Monday, December 31, 2018

NOT REALLY MISSING IN ACTION- 1974 GREG HARTS

Here’s a “not so missing” 1974 card for three-game Major Leaguer Greg Harts, who appeared for the New York Mets as a September call-up in 1973 for his only taste of the Big League experience:


Harts went 1-for-2 at the plate for the Mets, singling in his first Major League at-bat after spending four seasons in  their Minor League system.
He had some pop in his bat, hitting 19 and 20 homers respectively in 1971 and 1972, while also showing some speed with 23 stolen bases in the latter season.
But after his Big League debut he was back in the Minors for 1974 where he split time between Double and Triple-A ball, hitting .259 with 10 homers and eight stolen bases.
1975 saw him down to A-Ball, where after only 19 games he was done, though I don’t know hy since according to Baseball_Reference he never had a plate appearance in those 19 games.
Odd.
Anyone know what became of Harts?

Sunday, December 30, 2018

NOT REALLY MISSING IN ACTION- 1978 JIM BURTON

Here’s a really “not so missing” 1978 card for former Boston Red Sox pitcher Jim Burton, who made the last appearance of his brief Major League career in 1977:


Burton, who originally came up in 1975 and appeared in 29 games, with four of them starts, for the eventual American League champions, made only one appearance in 1977 after spending all of 1976 in the Minors.
In that One appearance for the Red Sox, Burton threw 2.2 innings of scoreless ball against the Baltimore Orioles, striking out three while giving up two hits.
Sadly for him that would end up being the last action he’d see on a Big League mound, as he would play in the New York Mets system in 1978 before retiring.
In 1975 he posted a record of 1-2 with an earned run average of 2.89 over 53 innings, and even got a card in that awesome 1976 Topps set.
Overall, he finished his brief career with a 1-2 record, sporting an ERA of 2.75 over 55.2 innings and 30 appearances, with a save thrown in for good measure.

Saturday, December 29, 2018

NO-HITTERS SPECIAL SUB-SET: BILL STONEMAN, OCTOBER 2ND, 1972

The next no-hitter in my on-going sub-set through the 1970’s celebrating all the gems thrown by pitchers is a second appearance by the Montreal Expos’ Bill Stoneman, who also threw a no-hitter in 1969:


Stoneman became of the rare breed of Major League pitchers with multiple no-hitters when he finished the 1972 season with a 7-0 no-no against the New York Mets at Jarry Park, making him the very first to throw a no-hitter outside the United States.
While he struck out nine Mets during the game, he also issued seven walks, so it wasn’t exactly a dominating performance.
Nevertheless, Stoneman got into the MLB record books with no-hitter #2 for his career, while opposing pitcher Jim McAndrew took the loss, finishing his season at 11-8.
The no-hit shutout would allow Stoneman to lower his season ERA below 3.00, finishing up at 2.98 while going 12-14 with four shutouts 13 complete games, with 171 strikeouts.
The season also saw him get his one and only All-Star nod, however sadly for him arm troubles set in the following season, in which he posted a record of 4-8 with an ERA at 6.80 over 29 appearances and 96.2 innings.
In April of 1974 the California Angels purchased him but the change of scenery didn’t help, as Stoneman would go on to post a record of 1-8 over 13 appearances, with an ERA of 6.14 over 58.2 innings pitched.
By June, the Angels released him and he was out of Big League ball for good.

Friday, December 28, 2018

NOT REALLY MISSING IN ACTION- 1977 KEN REYNOLDS

Here’s a “not so missing” 1977 card for former pitcher Ken Reynolds, who finished up a six-year Major League career with 19 appearances with the San Diego Padres in 1976:


Reynolds, who originally came up with the Philadelphia Phillies in 1970, came to San Diego after one season with the St. Louis Cardinals, where he appeared in 10 games in 1975 where he posted a record of 0-1 with an ERA at 1.59 over 17 innings of work.
In 1976 with San Diego he ended up at 0-3, with a rough 6.40 ERA over 32.1 innings, starting two games while finishing six, with a save thrown in.
The bulk of his MLB playing time were the 1971 and 1972 seasons with the Phillies, where he was a regular starter, throwing 162.1 and 154.1 innings respectively, winning seven games while losing 24 combined for those “second-division” teams.
By the time he retired from Big League play, Reynolds ended up with a record of 7-29, with an ERA of 4.46 over 103 appearances and 375.2 innings, with 51 of those appearances starts.

Thursday, December 27, 2018

NOT REALLY MISSING IN ACTION- 1971 JIM KENNEDY

Here was a fun card to add to the “not so missing” family, a 1971 card for former St. Louis Cardinal infielder Jim Kennedy:


Kennedy’s entire Big League run came in the Summer of 1970 when he appeared in 12 games for St. Louis, playing both shortstop and second base.
Over that brief time in the Majors, Kennedy hit .125 with three hits over 24 at-bats, with a run scored, before finding himself back in the Minors, which turned out to be for the rest of his Pro career.
In 1971 he played in the Minnesota Twins organization before moving on to the New York Mets Minor League system, where he played through the 1973 season before retiring.

