NOT REALLY MISSING IN ACTION: 1984 OREL HERSHISER

Good day everyone!

On the blog today, a fun 1980s card to add to the roster, a "not so missing" 1984 card for Los Angeles Dodgers great Orel Hershiser, who made his MLB debut in September of 1983 but did not get a card the following year:

Hershiser appeared in only eight games for the Dodgers in 1983 as a late-season call-up, not factoring in a decision while pitching to a 3.38 earned run average over eight innings.

The following year he had an excellent rookie campaign, finishing third in the Rookie of the Year balloting behind Dwight Gooden and Juan Samuel when he finished 11-8 over 45 appearances, 20 of those starts, with a league-leading four shutouts and a brilliant 2.66 ERA in 189.2 innings.

He would follow that up with arguably his second best season as a Major Leaguer, going 19-3 with a 2.03 ERA and five shutouts, completing nine of 34 starts with 157 strikeouts, good for third in the Cy Young voting with some MVP votes thrown in.

After two effective, though .500 years in 1986 and 1987, he would have his best year in the Big Leagues in 1988, guiding the Dodgers to a World Championship and becoming "All-World" when he went 23-8 with a 2.26 ERA, 15 complete games and eight shutouts over 34 starts and 267 innings pitched.

He also established a new record for consecutive scoreless innings when he topped the previous record held by another Dodger legend, Don Drysdale, reaching 59 straight innings without giving up a run.

By the times awards were being handed out that year, he finished with the N.L. Cy Young Award, as well as an All-Star nod and a Gold Glove, while finishing sixth in the MVP race.

After a couple of injury-plagued years in 1989 and 1990, he made it back and remained a solid starter for another ten seasons, moving on to the Cleveland Indians, San Francisco Giants and New York Mets before one final year with the Dodgers in 2000.

By the time he retired, he finished with a record of 205-150, with a 3.48 ERA over 510 appearances, with 25 shutouts and 2014 strikeouts.

He made three All-Star teams and also took home a Silver Slugger in 1993, while finishing top-4 in Cy Young voting four times.

Not bad for a guy the Dodgers considered only a reliever when he came up!

CAREER-CAPPER: 1962 WALT DROPO

Good day everyone!

Up on the blog today, a card I just learned needed to be done, a 1962 "career-capper" for Walt Dropo:

Dropo finished up a nice 13-year Major League career in 1961 as a member of the Baltimore Orioles.

He appeared in only 14 games, hitting .259 with seven hits in 27 at-bats with a homer and two runs batted in.

I remember thinking of Dropo a lot back in 2012 when Mike Trout was having his amazing rookie season.
I always felt that Trout, while an incredible talent, was a bit over-hyped with his rookie season numbers, especially when people kept saying it was the greatest rookie season of all-time.
Right off the bat I kept thinking of a few that I felt were better, including Dropo’s unreal rookie year that saw him hit .322 with 34 homers, 144 runs batted in and 101 runs scored, with a .583 slugging percentage and 326 total bases.
Now I’m not saying it’s THE best rookie year, but it IS a season I felt was on par, if not better than Trout’s.
Anyone have another rookie season they feel was “the best”?
I think of two that “technically” weren’t rookie years, but should be: Joe Jackson’s 1911 season and Alex Rodriguez’ 1996 season.
Why ISN’T Jackson’s 1911 season considered a rookie season anyway?

As for Dropo's MLB career, he played through the 1961 season, finishing up with a .270 average with 152 homers and 704 RBIs over 1288 games and 4124 at-bats.

Though he never matched those rookie numbers again, he did have some very good seasons playing for not only the Red Sox, but the Detroit Tigers and Chicago White Sox.

 

NOT REALLY MISSING IN ACTION: 1976 ORLANDO ALVAREZ

Up on the blog today, a guy who has had two other "missing" cards created here over the years, former outfielder Orlando Alvarez, with a 1976 edition this time:

Alvarez appeared in only four games for the Los Angeles Dodgers during the 1975 season, going 0-4 at the plate while putting in some time out in left field.

He made his MLB debut in 1973 with four games, going 1-for-4 at the plate, that first Big League hit a double.

