"CLASSIC BASEBALL" CUSTOM WTHBALLS SET: LUIS TIANT

The next player added to my future custom card set, "Classic Baseball" is "El Tiante" Luis Tiant, one of the great pitchers of his era and one of the great personalities in the history of the game, showing him early in his Hall of Fame worthy career as a member of the Cleveland Indians:

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.

1968 was especially a year to remember for the righty ace, 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!

But as we all know, sadly for him this came the same season as some guy from Detroit named Denny McLain put together a 30-win season for a World Championship Tigers team.

Talk about your tough luck!

As a kid in Brooklyn, New York in the late 70's I remember him with the Yankees, and always thought he looked like some cool grampa who was always cracking jokes. In other words, I loved him!

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.

GIMMIE A DO-OVER: 1970 LUIS TIANT

About time I go and give "El Tiante", Luis Tiant a do-over with his 1970 card, from a boring close up cap-less portrait shot to a better posed image in full uni:

For those that don't remember the original card Topps had out there way back when, here you go:

Obviously, Topps was up against it, trying to have Tiant shown with his new team, the Minnesota twins, as his career was taking a severe turn for the worse just two years after his incredible 1968 campaign that saw him post a minuscule 1.60 earned run average while tossing nine shutouts, with 21 wins and 264 strikeouts for the Cleveland Indians.

With my card, I just showed him with the Indians one last time, as he was coming off a 1969 season that saw him lead the league with 20 losses, 129 base on balls and 37 home runs allowed, while pitching to a 3.71 ERA over 249.2 innings of work.

Incredibly, with his career seemingly done in 1970/71, Tiant found himself in Boston in 1972 and immediately was back in form, leading the American League in earned run average with a sterling 1.91 in 1972 along with six shutouts in only 19 starts.

In three of the next four seasons he'd top 20 wins, and was on his way to a solid, if not arguably Hall-worthy 19-year career, retiring after the 1982 season after pitching in six games with the California Angels.

By that time he fashioned 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.

As a kid in Brooklyn, New York in the late 70's I remember him with the Yankees, and always thought he looked like some cool granpa who was always cracking jokes. In other words, I loved him!

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.

But it's easy to say that "El Tiante" definitely left his mark on the game during his time on the mound!

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.

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.

EXPANDED LEAGUE LEADERS- 1975 A.L. VICTORIES

On the blog today, we move on to the American League and their top winning pitchers for 1974, on a 1975 “expanded league leader” card:

 

 

The top spot with 25 victories was shared by two future Hall of Famers, Jim “Catfish” Hunter and Fergie Jenkins, who both had monster seasons and finished first and second respectively in the Cy Young race by season’s end.

For Hunter, he finally brought home the Cy Young Award after going 25-12 for the Oakland A’s, helping them win their third straight World Championship, defeating the Los Angeles Dodgers.

He also led the league with a 2.49 earned run average, starting 41 games and completing 23, with six shutouts and 143 strikeouts in 318.1 innings of work, edging out Jenkins 90 points to 75 for pitching’s greatest award.

For Jenkins, he just missed out on becoming the first pitcher to take home the award in both leagues, as he would go 25-12 with a 2.82 ERA over 41 starts, completing 29 while tossing six shutouts himself, striking out 225 batters for the surprising Texas Rangers.

It was the last of his seven 20-win seasons in the Majors, as he would go on to finish with 284 wins over his stellar 19-year Big League career.

In third place with 22 wins apiece are four solid starters from the decade, including one Hall of Famer: Nolan Ryan, Mike Cuellar, Steve Busby and Luis Tiant.

All four of these guys put in Cy worthy years for their respective teams, with Ryan leading the league with 367 strikeouts, Cuellar leading the league with his .688 winning percentage, Tiant leading the league with his seven shutouts and Busby tossing the second no-hitter of his young career, becoming the first pitcher to ever toss two no-no’s in his first two full seasons in the Majors.

