WTHBALLS CUSTOM SET SPOTLIGHT: 1960S STARS OF THE GAME: ROBERTO CLEMENTE

Good day all!

On the blog today, we spotlight my 1960 "Stars of the Game" card for the great Roberto Clemente, from my 2019 custom set in WTHBALLS gelatin packaging:

I instantly knew the direction of how this set would be released, and I hope you all found it just as interesting, with deluxe packaging and special inserts! Too much fun putting this one together!

Anyway, as for the man himself, Clemente's career is the stuff of legend: His fiery play on the field, his good deeds, and his absolute adoration by teammates and fans alike.

On the field Clemente's numbers were incredible: four batting titles, five seasons batting over .340, four 200 hit seasons, 12 all-star nods, 12 Gold Gloves and a Most Valuable Player Award in 1966.

And a prime example of Clemente's importance to the game was his immediate induction into Cooperstown by special committee in 1973, waiving the standard five-year wait before a player joins the Hall ballot, as well as the establishment of the "Roberto Clemente Award", given every year to the player that exemplified "outstanding baseball playing skills who is personally involved in community work."

The man was truly something else, and I'm not even thinking of his baseball prowess.

Just special and truly one of a kind!

NOT REALLY MISSING IN ACTION: 1972 FRANK BROSSEAU

On the blog today, we have my 1972 "not so missing" card for pitcher Frank Brosseau of the Pittsburgh Pirates, who appeared in a single game during the 1971 championship season:

Brosseau appeared in one game that year, pitching two innings of relief and not allowing a run on one hit, with no walks or strikeouts.

It was his first taste of the Big Leagues since his debut in 1969 when he appeared in two games for the Pirates, tossing an inning and two-thirds and giving up two runs on two hits for a bloated 10.80 ERA.

Those three games made up the entirety of his Major League career as well as professional career, as there is not a record of him appearing in a Minor League game after the 1971 season.

So for his MLB career: three games, no record and a 4.91 ERA over 3.2 innings, with two strikeouts and two walks.

 

"CLASSIC BASEBALL" CUSTOM WTHBALLS SET: RALPH KINER

The next player to get a card in my long-running "Classic Baseball" custom WTHBALLS set is slugger and Hall of Famer Ralph Kiner:

Imagine averaging 97 runs, 37 homers and 101 runs batted in over your ENTIRE career?! Just awesome.

Kiner broke in with the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1946 and promptly led the National League in homers with 23, then proceeded to lead his league in that same department for the next six years, with FIVE of those seasons with 40 or more, all consecutively.

In 1947 he smashed 51 homers, then topped himself two years later when he outright demolished the ball, hitting 54 home runs while setting his personal best in slugging with a .658 mark

In his 10 short years as a Major League player he led the league 17 times in a positive offensive category.

All told, he finished with 369 homers, 1015 RBIs, 971 runs scored and a .279 average over 10 seasons, playing in only 1472 games with 5205 at-bats.

Injuries curtailed what could have been a monster career, but he produced plenty enough for the BBWA to induct him in 1975, cementing his place in baseball history, and he was already entrenched as the long-time New York Mets TV announcer, where he even copped an Emmy Award and kept us all in stitches with malapropisms for over 50 years.

 

1981 DRAKES BIG PITCHERS: BERT BLYLEVEN

Good day all!

On the blog today we move along with my recent 1981 "Drakes Big Pitchers" custom set release and spotlight my card for Hall of Fame pitcher Bert Blyleven:

Born in Zeist, Holland (now the Netherlands), Blyleven started his 22-year career in 1970 with the Twins and quickly established himself among the best pitchers in baseball.
During his great MLB run, he posted 17 seasons of 10+ victories, with a high of 20 in 1973, along with eight 200+ strikeout campaigns and nine with a 2.99 ERA or lower.
By the time the prankster retired after the 1992 season, he finished with 287 wins, a 3.31 ERA, 60 career shutouts and 3701 strikeouts over 692 games and 4970 innings pitched.
After having to wait 14 years, the BBWA finally voted him into the Hall of Fame in 2011, finally claiming a spot which he rightfully deserved.