He would find himself as a California Angel in 1976, where he'd get into 15 games, collecting seven hits over 42 at-bats, including the only two home runs of his career, as well as runs batted in, eight.

He would spend 1977 and 1978 bouncing around the Minors for four different organizations before calling it a career, finishing up with a Big League resume that included 25 games, with eight hits over 51 at-bats, good for a .157 batting average, with four runs scored and eight RBI's.

NOT REALLY MISSING IN ACTION: 1969 TED SIMMONS

Good day all!

Today on the blog, from my WTHBALLS custom "1960s Special" set released earlier this year, a 1969 "not so missing" card for Hall of Fame catcher Ted Simmons:

Look at this guys career!

He made his MLB debut during the 1968 season when he appeared in two games for the St. Louis Cardinals, going 1-for-3 at the plate.

The following year he played in five games, hitting .214 with three hits over 14 official at-bats, including his first three runs batted in.

Simmons went on to post a Big League resume that included eight All-Star nods, six seasons of 20+ homers, eight 90+ RBI campaigns and seven years of a .300 or better average.
By the time he retired after the 1988 season, he finished with 2472 hits, 248 homers, 1389 RBIs and a .285 average.
At the same time, playing in the era of the free-swinging 70’s and 80’s, he struck out only 694 times in 9685 plate appearances while twice leading his league in Intentional Base on Balls.
I have always been stunned at the fact that “Simba” garnered a meager 3.7% vote in his first chance at the Hall of Fame, thus becoming a ridiculous “one and done” candidate.

SO happy that they finally made this right and voted him in for his rightful place in Cooperstown!

 

WTHBALLS 1950 CUSTOM SET: WALT DROPO

Good day al!

On the blog today, another card from my 2018 WTHBALLS "Stars of 1950" candy-bar custom card set, this one of Walt Dropo, who had himself one of the greatest rookie seasons the game has ever seen:

I remember thinking of Dropo back in 2012 when Mike Trout was having his amazing rookie season.
I always felt that Trout, while an incredible talent, was a bit over-hyped with his rookie season numbers, especially when people kept saying it was the greatest rookie season of all-time.
Right off the bat I kept thinking of a few that I felt were better, including Dropo’s unreal rookie year that saw him hit .322 with 34 homers, 144 runs batted in and 101 runs scored, with a .583 slugging percentage and 326 total bases.
Now I’m not saying it’s THE best rookie year, but it IS a season I felt was on par, if not better than Trout’s.
Anyone have another rookie season they feel was “the best”?
I think of two that “technically” weren’t rookie years, but should be: Joe Jackson’s 1911 season and Alex Rodriguez’ 1996 season.
Why ISN’T Jackson’s 1911 season considered a rookie season anyway?

As for Dropo's MLB career, he played through the 1961 season, finishing up with a .270 average with 152 homers and 704 RBIs over 1288 games and 4124 at-bats.

Though he never matched those rookie numbers again, he did have some very good seasons playing for not only the Red Sox, but the Detroit Tigers and Chicago White Sox.

 

CAREER-CAPPER: 1967 BOBBY RICHARDSON

Today on the blog we have a 1967 "Career-Capper" for New York Yankees great Bobby Richardson, who closed out a wonderful Big League career in 1966:

An often overlooked important cog in the last great Yankee dynasty "hurrah" of the early '60's, Richardson won five Gold Gloves during the decade, as well as finishing second in M.V.P. voting in 1962 behind teammate Mickey Mantle while making eight All-Star teams.
As a matter of fact, between 1961 and 1965 he garnered M.V.P. consideration each year, and was named to the American League all-star team five times between 1962-1966.
Even though he retired at the young age of 30, Richardson ended up with 1432 hits, leading the A.L. with 209 in 1962.
Little bit of a side note: I remember as a young Don Mattingly fanatic in 1984 that Richardson was being mentioned repeatedly during the season as the last Yankee to attain 200 hits, since it was clear Mattingly was well on his way to that magic number himself while battling teammate Dave Winfield for the batting title.

For his career, which spanned 1955 through 1966, Richardson hit .266 with 1432 hits in 5386 at-bats in 1412 games, all for the Yankees, while being a part of four World Series winning squads.

