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