Great baseball lifer on the field and in the broadcast booth!

 

"CLASSIC BASEBALL" CUSTOM WTHBALLS SET: DAVE PARKER

The next baseball star to get a card in my ongoing "Classic Baseball" custom set is "Cobra", Dave Parker, one of my favorite players growing up and now rightfully a member of the Hall of Fame:

An all-around super-star, Parker hit for average, for power, had a cannon for an arm, and would even steal some bases if needed.

By the time he retired after the 1991 season, a nice 19-year career, he posted over 2700 hits, 1200 runs scored, 500 doubles, almost 1500 runs batted in, 339 home runs and over 150 stolen bases!

He was a seven-time all-star who also finished in the top-10 in M.V.P. voting six times, with three Gold Gloves thrown in for good measure.

The fact that Dave Parker never garnered more than 24.5% of the BBWA Hall of Fame vote (1998) before becoming ineligible in 2011 is just criminal in my eyes.

This man should have been in the Hall of Fame YEARS ago. Plain and simple! "Analytics" be damned!

Rest in Peace Dave Parker, a heck of a ballplayer.

 

1963 FLEER EXTENSION MISSING IN ACTION: WILLIE STARGELL

Good day everyone!

On the blog today, a fun one requested by my buddy Ron, a 1963 Fleer Willie Stargell "rookie", if the Fleer company was allowed to continue making cards for the inaugural set:

For Stargell, over 21 seasons, he would lead the Pittsburgh Pirates to two world championships, take home an MVP Award in 1979 (shared with the Cardinals Keith Hernandez), and get named to seven All-Star teams.

"Pops" would also have a great three-year run between 1971 and 1973 that saw him finish second, third and second respectively in MVP voting, winning two home run titles, an RBI title and even lead the league with 43 doubles (1973).

Luckily, I got to see him towards the end of his career in the late-70's/early-80s before he retired after the 1982 season.

His final numbers? Hall of Fame worthy as he'd finish with 475 home runs, 1540 RBIs, a surprisingly high .282 batting average and 2232 hits over 2360 games and 7927 at-bats.

Think about those numbers in UNDER 8000 at-bats!

Of course when eligible for the Hall of Fame, he was in, with 82.4% of the vote in 1988.

So sad that he would pass away at only 61 years of age in 2001.

 

WTHBALLS CUSTOM SET SPOTLIGHT: 1960S STARS OF THE GAME: DICK GROAT

Up on the blog today, we put the spotlight on another card from my 1960 "Stars of the Game" custom set released back in 2018, this time it's former N.L. MVP Dick Groat of the Pittsburgh Pirates:

The All-Star shortstop had quite the year in 1960, taking home the N.L. batting title when he hit .325, collecting 186 hits while scoring 85 runs for the surprising World Champion Pirates.

Three years later, now playing for the St. Louis Cardinals, Groat would finish second for the MVP when he hit .319 while collecting a career-best 201 hits, leading the league with 43 doubles while also setting a new personal best of 11 triples and 73 RBIs.

A two-sport star, Groat was an All-American in both Baseball and Basketball at Duke University, and even made the NBA with the Fort Wayne Pistons in 1952-53.

He was such an accomplished athlete that he was eventually inducted to BOTH the College Baseball and Basketball Halls of Fame.

Once he chose baseball as his focus, he did not disappoint fans, as he would go on to put 14 years in the Big Leagues, finishing up with a split 1967 season with the Philadelphia Phillies and San Francisco Giants.

His final numbers very impressive for the era: 2138 hits and a .286 batting average, with 829 runs scored and 707 runs batted in, with eight All-Star nods and an MVP.

If not for two lost years serving in the military in 1953 and 1954, he certainly could have approached 2500 career hits.

 

MISSING IN ACTION: 1987 U.L. WASHINGTON

For fun today, thought it'd be cool to have a 1987 "MISSING IN ACTION" card for U.L. Washington, who finished up his Major League career with two years as a Pittsburgh Pirate:

The toothpick sporting infielder spent most of his 11-year career as a member of the Kansas City Royals, from 1977 through 1984, before putting in a season with the Montreal Expos in 1985, then the aforementioned two years with the Pirates in 1986 and 1987.