NOT REALLY MISSING IN ACTION: 1982 JIM NETTLES

Fun card to create for the blog today, a "not so missing" 1982 card for Jim Nettles, who appeared in one solitary game for the Oakland A's in 1981:

Jim, the younger brother of third base star Graig, bunted in his sole at-bat in 1981, which turned out to be the last at-bat of his MLB career.

Originally up with the Minnesota Twins in 1970, the most he ever played in one season was 1972 when he suited up for 102 games in Minnesota, hitting .204 with 48 hits in 235 at-bats with four homers and 15 runs batted in.

He played 1970-1972 with the Twins, 1974 with the Detroit Tigers, 1979 with the Kansas City Royals and 1981 with the A's.

In 1975 and 1976 he did play in Japan and Mexico respectively, but hit .234 and .196 in those two international performances.

By the time he called it a career, his MLB numbers added to a .220 average with 129 hits, 16 homers, 57 RBIs and 68 runs scored over 240 games and 587 at-bats.

WTHBALLS CUSTOM SET SPOTLIGHT: 1960S STARS OF THE GAME: HARMON KILLEBREW

On the blog today, correcting an erroneous post from a couple months back, my 1960 "Stars of the Game" card for HOF slugger Harmon Killebrew, from my custom set released in 2018:

I remember the first time I saw Harmon Killebrew's statistics when my cousin gave me a 1973 card of him when I was about 11 years old in 1980.
I couldn't believe what I was seeing. All the home runs, all the R.B.I.'s from a player I never knew about. To count out EIGHT 40+ home run seasons blew me away.
This was right before I got my first Macmillan Encyclopedia, so baseball cards really were the only place back then to see stats of players who were around before you were a fan. I just kept rereading those power stats again and again, amazed every time as if I was seeing them for the first time.
Throw in the fact that the 1973 card of Killebrew is pretty damn cool, I was hooked on "Killer" ever since.
Over the years I was able to meet him on more than one occasion and just listen to him tell some stories, not just about baseball but some golf thrown in for good measure. He was an amazing person who was friendly, patient and always seemed to have a smile on his face.
Playing for Washington, Minnesota and a final season in Kansas City between 1954 and 1975, Killebrew mashed 573 home runs to go along with 1584 R.B.I.'s, winning an M.V.P. award along the way in 1969 while finishing in the top five in voting five other seasons.
In 1984 he was inducted in the Hall of Fame, capping off a stellar career that sometimes gets lost among the Mantles, Mays, Clementes and Aarons that were garnering all the attention in the same era.

NOT REALLY MISSING IN ACTION: 1964 JOHN PACIOREK

At long last, I have finally gotten around to creating a "missing" 1964 card for the ultimate "one-game wonder", John Paciorek of the Houston Colt .45s:

As we all know Paciorek, the older brother of both Tom and Jim Paciorek, appeared in one solitary game at the end of the 1963 season for Houston, putting in perhaps the greatest one-game career the sport has ever seen.

On September 29th against the New York Mets, John, making his Major League debut, started out in right field and proceeded to go 3-for-3 at the plate with four runs scored and three runs batted in along with two walks, helping the "Colts" win 13-4 on the last game of the season.

With that game in the books, Paciorek went home to wait until the next season, batting a cool 1.000 for his bright career.

As a Spring Training invitee in 1964, his performance was just not enough to make the team, so off to the Minors he went.

Sadly, during the year he injured his spine, leading to spinal fusion surgery, causing him to miss the latter part of the 1964 season and all of 1965.

Though he did manage to return to the Minors in 1966, he just couldn't get back into the groove of things, hitting .193 combined with the Batavia Trojans and Salisbury Astros.

In 1967 things didn't fare much better, as he hit a combined .104 over 32 games with Asheville and Cocoa, collecting only seven hits over 67 at-bats, leading to a release at the end of the year.

He did bounce back some in 1968, signing with the Cleveland Indians organizations and splitting the year between Reno and Rock Hill.

Over 95 games that year he hit .268 with 20 homers and 73 RBIs, giving his new club some hopes for the future.

