long career, while striking out 258 batters, the third 200 of what would be eight 200-strikeout seasons in his career.

For Blyleven, he'd win 287 games, toss 60 shutouts, and strikeout 3701 batters over 22 years, but STILL had to wait a while before getting the Cooperstown nod to the Hall of Fame. Just ridiculous.

In third place with a nice 2.75 E.R.A. is Boston Red Sox starter Bill Lee, who had himself a very nice first season as a Big League Starter in 1973 when he posted a record of 17-11 over 38 appearances, 33 of them starts, tossing a shutouts while striking out 120 batters, making his only All-Star team as well.

Lee would put together three straight 17-win seasons for Boston between 1973 and 1975, completing 18, 16 and 17 games respectively before arm issues derailed his career.

Aside from 10 wins for Boston in 1978 and 16 for the Montreal Expos in 1979, Lee wouldn't reach double-digit wins again in his career over the last seven years of his career.

He'd retire with a record of 119 and 90, along with an E.R.A. of 3.62 over 416 appearances between 1969 and 1982, throwing 10 shutouts, saving 19, and striking out 713 over 1944.1 innings.

Now onto the Major League Wins leaders! See you next time!

MINOR LEAGUE DAYS- JIM PALMER

Today we add Hall of Fame Baltimore Orioles legend Jim Palmer to my 1971 “Minor League Days” thread, celebrating the man’s incredible career:

Palmer’s road to Cooperstown was a bit rocky at first, with a couple of jumps and starts because of injuries between 1964 and 1968.
As a matter of fact we’d probably be looking at a 2300-game winner if not for over a season of missed time between 1967 and 1968.
Though he had a great first professional season in 1964 as an 18-year-old, going a combined 15-5 in the O’s system, he found himself on a Major League mound in 1966, still a teen, going 5-4.
In 1966 he’d improve to a record of 15-10 for the surprising eventual World Champs, shocking everyone with a sweep of the reigning champion Los Angeles Dodgers, with Palmer contributing a complete game shutout.
But injuries derailed him until 1969 when he hit his stride, going 16-4 with a 2.34 ERA and six shutouts, completing 11 of 23 starts.
From there, all the man did was top 20-wins in eight of the next nine seasons, winning three Cy Young Awards, the first American League pitcher to do so, helping the Orioles to another championship in 1970, eventually finishing with a career 268-152 record along with a brilliant 2.86 ERA and 53 shutouts before he was done in 1984.

 

1971 SPECIAL- THE BALTIMORE ORIOLES YOUNG ARMS RACE

Up on the blog today I’m posting up a nice 1971 custom featuring three studs for the Baltimore Orioles, who all posted 20+ wins in 1970:

Jim Palmer, Mike Cuellar and Dave McNally won a combined 68 games between them, helping the Orioles post 108 wins in 1970, on their way to a World Championship over the Cincinnati reds.
Those 108 wins would end up being the high-mark for wins by a team during the decade, matched by the 1975 “Big Red Machine” Reds, who also took home the title that year.
For future Hall of Fame pitcher Palmer, it would be the first of eight 20-win seasons, with only the 1974 and 1979 seasons where he didn’t win at least 20 during the wild-70’s.
McNally and Cuellar would finish second and fourth respectively in the Cy Young race at the end of year, behind winner Jim Perry of the Minnesota Twins, with Palmer following right behind at number 5.
What a magnificent stable of young arms!
As an aside to the way the game has changed over the generations, the Orioles only used six starters all season in 1970, with one of them, Marcelino Lopez, starting only three games.
Their other five starters accounted for 159 of 162 starts that season. Incredible.

NO-HITTERS SPECIAL SUB-SET: JIM PALMER AUGUST 13TH, 1969

The next No-Hitter profiled in my new thread for the blog is Jim Palmer’s gem, which he threw against the Oakland A’s in August of 1969:

Palmer, who many may forget was thought to be “done” before the 1969 season began because of injuries over the last few years, regained his form and cruised into this match-up with a 10-2 record.
Two hours and 22 minutes later, he got his name in the baseball history books with an 8-0 win which saw him strike out eight batters while walking six, lowering his ERA to a sparkling 1.77 on his way to a 16-4 record along with a final ERA of 2.34 over 26 appearances, 23 of which were starts.
Beginning in 1970, all Palmer would end up doing is post eight 20-win seasons over the next nine years, winning three Cy Young Awards and marching his way towards the Hall of Fame after finishing up with 268 wins and an ERA of 2.86, with 53 shutouts.
Think about this one second: Palmer was actually available to any team that wanted him in 1966, yet no one decided to sign him for the $25,000 signing fee.
Is it even possible to think of him with any team other than the Baltimore Orioles?
Incredible to even imagine so.