Though generally a shortstop, he'd fill in at second and third throughout his career, with 1980 arguably his best season when he collected 150 hits with a .273 batting average over 153 games and 549 at-bats for the American League Champ Royals.

In 1983 he'd swipe a career-best 40 bases for the Royals, while in the year prior he set personal bests with 10 homers and 60 RBIs.

By the time he hung them up after the 1987 season, he finished with a .251 batting average, with 703 hits over 2797 at-bats in 907 games, with 132 stolen bases and 358 runs scored.

WTHBALLS CUSTOM SET SPOTLIGHT: 1960S STARS OF THE GAME: VERN LAW

Up on the blog today, we feature another card from my 2018 custom "1960 Stars of the Game" set, packaged in WTHBALLS gelatin box with packet, postcards and stickers, this one Vern Law, Cy Young winner for the Pittsburgh Pirates:

Although Vern Law was already beginning his ninth season as a big-league pitcher when 1960 broke, it was only in the past two seasons that he established himself as a solid starter, winning 14 and 18 games respectively in 1958 & 1959.

He'd carry that success right into the 1960 season, ending up as the anchor of the Pirate staff, going 20-9 with a 3.08 E.R.A., along with a league-leading 18 complete games and 120 strikeouts with three shutouts in 35 starts.Overall he pitched between 1950 and 1967, missing the 1952 and 1953 years to military service, and would end up with a very nice record of 162 and 147 with a 3.77 ERA over 483 appearances and 2672.2 innings pitched.

He also tossed 28 shutouts while picking up 13 saves during that time, striking out 1092 batters while walking 597.

In 1965 at the age of 35 he had himself a better season that his Cy Young year of 1960, when he'd go 17-9 with a great 2.15 ERA and five shutouts, getting some MVP attention in the process.

Not too shabby for the career Pirate!

 

BY SPECIAL REQUEST: "GIMMIE A DO-OVER" 1978 TERRY FORSTER

A special request has come in to the blog to re-do Terry Forster's 1978 card, which originally had him airbrushed into a Los Angeles Dodgers uni after signing with them as a Free Agent in November of 1977.

Here, I have created a 1978 card showing him as a Pittsburgh Pirate, for whom he suited up in 1977 in his lone season there:

Forster was already a proven Big League reliever after six seasons with the Chicago White Sox, even leading the league with 24 save in 1974.

In December 1976 he was traded to the Pirates along with Rich Gossage (ouch!), for Richie Zisk and Silvio Martinez.

Forster did well as a set-up man, appearing in 33 games, with six of those games starts, collecting one save and going 6-4 with a 4.43 ERA in 87.1 innings.

He would go on to play five years with the Dodgers, helping them to two World Series, winning it all in 1981, before moving on to the Atlanta Braves between 1983 and 1985, then one final year in 1986 as a member of the California Angels.

All told, he appeared in 614 games between 1971 and 1986, picking up 127 saves to go along with a record of 54-65, with a nnice 3.23 ERA over 1105.2 innings.

Not too shabby!

 

REVISITING A 10-YEAR-OLD POST: 1976 CAPPER FOR SAM McDOWELL

On the blog today we revisit another 10-year-old post, this my 1976 "Career-Capper" for "Sudden Sam" McDowell, who finished up a nice Major League Career in 1975 as a member of the Pittsburgh Pirates:

McDowell really should have had a card in the 1975 set, that is a no-brainer. But a 1976 edition would be more of a "Career Capper", closing out a brilliant, if not tumultuous, 15-year career that saw him  lead the American League in strikeouts five times, while also pacing the league in walks issued in equal amounts.

He'd finish with 141 career wins along with a 3.17 earned run average and 2453 strikeouts, with two 300+ seasons under his belt.