However, after hitting only .213 over 29 games with Waterbury, he was released, never to play pro ball again.

Nevertheless, no one can take away the fact that in his one day as a Major League ballplayer at the tender young age of only 18, he was perfect!

 

"CLASSIC BASEBALL" CUSTOM WTHBALLS SET: AMOS OTIS

Good day all!

Time to add underrated All-Star outfielder Amos Otis to my long-running "Classic Baseball" custom set, celebrating the game's rich history:

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, while also driving in 90+ three times and 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.

 

NOT REALLY MISSING IN ACTION: 1970 TOM HUTTON

Up on the blog today, how about a "not so missing" 1970 card for infielder/outfielder Tom Hutton, who started his career as a member of the Los Angeles Dodgers:

Hutton originally made his MLB debut during the 1966 season as a 20-year-old, appearing in three games for the eventual National league champs, hitless in two at-bats.

After spending all 1967 and 1968 in the Minors, he was back in the Big Leagues in 1969 with 16 games, hitting .271  with two runs scored and four runs batted in.

Sadly for him he'd be back in the Minors until 1972, when he made it back to the Majors for good, now a member of the Philadelphia Phillies.

He'd play through the 1981 season, suiting up for the Toronto Blue Jays and Montreal Expos as well as the previous two teams, appearing in 952 games overall, hitting .248 with 410 hits in 1655 at-bats, playing both the outfield spots and first base over his career.

 

FIXING UP ALL-STAR CARDS: 1985 ROD CAREW

Once again, time to "fix" Topps' All-Star cards for Rod Carew, who was left out for the second year in a row in favor of a non-starter, this time the 1985 set:

Carew was once again selected by fans to start the Midsummer Classic in 1984, yet Topps decided to go with Eddie Murray once again, as they did in the 1984 set.

Carew was STILL an automatic at that slot for years at the time, and was the starter yet again in 1984.

The man was a player for the ages, as he would go on to play in 18 All-Star games, missing only his final season in the Majors in 1985. Just incredible.

The first nine seasons of his career were as an All-Star second baseman, while the last nine were as a first baseman.

The legend topped .300 15 years in a row, with a high of .388 in 1977 on his way to a Most Valuable Player Award and capturing the public’s attention with his .400 chase late in the season.
A clear-cut Hall of Fame player, he was inducted on his first year of eligibility in 1991 when he garnered 90.5% of the vote, which leaves me with the question: who the hell are the 9.5% who DIDN’T vote for him!!!???

3053 hits, a .328 career average, 353 stolen bases and 15 straight seasons of .300+ batting.

The man was a hitting machine, and I'm so glad I got to see him play during his magnificent career!

REVISIT: 1972 MISSING IN ACTION: "IN ACTION"- GENE TENACE

Time again to revisit a 10+ year-old post from the blog, this time my card for All-Star catcher-First Baseman Gene Tenace of the dynastic Oakland A's:

Though he didn’t put in a full season for the A’s in 1972, he was just beginning to become one of the key players in Oakland’s three-peat team that also included Reggie Jackson, Joe Rudi and Sal Bando.
Putting in time behind the plate as well as at first base, Tenace went on to hit over 20 homers five times in his career along with six seasons of drawing 100+ walks.
After the 1976 season Tenace, along with many of his star teammates was shipped off by eccentric team owner Charlie Finley, and found himself as a member of the San Diego Padres, where he would play for the next four seasons before moving on to St. Louis for two years and lastly the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1983, his last in the big leagues.
He would total 15-years in the Major Leagues, winning three championships, an all-star berth in 1975, and hitting 201 home runs while batting .241 along with a very nice .388 on-base-percentage because of his walk totals.
Oh yeah, and he had an awesome full name: Fiore Gino Tennaci!

 

WTHBALLS CUSTOM SET SPOTLIGHT: 1960S STARS OF THE GAME: VADA PINSON

Good day all!

On the blog today, from my custom "Stars of the Game" 1960 gelatin set, my card for the terribly underrated Vada Pinson:

The man put in season after season as a top-notch player who got lost amid the Mays, Aarons and Clementes reigning the National League when he came up.