Wednesday, December 26, 2018

NOT REALLY MISSING IN ACTION- 1976 CRAIG ROBINSON

Here’s a “not so missing” 1976 card for former infielder Craig Robinson, who found himself back to a spot role after appearing in a career-high 145 games the previous season:


Robinson was coming off of a 1974 season that saw him amass 506 plate appearances with the Atlanta Braves, hitting .230 with 104 hits and 52 runs scored while manning shortstop.
But in 1975 he found himself traded to the San Francisco Giants for Ed Goodson in June and only got into 29 games the rest of the way, 39 total split between the two teams, hitting a dreadful .065 with three hits in 46 at-bats.
Funny enough, in 1976 he’d see himself back with the Atlanta Braves after starting the season with the Giants, and he’d play through the 1977 season, albeit again in spot role, appearing in only 57 games combined for what would end up being his final two seasons in the Big Leagues.
By the time he finished, Robinson finished with a career .219 batting average, with 157 hits in 718 at-bats, scoring 80 runs and driving in 42 in 292 games and 718 at-bats spread out over six seasons.

Tuesday, December 25, 2018

NICKNAMES OF THE 1970'S: "THE HUMAN RAIN DELAY" MIKE HARGROVE

Fresh off of giving Mike Hargrove an “In-Action” card in my ongoing 1975 sub-set, I just had to include him in my long-running “Nicknames of the 1970’s” set as well, with his awesome “Human Rain Delay” tag:


Hargrove was just hilarious with every single at-bat, and as a kid I was in awe of the man for being able to do such a routine after every single pitch.
Granted, nowadays it’d seem almost normal with the way things are, but back then it was a riot! I was always expecting a pitcher to hit him with the next pitch out of frustration.
By the time 1979 rolled around, which is the template I used for his nickname card, Hargrove was firlmy established as a player who would get on base consistently, posting on-base-percentages hovering around .400.
Already a two-time league leader in walks by the time this card would have come out, Hargrove went on to post a brilliant .396 OBP over his 12-year career, with four seasons of 100+ walks along with five .300+ batting average campaigns.

Monday, December 24, 2018

NOT REALLY MISSING IN ACTION- 1977 ED GLYNN

By special request for my man Jim, here’s a “not so missing” 1977 card for former Detroit Tigers pitcher Ed Glynn, who pitched just under two dozen innings in 1976:


Glynn made five appearances for the Tigers, throwing 23.2 innings and sporting a record of 1-3, while posting an earned run average at 6.08.
The previous season he made his MLB debut by appearing in three games, one of them a start, while going 0-2 with a 4.30 ERA over 14.2 innings of work.
He’d go on to pitch for 10 Big League seasons, moving on to the New York Mets, then Cleveland Indians before a final stop for only three appearances with the Montreal Expos in 1985.
All told, Glynn ended up with a career 12-17 record, with a 4.25 ERA over 175 appearances and 264.2 innings pitched, along with 12 saves and one complete game.

Sunday, December 23, 2018

AIRBRUSHING THROUGH THE 1970'S- 1976 TRADED GEORGE "DOC" MEDICH

Time to spotlight an airbrush job of a card that had an impact on my young baseball days back in the mid-70’s: the 1976 Doc Medich traded:



For me, this was the trade that brought a young fellow-Brooklynite, Willie Randolph, to the Bronx, where he’d become a soft-spoken fan favorite, including mine.
However at the time Medich was a young stud coming off of win totals of 14, 19 and 16 in his first three years of Big League ball.
He was an inning-eater, tossing over 270 in both 1974 and 1975 after starting 38 games each season, and looked like a solid arm that would have a very nice Major League career ahead of him.
He would go on to play eleven seasons in the Majors, finishing up with a career 124-105 record, with 16 shutouts over 312 appearances and 1996.2 innings pitched through the 1982 season.
However that early promise wasn’t really met, never winning more than 14 games in any season the rest of the way after this trade, and that was with the Texas Rangers in 1980.
Nevertheless, that trade that sent him to the “Steel City”, while the Yankees received Randolph, Ken Brett and Dock Ellis, helped New York forge a mini-dynasty that brought them two straight World Series championships in 1977 and 1978, and a second baseman that would become of the organizations most dependable players.

Saturday, December 22, 2018

1975 IN-ACTION: MIKE HARGROVE

Time to go and add (at the time) the reigning American League Rookie of the Year to my running 1975 “In-Action” sub-set, the Texas Rangers’ Mike Hargrove:


Hargrove was coming off of an excellent freshman campaign, batting .323 with 66 runs batted in and an on-base-percentage hovering near .400 (of course).
Not yet labeled “The Human Rain Delay” for his approach to an at-bat, he already gave the Big Leagues a look at what would become a steady player who’d make it on base 40% of the time through hits and walks.
He would eventually go on to have a very nice 12-year Major League career that saw him tops 100 walks four times, while leading the league twice, while also finishing up with a .290 batting average with 1614 hits over 5564 at-bats in 1666 games.
Of course, he would then go on to have a very nice 16-year managerial career that saw him win two pennants with the Cleveland Indians, including their incredible 1995 season in which the Indians went 100-44 during the strike-shortened season.
While managing the Indians, Hargrove led them to five straight first-place finishes between 1995 and 1999, before moving on to manage the Baltimore Orioles for four years and Seattle Mariners for three.
A baseball lifer for sure.