In 1970 he posted his only 20-win season, and in 1965 he led the A.L. with a 2.18 ERA, but it was those strikeouts, as in 325 in 1965, 304 in 1970, 283 in 1968 and 279 in 1969 that made him stand out of the pitching crowd.

A six-time all-star, his career was sadly derailed when he hit 30 years  of age, pitching for the Giants, Yankees and Pirates, never topping more than six wins in any season.
Who knows "what could have been" had he been able to stay healthy...

 

1960s "IN-ACTION": 1965 WILLIE STARGELL

Up on the blog today, we have my 1965 "In-Action" card for Pittsburgh Pirates legend Willie Stargell, from my recent "Series 3" set released a few months ago:

Over 21 seasons, Stargell would lead the Pittsburgh Pirates to two world championships, take home an MVP Award in 1979 (shared with the Cardinals Keith Hernandez), and get named to seven All-Star teams.

He would also have a great three-year run between 1971 and 1973 that saw him finish second, third and second respectively in MVP voting, winning two home run titles, an RBI title and even lead the league with 43 doubles (1973).

Luckily, I got to see him towards the end of his career in the late-70's/early-80s before he retired after the 1982 season.

His final numbers? Hall of Fame worthy as he'd finish with 475 home runs, 1540 RBIs, a surprisingly high .282 batting average and 2232 hits over 2360 games and 7927 at-bats.

Think about those numbers in UNDER 8000 at-bats!

Of course when eligible for the Hall of Fame, he was in, with 82.4% of the vote in 1988.

So sad that he would pass away at only 61 years of age in 2001.

One of baseball's beloved players, especially among his fan-base, he left such a lasting legacy that resonates to this day.

 

1983 CAREER-CAPPER: WILLIE STARGELL

Super-fun card for me to create today: a 1983 "career-capper" for "Pops" Willie Stargell, as I start creating more cards for the 1980's, the decade I was collecting like a lunatic as I navigated my teen years:

The 1983 set is my absolute favorite set of the decade, with it's beautiful design with eye-popping colors.

So it would have been great to have a final Stargell card in that edition.

Over 21 seasons, Stargell would lead the Pittsburgh Pirates to two world championships, take home an MVP Award in 1979 (shared with the Cardinals Keith Hernandez), and get named to seven All-Star teams.

He would also have a great three-year run between 1971 and 1973 that saw him finish second, third and second respectively in MVP voting, winning two home run titles, an RBI title and even lead the league with 43 doubles (1973).

Luckily, I got to see him towards the end of his career in the late-70's/early-80s before he retired after the 1982 season.

His final numbers? Hall of Fame worthy as he'd finish with 475 home runs, 1540 RBIs, a surprisingly high .282 batting average and 2232 hits over 2360 games and 7927 at-bats.

Think about those numbers in UNDER 8000 at-bats!

Of course when eligible for the Hall of Fame, he was in, with 82.4% of the vote in 1988.

So sad that he would pass away at only 61 years of age in 2001.

One of baseball's beloved players, especially among his fan-base, he left such a lasting legacy that resonates to this day.

 

REVISITING MY "MISSING" 1971 JOE GIBBON CARD

Let's delve back about 10 years here on the blog and revisit my "missing" 1971 card for former pitcher Joe Gibbon of the Pittsburgh Pirates:

In 1970 Gibbon actually got into 41 games for the Pirates, good for 41 innings of work as an arm out of the 'pen.

He posted an 0-1 record with a 4.83 earned run average and five saves with 26 strikeouts.

Seems like enough action to warrant a card, no?

Funny enough by the time the 1971 season opened he was a member of the Cincinnati Reds, before closing out his 13-year career with the Astros by the end of the 1972 season.

His finest season would arguably be his second, back in 1961 when he posted a 13-10 record with a 3.32 E.R.A., three shutouts and 145 strikeouts over 195.1 innings of work in 29 starts.

Generally however, the bulk of his career was out of the bullpen, and by the time he retired he had a record of 61-65, with a 3.52 E.R.A., four shutouts, 32 saves and 743 strikeouts over 419 games, 127 of which were starts.