Heck, he even got lost on his own team, the Cincinnati Reds, trying to share the spotlight with guys like Frank Robinson and Pete Rose!

When you look at Pinson’s career, you should be impressed with what he accomplished between 1958 and 1975.
The man could slug the ball, hitting 256 home runs, while also swipe a base, as his 305 steals show. He collected 200+ hits in a season four times while topping .300 four times with a high of .343 in 1961 for the pennant winning Reds.
He led the N.L. in hits, doubles and triples two times each, while also topping the Senior Circuit in runs in his first full season, 1959, with 131.
By the time he completed his career, he topped 2700 hits, 1300 runs, 1100 runs batted in, 250 homers and 300 stolen bases.
To this day it amazes me that guys like Pinson, Al Oliver, & Steve Garvey get snubbed by both the BBWA at first, then the Veterans Committee, yet Cooperstown has players like Stonewall Jackson, Chick Hafey, Jesse Haines and “High Pockets” Kelly in there.

 

CAREER-CAPPER: 1983 JOE CHARBONEAU

On the blog today, a fun card to add to the WTHBALLS roster, and part of the next custom set, a 1983 "career-capper" for former Rookie of the Year Joe Charboneau, whose career came to a quick end after the 1982 season:

Charboneau went "from the penthouse to the basement" rather quickly, earning the American League Rookie of the Year Award in 1980 after hitting .289 with 23 homers and 87 RBIs for the Cleveland Indians.

He also became somewhat of a media icon at the time, gaining fame and appearing all over media outlets ala Mark Fidrych or Fernando Valenzuela.

However he could not repeat his production at the plate in 1981, hitting .210 with four homers and 18 RBIs over 48 games during the strike season.

1982 didn't fare any better for the young slugger, as it would see him appear in only 22 games, hitting .214 with two homers and nine RBIs, dealing with injuries that brought his career to a quick halt.

He'd play another two seasons in the Minors before calling it a pro career, before making a stunt of a return in the Frontier League as a 45-year-old in 2000 with Canton, collecting a single in his lone at-bat.

Sadly the "Super Joe" legend didn't last enough for the fans in Cleveland, who thought they had a young stud on their hands during that glorious Summer of 1980.

 

NOT REALLY MISSING IN ACTION: 1977 JERRY CRAM

Up on the blog today, a "not so missing" 1977 card for former pitcher Jerry Cram, who suited up for the Kansas City Royals in 1976:

In 1976, he was back where it all began for him in the Big Leagues, Kansas City, where he worked what turned out to be the last four games of his career, not factoring in a decision and posting an ERA of 6.23 over 4.1 innings.
He would go on to pitch in the Kansas City minor league system for another five years, through the 1981 season, before retiring for good, ending up with a record of 0-3, with a final ERA of 2.98 over 23 games and 48.1 innings.

He broke into the Majors in 1969 with the Royals when he appeared in five games as a 21-year-old, going 0-1 over 16.2 innings with a 3.24 earned run average.

He'd spend 1970 through 1973 in the Minors before making it back to the Big Leagues, now a member of the New York Mets, appearing in a combined 14 games between 1974 and 1975, going 0-2.

 

1981 DRAKE'S BIG PITCHERS: FERGIE JENKINS

Today on the blog, another card from my 1981 "Drake's Big Pitchers" set released about a year ago, this one my Fergie Jenkins card:

He'd eventually post six 20-win seasons, six 200-strikeout seasons, five 300+-inning years, four sub-3.00 E.R.A. Years and become the first pitcher in Major League history to finish with 3000+ strikeouts with LESS than 1000 base on balls.

Overall in 19-seasons Jenkins finished with a 284-226 record, with a 3.34 earned run average, 49 shutouts and 3192 strikeouts over 664 games, 594 of which were starts.

In 1991 he capped off his career with an induction into Cooperstown on his third try, just getting the 75% of the vote with 75.4% support.

Such a treat to be able to have seen him pitch in the Big Leagues! The days of strong starters going deep into games.