Friday, December 21, 2018

NOT REALLY MISSING IN ACTION- 1979 PHIL NASTU

Here’s a “not so missing” 1979 card for former San Francisco Giants pitcher Phil Nastu, who appeared in the first Big League games of his brief career during the 1978 season:


Nastu was a September call-up in 1978, appearing in three games for the Giants, with one of them a start, going 0-1 with a 5.63 earned run average over eight innings.
The following season he’d get decent playing time, appearing in 25 games and throwing exactly 100 innings while going 3-4 with a decent 4.32 ERA.
Sadly for him in 1980, after only six appearances, all out of the bullpen, he was was done in the Majors, as he posted a 6.00 ERA over six innings and was sent down to the Minors, where he’d go on to pitch the next two seasons for both the Chicago Cubs and Baltimore Orioles organizations before retiring for good after the 1982 season.
All told, he finished his MLB tenure with a record of 3-5, with an ERA at 4.50 over 34 appearances and 114 innings pitched.

Thursday, December 20, 2018

NOT REALLY MISSING IN ACTION- 1976 RICK CERONE

Always wanted to created a dedicated card for former Catcher Rick Cerone as a Cleveland Indian, so here goes, my 1976 “not so missing in action” edition:


Cerone, who would soon be part of the inaugural Toronto Blue Jays team of 1977, began his 18-year Major League career with the Cleveland Indians with seven games in 1975, batting .250 with three hits over 12 at-bats while getting his first taste behind the plate.
He would go on to play through the 1992 season, with 1980 easily his best season as he surprised everyone, especially us kids here in NYC when he hit .277 with 14 homers and 85 runs batted in after taking over as the first full-time catcher after the tragic death of Thurman Munson the year before.
His efforts that year got him a seventh-place finish in American League MVP voting, yet ironically he’d never get to play full-time in any season the rest of the way.
Nevertheless, he retired with 1329 games under his belt, with three tours in the Bronx, batting .245 based on 998 hits in 4069 at-bats along with 436 runs batted in and 393 runs scored.

Wednesday, December 19, 2018

NICKNAMES OF THE 1970'S- 1976 "SHAKE N' BAKE" McBRIDE

Time to go and give former .300 hitter Bake McBride, aka “Shake n’ Bake” a card in my long-running “Nickname” series through the 1970’s:


The 1974 National League rookie of the year had himself a very nice 11-year Major League career, one that saw him top a .300 batting average seven of those seasons.
If not for injuries throughout his Big League tenure who knows what he could have done, as evidenced with his 1153 hits in only 3853 at-bats.
Only twice did he appear in more than 137 games in any one season, and in only six of them did he play in over 100.
Nevertheless, “Shake n’ Bake” would retire after a couple of years with the Cleveland Indians with a career .299 average, with 183 stolen bases and 548 runs scored in only 1071 games.
Think about it, if you were to translate that over let’s say 2500 Major League games, that is quite a career!

Tuesday, December 18, 2018

NOT REALLY MISSING IN ACTION- 1974 JOE STATON

Next up on the blog, we have a “not so missing” 1974 card for former Detroit Tigers first baseman Joe Staton, who played out the final nine games of his brief two-year Major League career in 1973:


Staton collected four hits over 17 at-bats in those nine games, hitting .235 with three runs batted in and two runs scored.
The previous year he made his MLB debut, playing in six games while going hitless in two at-bats, with a run scored.
Turn out that Major League action in 1973 would be the last of his professional career, though I can’t find any other info on what he went on to, as Baseball_Reference shows he didn’t even play Minor League ball after the 1973 season.
Anyone out there know?
Nevertheless, Staton finished with a 15-game career that saw him hit .211 with four hits in 19 at-bats, all with the Detroit Tigers between 1972 and 1973.

Monday, December 17, 2018

NOT REALLY MISSING IN ACTION- 1970 ARCHIE REYNOLDS

Today we have a “not so missing” 1970 card for former pitcher Archie Reynolds, who started his five-year Major League career with the Chicago Cubs:


Reynolds made his Big League debut in 1968, appearing in seven games and going 0-1 with an ERA at 6.75 over 13.1 innings before getting into only two games the following year.
In those two appearances of 1969, he went 0-1 with an ERA of 2.45 in 7.1 innings of work, starting both games and striking out four while walking seven, with 11 hits allowed.
Turns out he didn’t have much luck the rest of his stay in the Majors, going on to play another three seasons, with only 36 appearances over those five campaigns, and sadly for him never picking up a win. However, in every single one of his Big League years he’d go on to pick up at least one loss, eventually ending up with a career record of 0-8 with an earned run average of 5.73 over 36 appearances and 81.2 innings pitched.

Sunday, December 16, 2018

NO-HITTERS SPECIAL SUB-SET: MILT PAPPAS, SEPTEMBER 2ND, 1972

Time to add one of the more famous no-hitters of the decade to the long-running sub-set of gems of the 1970’s, that of Chicago Cubs pitcher Milt Pappas and his near-perfect game on September 2nd, 1972:


Pappas took the mound against the San Diego Padres on that afternoon, and proceeded to set each and every batter down one by one.
In the meantime, with the help of Don Kessinger and his three runs batted in, along with one each by Jose Cardenal, Bill North, Carmen Fanzone and Jim Hickman, the Cubs gave Pappas a healthy eight run lead going into the ninth inning, perfect game intact.
In the top of the ninth, Pappas got lead-off hitter Johnny Jeter to line out to the outfield, followed by a groundout to short by Fred Kendall.
The stage was set for Pappas to throw the first perfect game since Jim Hunters gem in 1968, and up came light-hitter Larry Stahl to pinch-hit for pitcher Al Severinson.
With young Bruce Froemming umpiring behind the plate, Pappas worked the count to 3-2, then proceeded to throw a ball that Stahl took, but could have gone either way.
Froemming called a ball to the shock of everyone in Wrigley Field, most of all Pappas, and the place went nuts.
Pappas settled down eventually and proceeded to get the next batter Garry Jestadt to pop-out to the second baseman to secure the no-hitter, but for years Pappas would say he could never appreciate or enjoy the no-hitter because of what he felt was a missed call for that third strike.
Years later Pappas and Froemming would joke about that day, but Pappas would still say the “missed” call hurt, denying him of a special place in Major League history.
Nevertheless, Pappas would throw the last Cubs no-hitter until Carlos Zambrano threw one in 2008, a span of 36 years.

Saturday, December 15, 2018

NICKNAMES OF THE 1970'S: "ROOSTER" RICK BURLESON

Time to go and give former all-star shortstop Rick Burleson, aka “Rooster”, a “Nicknames of the 1970’s” card in the long-running series:


Burleson had himself a brilliant run in the Major Leagues, from his rookie season of 1974 though the strike-shortened 1981 season before injuries abruptly cut-short his career, even though he did continue to play until 1987.
Named to four all-star teams, he also took home a Gold Glove in 1979 and a Silver Slugger in 1981, while getting some MVP attention in four different seasons.
The 1977 season would be his best when he collected 194 hits while leading the league with 663 at-bats, with a .293 average, 36 doubles and 80 runs scored.
After his initial season with the California Angels in 1981, he went through injuries that kept him from playing full-time, never appearing in more than 93 games in any one season between 1982 and 1987, the last of which was with the Baltimore Orioles.
Once he did retire after 13 Major League seasons, he finished with a batting average of .273, with 1401 hits and 656 runs scored over 5139 at-bats and 1346 games, and one cool nickname!

Friday, December 14, 2018

NOT REALLY MISSING IN ACTION-1972 RON SLOCUM

Up next on the blog we have a “not so missing” 1972 card for former San Diego Padres infielder Ron Slocum, who played the last of his Major League games in 1971:


Slocum spent all three of his Big League seasons with the Padres, finishing up with seven games in 1971, going hitless in 18 at-bats while playing some third base.
Originally up during their inaugural 1969 season, Slocum ended up hitting .150 during his career, collecting 17 hits over 113 at-bats in 80 games.
While looking into his career for this short piece on him, I noticed that he died at the age of 43 in 1988, yet cannot find anything else on it.
As a matter of fact, it seems Major League baseball didn’t even know he died until 2014 when his daughter provided some proof of this.
Anyone know what happened?
Seems odd that there is no info out there on a former ballplayer who died so young.

Thursday, December 13, 2018

NOT REALLY MISSING IN ACTION- 1970 CLYDE MASHORE

Here’s a fun card to add to the 1970 collection, a “not so missing” Clyde Mashore, known for his five seasons with the Montreal Expos, yet came up for his first taste of Major League ball with two games in 1969 with the Cincinnati Reds:


Mashore went 0-1 at the plate with a run scored for the Reds as a 24-year-old when he got called-up in July.
About a year later he would be traded to the Montreal franchise for Ty Cline, and would spend the rest of his playing days with the Expos, playing through the 1973 season, generally as a guy off the bench.
Never a full-time player, Mashore ended playing in 241 games during his Big League stay, hitting .208 with 87 hits over 419 at-bats, hitting eight homers and driving in 47, along with 11 stolen bases and 58 runs scored.
I also created “missing” cards for him in the past, a 1974 “career-capper” and a 1972 edition, since Topps failed to include him in those sets while having others with far less playing time getting a slot.

Wednesday, December 12, 2018

1975 IN-ACTION: RALPH GARR

Even though Ralph Garr had an amazing action shot for his card in the 1975 set, I had to add him to the growing “In-Action” sub-set I’ve been building for a while, so here it is:


At the time the reigning National League batting champ after a .353 mark in 1974, Garr had an amazing run between 1971 and 1975, a stretch that saw him top .325 three times, along with three 200-hit seasons and leading the league in triples twice.
In 1976 he’d find himself with the Chicago White Sox, where he’d hit an even .300 his first two years there, but he’d be out of Major League ball just three years later after a rapid decline.
Nevertheless, he’d finish his Big League career with a .306 batting average, with 1562 hits over 5108 at-bats, stealing 172 bases and scoring 717 runs over 14-years.
The “Roadrunner” definitely had it going on in the 1970’s!

Tuesday, December 11, 2018

NOT REALLY MISSING IN ACTION- 1974 JOHN FELSKE

Here’s a “not so missing” 1974 card for three-year Major Leaguer, and future manager, John Felske, who played the last of his Big League games in 1973:


Felske appeared in 13 games for Milwaukee in 1973, batting .136 with three hits in 22 at-bats, scoring one run and driving in four.
Originally up with the Chicago Cubs in 1968 for a cup-of-coffee, where he appeared in only four games, he made it all the way back in 1972 when he played in 37 games for the Brewers, hitting .138 with 11 hits in 80 at-bats, with the only homer he’d hit in MLB play and five RBI’s.
All told, he finished with a .135 average with 14 hits in 104 at-bats, before going into coaching and eventually managing, which he did between 1985-1987 with the Philadelphia Phillies, even leading them to a second place finish in 1986 with a record of 86 and 75.