 

DEDICATED ROOKIE: 1969 AL OLIVER

Super psyched to post today's card creation, a 1969 "Dedicated Rookie" of "Scoop" Al Oliver, which I definitely hope to have printed up sometime soon:

Now, what do you call a guy who was a seven-time all-star, Silver Slugger winner at three different positions, collector of over 2700 hits, 200 home runs, .300 career average, 1300 runs batted in, and 500 doubles?

I call that a Hall of Famer, especially when you consider that the first nine years or so of his career were the "dead" 1970's.

Yes I know an argument can be made here for Oliver's Hall-worthiness.

But I have always felt that he fell into that Vada Pinson, Dave Parker, Steve Garvey crowd that should have gotten, at the very LEAST, more of a shot at Cooperstown.

I mean, when he was finally eligible for Hall voting, he only got 4.3% and was dropped just like that! THAT is just insane.

He won three consecutive Silver Slugger Awards in 1980-1982, as an outfielder, a designated hitter and a first baseman and he batted .300 or better eleven times in his 18-year career!

He finished in the top-10 in batting eight times during his career, in the top-10 in hits eight times in his career, top-10 in doubles nine times in his career, top-10 in total bases five times, runs scored four times, runs batted in four times, triples three times, extra base hits five times and slugging percentage twice.

Is THAT enough of a statement? His consistency was amazing.

And to top it off, he should have been the National League Rookie of the Year in 1969 but got ripped off, with the award going to Los Angeles Dodger Ted Sizemore.

Al Oliver is grossly overlooked as far as players of that era in my book.

A SET THAT NEVER WAS: 1971 ALL-STAR TICKET SET: DOCK ELLIS

On the blog today, we come to my "card that never was" for 1971 N.L. All-Star Game starter Dock Ellis, from my custom ticket set that was never released, but know looks like will see the light of day some time in 2025:

Ellis was on his way to his best year as a Big League pitcher in 1971, and with that was given the honor of starting what turned out to be one of the historic All-Star game in baseball history, featuring somewhat of a transition of the "old" classic baseball of the 1950's and 1960's with stars like Willie Mays, Hank Aaron and Roberto Clemente, while also showcasing young up and coming superstars of the new age like Johnny Bench, Reggie Jackson and Rod Carew.

By the time 1971 ended Ellis finished with a very nice 19-9 record for the eventual World Champions, sporting an earned run average of 3.06 over 31 starts, with 11 complete games and two shutouts, tossing a career-best 226.2 innings.

Those numbers would get him a fourth place finish in the Cy Young Award race in November, with Chicago Cubs great Fergie Jenkins winning it based on his league-leading 24 wins.

Of course, we would be terribly negligent here without also mentioning that Ellis was the pitcher who served up the classic bomb hit by Reggie Jackson in the All-Star game that almost cleared the ballpark, a moment that marked somewhat of the arrival of the man who would go on to be nicknamed "Mr. October" and become a household name across the country by decade's end.

Nevertheless, Ellis would go on to pitch 12 years in the Majors, finishing up after the 1979 season, posting a final record of 138-119 over 345 games, 317 of them as a starter, tossing 14 shutouts and striking out 1136.

 

CAREER-CAPPER: 1985 AMOS OTIS

On the blog today, we have a 1985 "Career-Capper" for one of my favorite underrated players of the 1970s, Amos Otis:

Otis wrapped up a very nice 17-year Big League career with 40 games as a Pittsburgh Pirate in 1984, the only season he suited up for the team after 14 years with the Royals, preceded by two years as a New York Met.

Otis could very well be THE most overlooked player of the 1970's as he was nothing but steady through the entire decade, going on to be the American League's top run scorer with 861. driving in 90+ three times while stealing 30+ bases five times.

By the time he retired after the 1984 season after one year with the Pittsburgh Pirates, he ended up with 193 homers, 341 stolen bases, 1092 runs scored and 2020 hits along with a batting average of .277 and 1007 runs batted in.
Considering the “dead ball” era of the early-70’s in the American League, his numbers are up there with the best of them, and it’s sad he gets lost among his contemporaries when looking back at that time in Major League baseball.

