MISSING IN ACTION: 1963 FLEER STEVE DALKOWSKI

Super fun card to post today!

From my recent "Missing 1963 Fleer-Second Edition" set, a missing card for Minor League legend Steve Dalkowski, who could never quite reign in that incredible fastball:

Looking at his Minor League numbers between 1957 and 1965, you'd think you were seeing things, as Dalkowski would post not only absurd strikeout numbers, but equally absurd base-on-balls numbers.

For example, in 1960 while pitching for Stockton, the 21-year-old tossed 170 innings, striking out 262 batters, good for a 15.1 K/9 inning number, yet ALSO walked the same amount of batters!

Yet he only allowed 105 hits, which came to a miniscule 5.6 hits-per-nine-innings, putting him in Nolan Ryan country!

In 1958, splitting the season between Knoxville, Wilson and Aberdeen, he tossed 104 innings, striking out 203 batters, while walking 204!

That comes to about a 17 strikeout-per-nine-innings total, with a slightly HIGHER walk total!.

Sadly Dalkowski could never get a handle on that lethal fastball, and by the time 1965 rolled around, though still only 26 years of age, his career came to an end.

Official totals for this nine-year Minor League career came to a record of 46-80 over 236 games, throwing 956 innings and striking out 1324 batters, while walking 1236, giving up only 664 hits.

Just mind-boggling stuff!

Just a shame that not only did his career not work out, but he soon found himself battling addictions, homelessness and a rough post-baseball life.

Luckily with some help he did live to the age of 80, passing away in April of 2020.

A baseball folk-tale figure who lives on through the ages!

 

NOT REALLY MISSING IN ACTION: 1978 JERRY WHITE

On the blog today, a player many of you will remember from the 1970s and 1980s, but was left out of the 1978 Topps set, Jerry White of the Montreal Expos:

White appeared in only 16 games for Montreal during the 1977 season, hitting .190 with four hits in 21 at-bats, with four runs scored and a single RBI.

He would be with the Expos 10 of his 11 seasons in the Majors, playing half a season with the Chicago Cubs in 1978 and finishing up with 25 games as a St. Louis Cardinal in 1986, with some time in the Japanese League in 1984 and 1985.

Never a full-timer, the most action he ever saw in any one season was 114 games in 1976, hitting .245 over 309 plate appearances and 278 official at-bats.

By the time he did retire after those 12 seasons, he finished with a .253 batting average, with 303 hits in 1196 at-bats over 646 games, with 155 runs scored and 109 runs batted in, stealing 57 bases and hitting 21 homers.

 

NOT REALLY MISSING IN ACTION: 1961 JOE TORRE

Up on the blog today, we have a "not so missing" 1961 card for future Hall of Fame manager (and easily HOF catcher in my book) Joe Torre:

Torre made his MLB debut in 1960, appearing in two games for the Milwaukee Braves as a 19-year-old, going 1-for-2 at the plate.

A five-time all-star during the '60's, Torre had a couple of "monster" years that kind of get lost in history.
In 1964 playing for the Milwaukee Braves, Torre hit .321 with 20 homers and 109 runs batted in. He also chipped in 193 hits and 36 doubles. Not bad!
But in 1966, with the Braves relocated to Atlanta, Torre clubbed 36 home runs to go along with a .315 average and 101 R.B.I.'s.
Later on when he'd switch over to third base he'd win an M.V.P. with the St. Louis Cardinals, and tack on a few more excellent years at the plate, and it's those years that people generally remember Torre as a player.
But his catching days for the Braves organization were very good in their own right. yet easy to overlook.
Later on, as we all know, Torre would be inducted into the Hall of Fame as a manager in 2014 for his days leading the New York Yankees through their most recent dynasty in the late-90's/early-00's, along with taking the helm of the Mets, Braves, Cardinals and Dodgers as well between 1977 and 2010, finishing up with 2326 wins and four championship titles.