Monday, December 10, 2018

NOT REALLY MISSING IN ACTION- 1976 KEN BERRY

Here’s a 1976 “not so missing” career-capper for former Gold-Glove centerfielder Ken Berry, who wrapped up a nice 14-year Major League career in 1975 with the Cleveland Indians:


Berry appeared in 25 games for the Tribe during his last taste of Big League ball, batting an even .200 with eight hits over 40 at-bats, scoring six runs with one run batted in.
He twice was awarded a Gold Glove for his work in the outfield, in 1970 during his final season with the Chicago White Sox, the team he came up with in 1962, and again in 1972 in his second season with the California Angels, for whom he played between 1971 and 1973.
He’d spend the 1974 season with the Milwaukee Brewers, where he hit .240 over 98 games, before that last year with the Indians.
By the time he retired, he finished with a .255 batting average, with 1053 hits over 4136 at-bats in 1384 games, with 422 runs scored and 343 runs batted in, and an All-Star nod back in 1967.

Sunday, December 9, 2018

TRADED- 1974 WALT WILLIAMS

Today we have a “Traded” 1974 card for Walt “No Neck” Williams, who was actually on a Cleveland Indians Topps card, but was part of a three-team trade which landed him in the Bronx on March 19th, 1974:


Williams came to the New York Yankees along with pitcher Rick Sawyer in a trade that also included the Cleveland Indians and Detroit Tigers, with Jim Perry going back to the Indians and catcher Jerry Moses going to the Indians.
Turns out Williams would spend the final two years as a Major Leaguer with the Yankees, getting released right before the 1976 season and retiring for good in 1980 after two seasons in Japan and two more in the Mexican League.
Originally up to the Majors in 1964 as a 20-year-old for 10 games with the Houston Colt .45’s, he’d spend the next two seasons in the Minor Leagues before making it back, now as a member of the Chicago White Sox, in 1967, where he’d go on to play for the next six years before moving on to the Indians for one season.
By the time he was done, he finished with a nice .270 batting average, with 640 hits over 2373 at-bats in 842 games, scoring 284 runs and driving in 173, while also leaving us with one of the great nicknames of the era, “No Neck”, and if you look at any of his Topps cards, you’ll see why.

As for the card template, I was never a fan of that GIANT yellow "Traded" banner Topps used on their version in 1974, so I just went with a horizontal layout, which I am a big fan of.

Saturday, December 8, 2018

MISSING IN ACTION- 1972 CHRIS ZACHARY

Today we have up on the blog somewhat of an interesting “missing” card, that a 1972 edition for former pitcher Chris Zachary:


Zachary pitched for nine seasons in the Big Leagues, and over that time Topps gave him a few cards in their sets between 1963 and 1973.
However, though Zachary never had a “full” season of action in his MLB tenure, the one season that saw him somewhat close to full-time work was ignored by the folks at Topps, leaving him out of the 1972 set.
In 1971, his only season with the St. Louis Cardinals, Zachary appeared in 23 games, with 12 of those starts, pitching a total of 89.2 innings, by far a career-high.
He posted a record of 3-10 with an earned run average of 5.32, with a shutout and 48 strikeouts against 26 base on balls.
Now, you’d think with the monster 1972 set coming out that Topps would have this guy in their set! But no, he was omitted while so many other guys who played so much less in 1971 got a slot in there.
As a matter of fact, in the very next Topps set of 1973, after a season that saw Zachary pitch only 38.1 innings for the Detroit Tigers in 1972, he got a card!
Go figure.
Nevertheless, over the course of his nine years on a Big League mound, Zachary accumulated a record of 10-29, with an ERA at 4.57 over 108 appearances, 40 of those starts, and 321.1 innings pitched.

Friday, December 7, 2018

NOT REALLY MISSING IN ACTION- 1978 JOHN TAMARGO

Here’s a “not so missing” 1978 card for former catcher John Tamargo, who started off his five-year Major League career with the St. Louis Cardinals, including four games during the 1977 season after breaking in with 10 in 1976:


Tamargo went 0-for-4 at the plate for St. Louis over those four games in 1977, while collecting three hits over 10 at-bats in his first taste of the Big Leagues in 1976.
In 1978 he’d end up splitting the season between St. Louis and the San Francisco Giants, batting .224 over 42 games, with 22 hits in 98 at-bats.
The following year he’d end up splitting between the Giants and Montreal Expos, hitting .247, before playing out what would be his last as an active player in 1980 with the Expos, hitting .275 over 37 games, with 13 runs batted in, both career highs.
Overall for his major League tenure, Tamargo ended up hitting .242 with 59 hits in 244 at-bats, scoring 19 runs while driving in 33 over 135 games.

