NOT REALLY MISSING IN ACTION- 1975 RAY KNIGHT

On the blog today we have a 1975 "not so missing" card for former third baseman Ray Knight, who made his MLB debut in 1974 with the Cincinnati Reds:

 

Knight came up as a September call-up at the age of 21, appearing in 14 games and hitting .182 over that time, collecting two hits in 11 at-bats.

He'd spend the next two years in the Minors, but in 1977 he made it all the way back, appearing in 80 games and hitting .261 with 24 hits and 92 at-bats.

The 1978 season was more of the same for him, playing in 83 games and hitting an even .200, before putting in an excellent 1979 campaign when he'd end up fifth in the National League MVP race, hitting .318 with 175 hits, 37 doubles and 79 RBIs.

He would make his first All-Star team in 1980, eventually ending up with a .264 average over 162 games, collecting 163 hits with a career-best 39 doubles in 618 at-bats.

After one more season in Cincinnati, he moved on to the Houston Astros, where he'd suit up for two and a half years before finding himself in Queens, NY as a New York Met, becoming a part of those rough and tumble 1986 World Champions, helping the team by hitting .298 while driving in 76 runs.

In 1987 he moved on to the Baltimore Orioles, where he had a solid season, playing in 150 games and hitting .256 with 14 homers and 65 RBIs, followed by what turned out to be his final year in the Majors, now with the Detroit Tigers in 1988, hitting .217 with 65 hits over 299 at-bats in 105 games.

All told he finished his playing career with a .271 batting average, collecting 1311 hits in 4829 at-bats, with 490 runs scored and 595 RBIs, making two All-Star teams.

NEGRO LEAGUE LEGENDS- LOUIS SANTOP

Today's blog post has the latest addition to my long-running celebration of Negro League Legends, this one honoring the great catcher Louis Santop:

 

Often called the “first Negro League superstar”, Santop was a presence behind the plate with his 6’4”, 240-pound frame, garnering the nickname “Big Bertha” once he made his debut in 1909 with the Fort Wayne Wonders.
Shortly after, he moved on to the Philadelphia Giants where he became battery-mates with another all-timer, “Cannonball” Redding, becoming the “kid battery” while also developing into a force at the plate, consistently hitting above .350, with a .400+ season thrown in.
Over the course of 14 seasons in the Negro Leagues, Santop became a top drawing card and fan favorite, even playing outfield and the corner infield positions throughout his career.
Officially, Santop is credited with a career .333 batting average between 1911 and 1926, hitting as high as .412 in in 1918 split between the Philadelphia Hilldale Club and Brooklyn Royal Giants.
Thankfully, in 2006 Cooperstown came calling, selecting him for enshrinement over 60 years after his death in 1942.

NOT REALLY MISSING IN ACTION- 1973 RON HANSEN

On the blog today, a career-capping "not so missing" 1973 card for former American League Rookie of the Year Ron Hansen, who played the last games of his 15-year career in 1972 with the Kansas City Royals:

 

Hansen appeared in only 16 games for the Royals in his final Big League campaign, hitting only .133 with four hits over 30 at-bats while putting in time at third, second and short.

Back in 1960 he was Rookie of the Year after hitting 22 homers while driving in 86 runs for the Baltimore Orioles, also finishing fifth in the MVP race at season's end.

In between he was a solid shortstop, getting some MVP attention in 1964, 1965 and 1967 while playing with the Chicago White Sox, but never having a season again like he did in 1960.

All told, by the time he retired, Hansen finished with a career .234 average, with 1007 hits and 106 homers over 1384 games and 4311 at-bats, getting named to one All-Star  team.

EXPANDED YEARLY LEADER CARDS: 1973 N.L. RUNS BATTED IN

On the blog today, a nifty expanded 1973 league leader card for the National League's top RBI men of 1972, three future Hall of Famers with some serious fire-power:

 

Leading the league in 1972 was none other than Johnny Bench, with 125 runs batted in, and giving him his second RBI title in three years after his monster 1970 campaign that saw him drive in 148 at the age of only 22!

Just behind Bench in RBIs for the 1972 season was Chicago Cubs great Billy Williams, who drove in 122 runs while also taking home the N.L. batting title with his .333 batting average.

Sadly for him, his TWO best Major League seasons happen to come when Bench had HIS two best seasons, so there you have Billy Williams coming in second place for MVP, both times behind Bench. That is some tough luck!