CY YOUNG WINNERS- 1977 SUB-SET

We’re moving on to 1977 for my on-going “Awards” sub-set through the 1970’s, starting off with the 1976 Cy Young winners: Randy Jones in the National league and once again Jim Palmer in the American League:

In the N.L., Randy Jones took home the award after finishing as runner-up to Tom Seaver for the 1975 award.
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.
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.
Over in the American League, once again we have the Orioles Jim Palmer, who took home his third Cy Young Award in four seasons, leading the league in wins (22), starts (40) and innings pitched (315), while tossing six shutouts and posting an ERA of 2.51.
Palmer wasn’t done yet as we all know, posting two more 20-win seasons while going on to win 268 games in the Major Leagues, eventually heading straight for the Hall of Fame with his induction in 1990.
Arguably (without much argument from me) the American League’s best pitcher in the wild decade of the 1970’s.

CY YOUNG AWARD- 1976 SUB-SET

Today we move on to the 1976 with my “Awards” sub-set, starting off with the 1975 Cy Young winners, two stalwarts of the era, Tom Seaver and Jim Palmer:

In the National league, Seaver took home what would be his third and final Cy, though he got ripped off in 1971 in my eyes, as well as in 1981 while with the Cincinnati Reds.
Anyway, Seaver put in what was a typical Seaver season in 1975, posting a record of 22-9 with a 2.38 earned run average and 243 strikeouts along with five shutouts.
The man was a pitching machine! It was the eight of nine straight 200+ strikeouts campaigns for “Tom Terrific”, on his way to a career 3640 K’s for the future Hall of Famer.
Over in the American League, Palmer had arguably the best season of HIS Hall of Fame career when he posted a record of 23-11, a career high in wins, while also posting an earned run average of 2.09 with 10 shutouts, the only pitcher to post double-digit shutouts in the decade.
He also chipped in 193 strikeouts while completing 25 of 38 starts for the Orioles, even picking up one of his career four saves as well.
Two Hall of Fame legends in the prime of their career. What luck I got to see them, as well as guys like Nolan Ryan, Fergie jenkins, Steve Carlton and Phil Niekro take a Major League mound.
What an era.

NICKNAMES OF THE 1970'S: JIM "CAKES" PALMER

Here’s another “Nickname of the ‘70’s” card to add to the collection, a card for one of the preeminent pitchers of the era, Jim “Cakes” Palmer:

Apparently, Palmer got the nickname while still a young player, as he always ate pancakes on the day he was to pitch.
And here I thought he got that nickname as a shortened “Beefcake” for this unsettling underwear ads he did! As a kid growing up in NYC during the 1970’s, I totally remember a giant billboard in Times Square with Palmer sporting the speedos!
I used a 1973 template with the syrupy flapjacks icon since he was smack in the middle of a historic run of EIGHT 20-win seasons in nine years.
Just amazing to think he rattle off 175 wins in nine seasons between 1970 and 1978 while picking up three Cy Young Awards along with two E.R.A. titles along with 10 shutouts during the 1975 season, currently the last American League pitcher (and the last ever?) to do so.
I love seeing that 2.86 career earned run average over 19 Big League seasons!

CY YOUNG AWARD- 1974 SUB-SET

We move on to the 1974 set today in my ongoing awards sub-set, and today we begin with the 1973 Cy Young Award winners, to juggernauts of 1970’s ball, Tom Seaver and Jim Palmer:

For Seaver, it was his second Cy Young Award after posting a record of 19-10 with a league-leading 2.08 earned run average and 251 strikeouts.
Leading the way for the Mets to reach the World Series for the second time in franchise history, Seaver anchored a staff that also had Jerry Koosman, Jon Matlack and a surprising George Stone, though they’d fall to the budding dynasty Oakland A’s in the series in seven games.
In the American League, it was another future Hall of Famer Jim Palmer, who was taking home the first of what would be (like Seaver) three Cy Young Awards during his incredible career that saw him post EIGHT 20-win seasons in nine years!
For the 1973 season, Palmer won 22 games against only nine losses,  with a league-leading 2.40 E.R.A., along with six shutouts and 158 strikeouts.
He would go on to win the award two more times in the next three years, solidifying his stature in Major League history as one of the greats of the game.
Two all-time greats representing the 1970’s in full force: six Cy Young Awards between them, with 579 wins and almost 6,000 strikeouts between them!

1975 "IN-ACTION" JIM PALMER

The next player featured in my on-going 1975 “In-Action” sub-set is the one and only Jim Palmer, 3-time Cy Young winner and ace of the Baltimore Orioles pitching staff for almost 20-years:

Though coming off of an uncharacteristically season in 1974 that saw him go 7-12 in only 26 games, he still posted an E.R.A. Of 3.27 with a couple of shutouts.
But of course that wasn’t the Jim Palmer we were used to, because for four years before AND after that season, he’s post 20-wins each and every time, as well as E.R.A.’s under 3.00 while racking up shutouts, innings and awards, including the aforementioned Cy Youngs, four Gold Gloves, six all-star game nods and an 8-3 postseason record with three championships.
Palmer will always be considered one of the era’s great pitchers, along with guys like Tom Seaver and Steve Carlton, the other 3-time (four for Carlton) Cy Young winners of that time period.
Just an amazing career.