Thursday, December 6, 2018

NOT REALLY MISSING IN ACTION- 1977 DENNIS LEWALLYN

Up on the blog today we have a “not so missing” 1977 card for former Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Dennis Lewallyn, for whom I also created a 1978 edition a while back:


Lewallyn appeared in four games during the 1976 season, posting a record of 1-1 with a nice 2.16 earned run average over 16.2 innings of work.
The 1977 campaign would go on to be the most action he’d see over his eight-year Major League career, albeit still a small amount in the grand scheme of things, as he’d pitch 17 innings over five appearances, with a 3-1 record and 4.24 ERA for the National League champs.
He’d pitch one season with the Texas Rangers in 1980, appearing in four games, then moving on to the Cleveland Indians, for whom he’d pitch the last two seasons of his career, appearing in 11 combined games between 1981 and 1982.
Overall, Lewallyn appeared in 34 Major League games, with a 4-4 record and 4.48 ERA over 80.1 innings pitched, starting three of those games and finishing 15.

Wednesday, December 5, 2018

NICKNAMES OF THE 1970'S- "HOSS" HORACE CLARKE

The next “Nicknames of the 1970’s” card in my long-running series is a 1971 edition for former New York Yankee Horace “Hoss” Clarke, second baseman during the “dark years” of the Bronx franchise between 1965 and 1973:


I chose the 1971 template since Clarke was coming off of his two best seasons in the Major Leagues, collecting 183 and 172 hits respectively in 1969 and 1970, topping 80 runs each year along with 56 stolen bases combined.
He led the American League with 641 and a whopping 686 at-bats in these campaigns, with over 700 plate appearances each year as well.
A solid player for the Yankees during some lean seasons, Clarke played 9 1/2 of his 10-year Big League career in the Bronx, finishing up with a half-season with the San Diego Padres in 1974 before retiring.
All told, “Hoss” finished with a .256 career average, with 1230 hits and 151 stolen bases over 1272 games and 4813 at-bats between 1965 and 1974.

Tuesday, December 4, 2018

NOT REALLY MISSING IN ACTION- 1976 JOHN MONTAGUE

Up on the blog today we have a “not so missing” 1976 card for former pitcher John Montague, who split his 1975 season between the Montreal Expos and Philadelphia Phillies:


Over 15 combined appearances, Montague posted a record of 0-1 with an earned run average of 6.35 over 22.2 innings of work.
He’d spend all of 1976 in the Minor Leagues, putting in a very nice season for the Phillies organization, before being selected in the expansion draft by the Seattle Mariners.
In 1977 he’d go on to see the most action of any of his seven Big League seasons, appearing in 47 games and pitching to a 8-12 record with an ERA at 4.29 over 182.1 innings, with two complete games and four saves.
He’d go on to pitch another three years in the Majors, evenly split between the Mariners and California Angels until 1980, finishing up his career with a record of 24-26 over 223 appearances, posting an ERA of 4.76 in 546.2 innings, with 21 saves and two complete games in 17 starts.

Monday, December 3, 2018

NOT REALLY MISSING IN ACTION- 1972 SAL CAMPISI

Today on the blog I post up a career-capping “not so missing” 1972 card for former pitcher, and fellow-Brooklynite Sal Campisi, who pitched the last games of his brief three-year Big League career in 1971:



Campisi, who originally came up with the St. Louis Cardinals in 1969 and continued pitching for them in 1970, found himself a member of the Minnesota Twins in 1971, appearing in six games, not factoring in a decision with an earned run average of 4.15 over 4.1 innings.
The previous season he appeared in a career-high 37 games for the Cardinals, posting a record of 2-2 with a very nice 2.92 ERA over 49.1 innings, with four saves.
Sadly for him however, he’d never make it back to a Big League mound, and from what I can gather, he retired for good as a pro player as well, with those six appearances with the Twins his last on a professional level.

Sunday, December 2, 2018

NO-HITTERS SPECIAL SUB-SET: BURT HOOTON, APRIL 16TH, 1972

Moving ahead in my “No-Hitters Through the 1970’s” thread, we have the first gem tossed during the 1972 season, Burt Hooton’s No-No against the Philadelphia Phillies on April 16th:


Hooton, making only the fourth start of his Major League career, went on to strike out seven Phillies, while also issuing seven walks in front of the home-town fans at Wrigley Field, completing the game in 2 hours and 22 minutes.
The 4-0 win was helped by two RBIs by catcher Randy Hundley, as well as an RBI by second baseman Glenn Beckert, with future Hall of Famers Billy Williams and Ron Santo each collecting three hits and scoring a run.
Hooton would go on to have a nice first full-season in 1972, posting an ERA of .280, though his record betrayed the year, finishing at 11-14.
He would go on to have an excellent 15-year run, mainly with the Los Angeles Dodgers, which saw him be a part of three National League champion teams, as well as a World Championship in 1981.
His post-season resume was very good, finishing at 6-3 with an ERA at 3.17 over eleven starts, with 33 strikeouts and a complete game.
His final regular season numbers: 151 wins against 136 losses, a very nice 3.38 ERA and 1491 strikeouts in 480 appearances (377 of those starts), and 2652 innings pitched, with 29 shutouts and seven saves.

Saturday, December 1, 2018

NOT REALLY MISSING IN ACTION- 1973 CHUCK GOGGIN

Here’s a “not so missing” 1973 card for former second baseman and left-fielder Chuck Goggins of the Pittsburgh Pirates, who made his MLB debut with five games during the 1972 season:


Goggins went 2-for-7 at the plate, good for a .286 average, with a walk thrown in while playing second base in one of those games.
The following year, after starting the season with Pittsburgh, he’d be purchased by the Atlanta Braves where he’d appear in 64 games, batting a combined .297 in 101 at-bats with 19 runs scored.
As the 1974 season was about to open up, he was traded to the Boston Red Sox, where he’d end up playing in only two games, the last two games of his Big League career, and what would end up the last of his pro career.
All told, he played in 72 games in the Majors, batting a very nice .293 with 29 hits over 99 at-bats, with 19 runs scored and seven runs batted in.