Coming in third place in the RBI race for 1972, "Pops" Willie Stargell, who drove in 112 runs for the Pittsburgh Pirates, his fourth time reaching the 100-RBI mark, and funny enough, helping him finish third in the N.L. MVP voting by season's end.

So here you have the top 3 RBI guys in the National League, and they all finished first through third in MVP voting as well, in the same order!

Fun stuff!

Next up, we move on to the American League and their top three RBI men for 1972!

1978 SPECIAL SUB-SET- "1977 30 HOME RUN CLUB" REGGIE SMITH

Next up in my on-going 1978 sub-set celebrating the "30 Home Run Club" members of the 1977 season is Los Angeles Dodgers slugger Reggie Smith:

 

Smith joined what was at the time an exclusive club when he hit the 30th home run of the 1977 season, becoming one of only a few to hit 30+ homers in a season in both the American and National Leagues, eventually settling for 32 homers.

On top of that, it was also an even MORE exclusive club when three other Dodger teammates, Steve Garvey, Ron Cey and Dusty baker, also hit 30+ homers, becoming the first team in baseball history to have four such sluggers in a season.

It's easy to forget just what a nice career "the other Reggie" put together over the course of 17 seasons.

Not only was he a legitimate home run threat (finishing his career with 314), but he hit .300 or better seven times during his run, and even managed to swipe 137 bases as a Major League player.

He'd finish his career with over 1000 runs scored, 1000 runs batted in, 300 homers and 2000 hits between 1966 and 1982, playing for the Boston Red Sox, St. Louis Cardinals, Dodgers and San Francisco Giants.

COACH CARD- 1977 VADA PINSON

Up on the blog today, you know I'll take any excuse to create a card for one of the great under-appreciated players of his era, Vada Pinson, who was one of the coaches on the inaugural Seattle Mariners team of 1977:

 

Pinson signed with the Brewers as a Free Agent in January of 1976 after a year with the Kansas City Royals.

Sadly, the Brewers released Pinson right as the season started on April 4th, deying us an extra season of the man trying to chase 3000 hits.

Well, what would a man of his stature do with all that free time?

Take his knowledge of the game and put it to good use as a coach!

I’ve always loved his career, and wonder had he not played the bulk of his Big League time in the shadows of Willie Mays, Hank Aaron, Roberto Clemente and Frank Robinson, would he have made it all the way to the Hall of Fame.
Four-times he’d collect over 200 hits, seven times over 20-home runs, nine times over 20-stolen bases, and the man only made two All-Star teams!
Just an awesome career that saw him finish with over 2700 hits, 250 homers and 300 stolen bases, while also collecting over 480 doubles and 120 triples.

Sadly, he passed away far too soon after suffering a stroke at the age of 57 in 1995.

NOT REALLY MISSING IN ACTION- 1976 PAUL DADE

On the blog today, we have a "not so missing" 1976 card for former infielder/outfielder Paul Dade, who began his Major League career with the California Angels in 1975:

 

Dade appeared in 11 games for California that season, hitting an even .200 with six hits in 30 official at-bats, four of those hits doubles.

The following season he'd appear in only 13 games, hitting .111 with a hit in nine at-bats, scoring two while driving in one.

In 1977 he'd get a real chance and did very well, hitting .291 over 134 games, scoring 65 runs and stealing 16 bases for his new team, the Cleveland Indians, while seemingly playing everywhere: all three outfield positions, third and second, as well as DH.

He took a bit of a drop in 1978, appearing in 93 games and hitting .254, but would have a decent year in 1979 when he split the season between Cleveland and the San Diego Padres, hitting .278 over a combined 120 games, with a career-best 25 stolen bases.

Sadly though, he would only play in 68 games in 1980 for the Padres, hitting .189 with 10 hits in 53 at-bats, in what turned out to be his last action in the Majors.

He would play in Japan in 1981, not really finding his groove to the tune of a .219 average over 37 games for Hanshin in the Central League, before coming back and playing in the Pittsburgh Pirates Minor League system in 1982, hitting a torrid .405 over 37 at-bats with 15 hits, but that would be it, and he'd retire by season's end.

All told, over 439 games, Dade hit a very respectable .270 with 355 hits over 1313 at-bats, scoring 186 runs and driving in 107, with 57 steals and ten homers between 1975 and 1980.