 

NOT REALLY MISSING IN ACTION: 1976 EDDIE SOLOMON

On the blog today, we have a "not so missing" 1976 card for former pitcher Eddie Solomon, who was left out of a few Topps sets early on in his career:

Solomon, who would go on to pitch 10 years in the Major Leagues, appeared in four games for the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1973, not factoring in a decision with a 7.11 earned run average over 6.1 innings.
He’d appear in just four games the following season as well, but would see much better results, posting an ERA of 1.50 over 6 innings, allowing just one earned run.

In 1975 he'd appear in only six games for the Chicago Cubs, his only season with the organization, not factoring in a decision while pitching to a 1.35 ERA over 6.2 innings of work.
He’d spend the rest of his career as an arm that could start or come out of the bullpen, mainly with the Atlanta Braves and Pittsburgh Pirates, for whom he pitched between 1977 and 1982.
He finished his career with a record of 36-42, along with an ERA of exactly 4.00 over 191 appearances and 718 innings, with 95 of those games as starts.
Sadly, in January of 1986 at the young age of only 34, he died in a car accident in Macon, Georgia.

 

WTHBALLS 1950 CUSTOM SET: WARREN SPAHN

Good day all! On the blog today, another card from my 2018 "1950 Stars of the Game" custom set, Warren Spahn, all-time great lefty and a favorite subject of mine:

Anyone who has followed this blog long enough knows by now that any time I can create a card for the mighty lefty, I will take it!

The man was amazing, flat out, and by the time he retired in 1965 he posted a 363-245 record, with a 3.09 ERA, 63 shutouts, 28 saves and 2583 strikeouts over 750 appearances, 665 of which were starts.

Oh yeah, he also hit 35 career home runs along with 189 runs batted in with (coincidentally) 363 hits!

And remember he didn’t win his first game until he was 25 years of age, as he served in the military from 1943 to 1945.

His first 20-game season was 1947 (at the age of 26), and he kept right on rolling until his final 20-game season in 1963!

In between, he ended up posting 13 such campaigns, leading the league eight times (with five of those coming consecutively from 1957 to 1961).

Just an amazing career!

REVISIT: MISSING IN ACTION- 1976 MIKE SQUIRES

Revisiting a 10+ year-old post showing my "missing" 1976 card for former first baseman Mike Squires.

Here’s what would be a “missing” rookie card for Gold Glove winning first baseman Mike Squires, who would spend his entire 10-year career with the Chicago White Sox:

Squires came up to the Major Leagues in 1975, appearing in 20 games for the Pale Hose, batting .231 over 65 at-bats.
After a season in the Minors in ‘76, he was in the Big Leagues to say in 1977, generally a guy off the bench, specifically as a defensive replacement, leading to a Gold Glove Award in the strike-shortened 1981 season.
By the time he was out of the Majors after a couple of games in 1985, he left behind a .260 batting average with 411 hits over 1580 at-bats in 779 games, with a career .995 fielding percentage.
Nevertheless, as it stands Squires first card would be in that horrible black-and-white multi-player rookie sub-set in the 1979 set.
On a side-note, never realized that in the 1976 Topps set, there isn’t a first baseman among all the White Sox players.  I had to get creative to whip up a first baseman template for this card.

 

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 realized I messed up about a month ago with this post, accidentally showing a Killebrew card instead of Mazeroski, so here it is today!

A nice 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 holds 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.

 

CAREER-CAPPER: 1984 BOBBY MURCER

Up on the blog today, from my next WTHBALLS custom set, we finally get around to creating a 1984 "Career-Capper" for one of the nicest men to ever take the field, Bobby Murcer:

Murcer appeared in only nine games for the New York Yankees in 1983, the final games of his very nice 17-year career.

He made his MLB debut in 1965, appearing in 11 games for the New York Yankees and hitting .243 with a homer and four runs batted in while putting in time at shortstop.

After 21 more games in 1966, he lost two years to military service before coming back as a full-time Big League outfielder in 1969, slugging 26 homers with 82 RBIs and a .259 batting average over 152 games.