Friday, November 30, 2018

1975 IN-ACTION: WILLIE McCOVEY

Time to go and add “Stretch” Willie McCovey, who recently passed away on Halloween day, to the growing “1975 In-Action” sub-set I’ve been creating over the past couple years:


McCovey was beginning to enter the twilight of his Hall of Fame career which spanned 22 seasons between 1959 and 1980.
Over that time he took home a Rookie of the Year when he burst onto the Major League scene with a .354 average and 13 homers in 52 games in 1959, an MVP in 1969 when he led the league with 45 homers, 126 runs batted in, a .453 OBP and a .612 slugging percentage, while getting six All-Star nods.
By the time he hung them up for good, he finished with 521 homers, 15555 RBIs, 1229 runs scored and 2211 hits playing for the San Francisco Giants, San Diego Padres, and a brief 11-game stretch with the Oakland A’s at the end of the 1976 season.
In 1986, in his 1st year of eligibility, he was voted into the Hall with 81.4% of the vote, an easy first-try inductee for the man from Mobile, Alabama.

Thursday, November 29, 2018

NOT REALLY MISSING IN ACTION- 1975 JERRY BELL

Here’s a “not so missing” 1975 card for former Milwaukee Brewers pitcher Jerry Bell, who finished up a brief four-year Major League career with five appearances during the 1974 season:


Bell, who originally came up to the Big Leagues with eight appearances in 1971, pitched to a 1-0 record in 1974, with a nice 2.57 earned run average over 14 innings of work.
The previous season had him see the most action in any one season, making 31 appearances, with 25 of them starts, going 9-9 with a 3.97 ERA in 183.2 innings along with eight complete games and a save.
But for whatever reason, he never made it back to the Big Leagues again, spending all of 1975 in the Minors before retiring when the year was over.
For his career, Bell finished at 17-11, with a nice 3.28 ERA over 69 games and 283 innings pitched, striking out 89 with eight complete games and a single save.
Some of you may remember Bell from the 1972 Darrell Porter rookie card with the images swapped, with Bell always signing over “Darrell Porter” on the card years later. Hilarious.

Wednesday, November 28, 2018

NOT REALLY MISSING IN ACTION- 1977 GEORGE ENRIGHT

Here’s a “not so missing” 1977 card for a two-game Major Leaguer, former White Sox catcher George Enright, who despite nine years in the Minor Leagues, only got the briefest of Big League action:


Enright finally made it up to the Majors in August of 1976 after five seasons of Minor League ball, then getting into his second, and last, game about a month later, going 0-1 at the plate while spending seven innings behind the plate.
Sadly for him that would all he’d get, as he’d be back in the Minors for 1977, where he’d stay through the 1980 season before retiring for good at the age of only 26.
Nevertheless, he got to taste that Big League magic for two games, more than any of us can say. Cheers George!

Tuesday, November 27, 2018

NICKNAMES OF THE 1970'S- 1977 DWIGHT "DEWEY" EVANS

It’s about time I get around to creating a “Nicknames of the ‘70’s” card for Red Sox all-star outfielder Dwight “Dewey” Evans, who formed a third of what was an extraordinary young outfield for the Boston franchise in the late-70’s/Early-80s:


Evans was part of the amazing outfield comprised of himself, Jim Rice and Fred Lynn who all came up in the mid-70’s and went on to excellent Major League careers.
For Evans, it was a career that lasted 20-years, all but one, his last in 1991 with the Baltimore Orioles, with Boston.
This was a career that included eight Gold Gloves and three All-Star nods, while finishing in the top-10 in American League MVP voting four times, while finishing up with 2446 hits, 385 home runs and 1384 runs batted in, all with a .272 average in over 2600 games and just under 9000 at-bats.
Let’s not forget that the man had an absolute gun for an arm out in right-field while being one of the top outfielders in the Junior Circuit over the course of his career.
Often overshadowed by teammates throughout his career, Evans would end up as a borderline Hall of Famer, outplaying many of the very guys that got the spotlight.

Monday, November 26, 2018

NOT REALLY MISSING IN ACTION- 1979 JOSE BAEZ

Today we have a 1979 “not so missing” card for former Seattle Mariners infielder Jose Baez, who finished up a brief two-year Major League career in 1978:


Baez was originally up with the 1977 inaugural Mariner team, getting his first taste of the Big Leagues and appearing in 91 games for the new franchise, hitting .259 with 79 hits over 305 official at-bats.
In 1978 he fell to only 23 appearances, batting .160 with eight hits in 50 at-bats, generally playing second base with a few games at third.
Turns out that would be it for him in the Majors, as he would go on to play another season of Minor League ball in the St. Louis Cardinals organization before going on to two seasons of Mexican League ball until 1980 before retiring.
For his MLB tenure, Baez finished with a .245 average, collecting 87 hits over 355 at-bats in 114 games, all for the Mariners.