 

1981 DRAKE'S BIG PITCHERS: JACK MORRIS

On the blog today, the next custom getting the spotlight from my "1981 Drake's Big Pitchers" set released last year, this one of HOFer Jack Morris:

The man was a true workhorse and winner, putting in 18 seasons as a Major League pitcher, winning 254 games while pitching to a 3.90 earned run average over 549 appearances and 3824 innings.

Along the way he threw 28 shutouts, while striking out 2478 batters, leading the league in wins twice, strikeouts and shutouts once apiece.

He would finish top-5 in Cy Young voting five times, also making the All-Star team five times, while winning the World Series with three different teams: Tigers, Twins and Blue Jays.

I was truly surprised it took so long for him to be elected to the Hall of Fame, which he finally was by the "Modern Baseball Era Committee" in 2018, 24 years after his final MLB season.

I will always remember that 1984 nationally televised Saturday afternoon game when he faced the Chicago White Sox during that magical Tigers' season, no-hitting the reigning American League champions.

Just a stud on the mound.

 

CAREER-CAPPER: 1980 WILLIE DAVIS

Good day all!

On the blog today, from my next WTHBALLS custom card release, a 1980 "Career-Capper" for underrated player Wille Davis:

Davis came up with the Dodgers as a 20-year old in 1960, just in time to be a part of the organization’s great run which included two world championships in 1963 and 1965, as well as a World Series appearance in 1966.
A speedster who racked up hits and had the occasional power, Davis finished his career with over 2500 hits, 182 home runs and 398 stolen bases, along with a nice .279 batting average in 2429 career games.
Though he played the first 14 years of his career in L.A., Davis would go on to play for five teams over the last four years of his career: Montreal Expos, Texas Rangers, St. Louis Cardinals, San Diego Padres and the California Angels in 1979 after a two-year absence from MLB ball in 1977 and 1978 when he played in Japan.

 

WTHBALLS CUSTOM SET SPOTLIGHT: 1960S STARS OF THE GAME: BILL MAZEROSKI

Good day all! On the blog today, we spotlight my card for HOFer Bill Mazeroski, from my 1960 "Stars of the Game" custom gelatin set released back in 2018:

Just a classic era-perfect photo of the Pittsburgh Pirates great, from right about the time he catapulted himself into baseball history with a Game 7 home run in the bottom of the ninth to send the Pirates to a World Championship over the heavily favored New York Yankees.

But it's easy to forget that Mazeroski's homer was in only his fifth full season in the Majors. He went on to star for the Pirates for the next 12 seasons before hanging them up at the end of the 1972 season.
By the time he retired, Mazeroski won two world championships (1960 & 1971), eight Gold Gloves, made seven All-Star teams, topped 2000 hits and made a name for himself as one of the premier fielding second baseman in baseball.
He still hold the all-time record for turning double-plays for second basemen at 1706, and lead the National League in assists nine times between 1958-1968.
While the BBWA failed to vote him into the Hall of Fame withing the 15 years of eligibility, the Veteran's Committee got him in 2001, almost 30 years after retiring, joining such former teammates like Willie Stargell and Roberto Clemente.

 

CLASSIC BASEBALL: JIM WYNN

On the blog today, we add the "Toy Cannon" Jim Wynn to my long-running WTHBALLS custom "Classic Baseball" set:

He put up some solid years during his excellent 15-year Big League run between 1963 and 1977.

Eight times he'd top 20 homers, with three of them 30+, while also driving in 100+ runs twice, scoring 100+ runs four times and topping 100 walks six times, two seasons of which he'd lead the National League, with a high of 148 in 1969.

While slugging away, he was also a threat on the base paths, as he'd go on to swipe a total of 225 before retiring, with a high of 43 in 1965.

After those handful of games with the Milwaukee Brewers in the latter half of 1977, he called it a career, finishing with 1100+ runs scored, 1665 hits, 291 homers and 964 runs batted in, with a .250 average thrown in.

Just a solid, overlooked player from the era that deserves a spotlight for his excellent career!