 

A SET THAT NEVER WAS: 1971 ALL-STAR TICKET SET: WILLIE STARGELL

The next "card that never was" from my 1971 All-Star ticket unreleased set, Pittsburgh Pirates Hall of Famer Willie Stargell, starting outfielder in that historic and memorable Midsummer Classic:

Stargell was at the height of his brilliant Big League career when this card would have seen the light of day.

Over 21 seasons, Stargell would lead the Pittsburgh Pirates to two world championships, take home an MVP Award in 1979 (shared with the Cardinals Keith Hernandez), and get named to seven All-Star teams.

He would also have a great three-year run between 1971 and 1973 that saw him finish second, third and second respectively in MVP voting, winning two home run titles, an RBI title and even lead the league with 43 doubles (1973).

Luckily, I got to see him towards the end of his career in the late-70's/early-80s before he retired after the 1982 season.

His final numbers? Hall of Fame worthy as he'd finish with 475 home runs, 1540 RBIs, a surprisingly high .282 batting average and 2232 hits over 2360 games and 7927 at-bats.

Think about those numbers in UNDER 8000 at-bats!

Of course when eligible for the Hall of Fame, he was in, with 82.4% of the vote in 1988.

So sad that he would pass away at only 61 years of age in 2001.

One of baseball's beloved players, especially among his fan-base, he left such a lasting legacy that resonates to this day.

OPC IMAGE VARIATIONS: 1977 DOC MEDICH

On the blog today, the next cards spotlighted in the fun OPC/Topps image variation thread are the 1977 cards for former pitcher Doc Medich:

OPC Version

Topps Version

Funny OPC edition, as they tried getting him "suited up" with his upcoming team for the 1977 season.

After a solid full season with the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1976, Medich found himself sent off to the Oakland A's along with five others (including Tony Armas) in a massive trade that fetched the Pirates Chris Bratton, Phil Garner and Tommy Helms.

Incredibly one-sided for the A's when you also account for Rick Langford, Doug Bair and Mitchell Page as part of the deal heading West!

Medich opened the 1977 season with Oakland, pitching well by going 10-6 for them over 26 appearances, all but one of those starts.

He was then sent to the Seattle Mariners where he appeared in only three games before finding himself out East with the Mets, where he appeared in one single game, throwing seven innings, closing out an active if not eventful year.

A solid starter over his 11 year career, he came up with the New York Yankees, winning as many as 19 games in 1974 before getting traded to the Pittsburgh Pirates in the Willie Randolph deal, then the three 1977 clubs mentioned above, then the Texas Rangers where he pitched between 1978 and 1982, finally closing out his career with 10 starts at the end of '82 with the Milwaukee Brewers.

By the time he hung them up, he finished with a record of 124-105 over 312 appearances, with a 3.78 ERA and 16 shutouts in 1996.2 innings, with 955 strikeouts against 624 walks.

DEDICATED ROOKIES: 1962 BOB VEALE

Branching out into the 1960s with my "Dedicated Rookies" theme, this time a 1962 card for flame-thrower Bob Veale of the Pittsburgh Pirates:

Veale would make his MLB debut that season at the age of 26, appearing in elevel games for the Pirates, going 2-2 with a 3.74 earned run average over 45.2 innings.

After a Sophomore season that saw him go 5-1 with a brilliant 1.04 ERA over 34 games in 1963, generally in relief, the lefty put in his first full year in 1964 and had a great year, going 18-12 over 39 games, all but two of them starts, posting an ERA of 2.74 in 279.2 innings with a league-leading 250 strikeouts, the first of what would be four seasons topping 200 K's.

He'd retire after the 1974 season with a tidy 120-95 record, with a 3.07 earned run average and 1703 K's with 20 shutouts.

Between 1964 and 1970 Veale was a very solid Major League starter, averaging 15 wins and 213 strikeouts over those seven years, easily keeping pace with contemporaries like Don Drysdale, Jim Bunning and Jim Maloney.