Sunday, November 25, 2018

NOT REALLY MISSING IN ACTION- 1978 LARRY LINTZ

Time to go and give former speedster Larry Lintz a “not so missing” 1978 card after another season of a “designated running” for the Oakland A’s in 1977:


Lintz, who didn’t quite get the full-on “D.R.” action that Herb Washington had before him, did play in 41 games, with only 40 plate appearances, stealing 13 bases while scoring 11 runs for Oakland.
The previous year, his first with the A’s, Lintz appeared in 68 games, yet had only four plate appearances, scoring 21 runs while stealing 31 bases for the go-go team that stole over 300, 341 to be exact!
But Lintz’s MLB days were coming to a close, as he’d find himself with the Cleveland Indians the following year, appearing in only three games before being out of Big League ball for good.
All told, he played in 350 games during his career between 1973 and 1978, hitting .227 while scoring 137 runs and stealing 128 bases in 616 at-bats and 756 plate appearances.

Saturday, November 24, 2018

NO-HITTERS SPECIAL SUB-SET: BOB GIBSON, AUGUST 14TH, 1971

Super-fun card to create today, my 1972 card celebrating the great Bob Gibson and his no-hitter against the Pittsburgh Pirates on August 14th of 1971:


For Gibson, he came into the game at 10-10 for the season, just one year removed from picking up his second Cy Young Award.
But on this day he had everything working for him against the eventual World Champion Pirates, who had a line-up of heavy hitters.
Over the next 2 hours and 22 minutes, Gibson would set the Pirates down one by one, allowing only three walks while striking out 10, while also staked out to an early 5-0 lead in the first inning thanks in part to a three-run home run by Joe Hague.
Joe Torre and Ted Simmons both went 4-for-6 at the plate, while Gibson helped himself as well with a 1-for-4 game with three runs batted in.
He’d go on to finish the year at 16-13, with a 3.04 ERA while leading the league with five shutouts over 31 starts and 245.2 innings of work.
Of note, he also finished the season with 185 strikeouts, the first time he didn’t reach 200 in a non-injury season (1967) since 1961.
Nevertheless, he also collected his seventh Gold Glove that season, while also finishing fifth in the Cy Young Race.
What a career.

Friday, November 23, 2018

NOT REALLY MISSING IN ACTION- 1974 JIMMY FREEMAN

Today we have a “not so missing” 1974 card for former Atlanta Braves pitcher Jimmy Freeman, he of a brief two-season Major League career in the early part of the decade:


Freeman saw Big League action in both the 1972 and 1973 seasons, albeit only six and 13 games respectively.
While he posted a record of 2-2 with a 6.00 earned run average in 1972 as a September call-up, he went 0-2 in 1973, with an ERA at 7.71 over 13 appearances, five of them starts, in 37.1 innings pitched.
He’d go on to pitch another three years in the Minors, for the Atlanta,  Baltimore Orioles and St. Louis Cardinals organizations before retiring for good after the 1976 season.
All told, he finished his MLB career with a record of 2-4, with an ERA at 6.87 over 19 appearances and 73.1 innings pitched

Thursday, November 22, 2018

NOT REALLY MISSING IN ACTION- 1970 BILL McNULTY

Today I post up a “not so missing” 1970 card for former outfielder Bill McNulty, who played his first Major League games in 1969:


McNulty didn’t quite have a debut to remember, as he would appear in five games for the Oakland A’s and go hitless over 17 at-bats, striking out 10 times. Ouch.
He’d spend the next two years in the Minors before making it all the way back in 1972, albeit for four games, going 1-for-10 along with a couple of walks.
That would be it for him on a Major League field, as he’d go on to play three more years in the Minors before some time in Japan before retiring as a player after the 1975 season.
But get this. His 1974 season for Sacramento in the Milwaukee Brewers system was one of the top seasons of the decade, in ANY leagues!
That year, in 144 games and 526 at-bats, McNulty hit 55 homers with 135 runs batted in, along with 135 runs scored.
He slashed a .329/.438/.690 line for the year and it’s really something that he didn’t get a chance to join the other Brewer sluggers on the Big League level.
As a matter of fact, McNulty hit 20 or more homers the final seven years of his pro career, dating back to 1969.
Even in his last season of 1975, he finished with 24 homers, in only 104 games, with 63 RBIs and 54 runs scored.

Wednesday, November 21, 2018

NOT REALLY MISSING IN ACTION- 1973 TERRY HUGHES

Here’s a “not so missing” 1971 card for former Third Baseman Terry Hughes, who made his Major League debut in 1970 with three games for the Chicago Cubs:


Hughes was drafted #2 overall by Chicago in the 1967 Amateur Draft, and would have some decent years in the Minors before making it up to the Big Leagues as a September call-up.
Sadly for him however, he’d be back in the Minors all of 1971 and 1972 before getting another shot on a Major League field, now as a member of the St. Louis Cardinals, in 1973 with eleven games, in which he hit .214 with three hits over 14 at-bats.
The following year he’d see the most action in his brief three-year career, playing in 41 games for the Boston Red Sox, enough action to get him a Topps card in the 1975 set.
He hit .203 for the Red Sox in 1974, but once again would go on to play another two full seasons in the Minors before retiring for good as a player after a Triple-A season with Tulsa in the St. Louis system.
All told, Hughes hit .209 over 54 games, collecting 18 hits, including a homer, with seven RBI’s and six runs scored.

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