Well there you have it! SIX top-notch pitchers of the era represented on a fun card to create for the blog!

 

EXPANDED YEARLY LEADER CARDS: 1973 A.L. EARNED RUN AVERAGE

On the blog today we move on to the American League Earned Run Average leaders for 1972, featuring three big time pitchers, two Hall of Famers and someone who arguably should be in:

 

Starting off, we begin with a pitcher who made quite a comeback, resurrecting his Big League career in 1972, Luis Taint, who led the league with a brilliant 1.91 ERA in his first full season with the Boston Red Sox.

After going 21-9 with a league leading 1.60 ERA in 1968 while with the Cleveland Indians, Taint's career took a nosedive, losing 20 games in 1969, appearing in only 18 games in 1970 with the Minnesota Twins, then going 1-7 with a 4.83 ERA in Boston.

However, in 1972 he was back on top, going 15-6, tossing six shutouts and saving three over 43 appearances, 19 of which were starts.

He'd go on to win 20+ games in three of his next four seasons, eventually retiring after the 1982 season with 229 wins, 49 shutouts and a 3.30 ERA.

Just behind him in the ERA chase was Hall of Fame pitcher Gaylord Perry, who had his first Cy Young season in 1972, coming over to the Cleveland Indians after the big trade for Sam McDowell, and Perry would not disappoint, going 24-16 over 41 games, throwing a monster 342.2 innings and sporting a 1.92 ERA,with five shutouts and 234 strikeouts.

Six years later, when many thought he was "done", he'd win his second Cy Young, now with the San Diego Padres, becoming the first pitcher to win the award in both leagues, going 21-6 with a 2.73 ERA over 37 starts at the age of 39. Not too shabby!

Third in the league with a 2.09 ERA in 1972 was another Hall of Famer, former Oakland A's ace Jim "Catfish" Hunter, who had himself a very nice season helping the A's to the first of what would be three straight World Championships, going 21-7 with 191 strikeouts and five shutouts over 38 appearances, all but one as a starter.

It was his second of five straight 20-win seasons, as he'd finish up with 224 wins after arm troubles set in, tossing 42 shutouts and posting a career 3.26 ERA over 15 seasons, though still only 33 when he hung up the spikes.

Well there you have it, three studs who finished 1 through 3 in the league ERA category!

MINOR LEAGUE DAYS- LUIS TIANT

This week's addition to my now long-running 1971 "Minor League Days" thread is the great Luis Tiant, arguably a Hall of Famer who was putting in one last great season in the Minors in 1964 with the Portland Beavers:

Tiant would end up with a record of 15-1 that year with the Beavers, along with a sweet 2.04 earned run average over 17 appearances and 137 innings pitched, with 154 strikeouts and 13 complete games.

On TOP of all that, he also made his Major League debut that season with the Cleveland Indians, going 10-4 with a 2.91 ERA and three shutouts in only 19 appearances, completing nine of his starts as a 23-year-old.

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.

As a kid in Brooklyn, New York in the late 70's I remember him with the Yankees, and always thought he looked like some cool grampa who was always cracking jokes. In other words, I loved him!

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.

"El Tiante"!!!

 

1960'S SEASONAL LEADERS- EARNED RUN AVERAGE

The next “Decade Leader” card for the 1960’s is Earned Run Average, sporting a couple of all-time low E.R.A.’s no matter what the decade:

Of course for the National League we have St Louis Cardinals great Bob Gibson, who posted one of the lowest E.R.A.’s in history at 1.13.
He achieved this with help from no one else but himself, as he posted 13 shutouts accounting for all but nine of his 22 wins, yet the guy STILL lost nine games that season!
He completed 28 of 34 starts, almost threw nothing but zeros in HALF of them, yet still came up with nine losses. Incredible!
Of course he would take home the Cy Young Award AND MVP for the N.L. For his troubles, along with his fourth Gold Glove and fifth all-star nod, on his way into the hallowed doors of Cooperstown.
Over in the American League, the decade’s lowest ERA was posted by “El Tiante” Luis Tiant, who was sadly overshadowed in the “Year of the Pitcher”, but would have EASILY taken home a Cy Young had he posted the numbers he did any other season.
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!
Forget Cy Young Award, those are MVP numbers!
However, there was a guy named Denny McLain winning 31 games for the eventual World Champion Detroit Tigers, so Tiant went home empty-handed.
He would actually go on to struggle over the next three seasons until making an awesome comeback with the Boston Red Sox in 1972, once again leading the A.L. In E.R.A. With a sub-2.00 figure, this time at 1.91.
He’d be in the Majors to stay after that, pitching through to 1982 and finishing with 229 wins along with 49 shutouts, a 3.30 E.R.A. and 2416 strikeouts over his 19-year career.

ANOTHER GEM!- 1975 TOPPS LUIS TIANT

Here's another one of those cards that stuck with me all these years for it's "awesomeness", the 1975 Topps Luis Tiant card.

Man, just perfect!

You can almost see the swagger on "El Tiante's" face as he was enjoying a rebirth in his career, posting three 20-win seasons in four years (with 18 wins during the lone miss) while pitching for the Red Sox in the mid-70's.

Man, the colors, the image, it's all there!

We've talked about it somewhat over the past few months how those slightly out-of-focus images back then have more of a mystique about them than today's uber-crisp, high resolution digital shots.

I can't really say what it is about it, perhaps just something as simple as childhood memories, but they just carry so much more weight for me.

Great card of one of the funnier characters of the game during the wild 70's!

If not for a bit of a derailment with his career between 1969 and 1971, we'd be talking about a Hall of Fame member.

Nevertheless, 229 wins, 2416 K's, a 3.30 ERA and 49 shutouts is certainly nothing to gloss over…

Love this card!

NICKNAMES OF THE '70'S #21: "EL TIANTE" LUIS TIANT

Here's a nickname card for one of those characters of the day, Luis Tiant, aka "El Tiante".

Take a look at my card design:

I decided on a 1975 template for him since he was in the middle of a resurgence at the time, and was on his way to a World Series with the Red Sox.

With his career seemingly done in 1970/71, Tiant found himself in Boston and immediately was back in form, leading the American League in earned run average with a sterling 1.91 in 1972 along with six shutouts in only 19 starts.

In three of the next four seasons he'd top 20 wins, and was on his way to a solid, if not arguably Hall-worthy 19-year career, retiring after the 1982 season after pitching in six games with the California Angels.

By that time he fashioned 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.

As a kid in Brooklyn, New York in the late 70's I remember him with the Yankees, and always thought he looked like some cool granpa who was always cracking jokes. In other words, I loved him!

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.

But it's easy to say that "El Tiante" definitely left his mark on the game during his time on the mound!

MISSING IN ACTION- 1972 LUIS TIANT

You think with Topps upping their 1972 set to a monstrous 787 cards, they'd have found a spot for "El Tiante" somewhere in there.
Granted, 1971 was NOT a banner year for the popular Cuban pitcher, but he did appear in 21 games for a total of 72 innings in his first season with the Red Sox. So leaving him out altogether is a bit odd, especially when you remember how many sub-sets and "filler" cards the '72 set had!
As it turned out, 1972 would end up being a great comeback year and one of his better seasons, going 15-6 with a sterling 1.91 E.R.A., which lead the American League.
Throw in 6 shutouts in 19 starts and you have a season worthy of a baseball card. No?
So here we have a card that was definitely "missing in action", a 1972 Luis Tiant Topps card I designed recently.
Side note: I scoured the web for a good image of him from around 1972, and to be quite honest I'm not sure this one fits the bill. Anyone out there know for sure please let me know. It wasn't the easiest search to be honest...

Tiant finished 6th in Cy Young and 8th in MVP in 1972.