Murcer really did have a very nice career, especially those seasons between 1969 and 1977 when he drove in over 80 runs eight times, while topping 90 five of those seasons.
He hit as high as .331 (1971) while hitting as many as 33 homers (1972), while also leading the league in runs scored with 102 in 1972, OBP with a .427 mark in 1971 and total bases with 314 again in 1972.
He made five straight All-Star teams from 1971 through 1975, and was in the top-10 in MVP voting three straight years: 1971-1973.
Much more importantly, the man was one of the nicest human beings on the planet, as I can attest to, meeting him on more than a few occasions.
He was just as “real” as it got.
Rest in Peace Bobby. You are truly missed.

 

"CLASSIC BASEBALL" CUSTOM WTHBALLS SET: JIM RICE

The next player to get a card in my long-running "Classic Baseball" custom set, slugger and Hall of Famer Jim Rice of the Boston Red Sox:

I'm STILL amazed with Rice's run from 1977 through 1979! Even though he only pulled in one M.V.P., he was an absolute terror at the plate.

Over 200 hits each year, along with 39, 46 and 39 homers, as well as averaging 124 runs batted in and a .320 average.

Then you notice that the dude hit 15, 15 and 6 TRIPLES those years, leading the league in homers AND triples in 1978.

I mean, that is just plain RAKING at the plate!

Man, Rice used to terrify me as a young Yankee fan. He was just plain brutal to opposing pitchers, and it was a shame that he had to wait so long to get elected into Cooperstown. 

By the time Rice was done in the Big Leagues, he'd finish with 2400+ hits, 382 homers, 1451 runs batted in and a .298 lifetime average.

Five times would he finish in the running for Most Valuable Player besides the year he took it home.

Absolute STUD!

 

OPC IMAGE VARIATIONS: 1977 BOMBO RIVERA

Time for another look at some OPC to Topps image variations, this time the 1977 difference for Montreal Expos outfielder Bombo Rivera:

OPC version

Topps version

Another one of those strange "zoom-in" differences that OPC decided on as opposed to the cropping Topps used.

As for Rivera, he would play in 68 games in 1976 for the Expos, hitting a very respectable .276 with 51 hits over 185 at-bats, with 22 runs scored and 19 RBIs.
After a full 1977 season in the Minors, he was back in the Majors for 1978, now with the Minnesota Twins, where he would play over the next three seasons, hitting .271, .281 and .221 before spending all of 1981 in the Minors again.
In 1982, still only 29 years of age, he was back in the Big Leagues, though now with the Kansas City Royals, where he’d appear in only five games, the last five of his career it turned out, as he’d hit .100 with one hit over 10 at-bats.
Far from retiring, he took his talents to both Japan and Mexico, where he ended up playing another six seasons, through 1988, finally retiring as an active player.
Overall, for his MLB career, he finished with a .265 average over 335 games, with 220 hits in 831 at-bats, with 109 runs scored and 83 RBIs between 1975 and 1982.

 

1981 DRAKE'S BIG PITCHERS: GAYLORD PERRY

The next card from my "Drake's Big Pitchers" custom set to get the spotlight is my card for 300-game winner Gaylord Perry:

For me growing up in the late-70’s/early-80s, Perry was the stuff of legend since he was the first player I remember reaching 3000 strikeouts, which at the time made him only the THIRD player to do so behind Walter Johnson and Bob Gibson.
He was also (and I remember this vividly) the first pitcher to reach 300 wins since Early Wynn, which was a 20 year gap, the first pitcher to win a Cy Young Award in both leagues, which he did with the Indians in 1972 and the Padres in 1978.
That 1978 season saw him take home the award after a fantastic year that saw him go 21-6 with a 2.73 earned run average at the age of 39 after coming over from the Texas Rangers.
People may also forget that for a relatively brief moment he was the all-time strikeout king before a couple of guys by the name of Nolan Ryan and Steve Carlton caught up soon after.
He posted five 20-win seasons, finishing with 314 for his career, along with 53 shutouts and 3534 strikeouts over a 22-year Big League career, tossing 300+ innings six times.
Is it safe to say that he’s almost a forgotten all-time great?

NOT REALLY MISSING IN ACTION: 1962 WILBUR WOOD

Fun card to spotlight from my "1960s Special" set released earlier this year, a "not so missing" 1962 card for Wilbur Wood:

Wood made his major League debut in 1961 with six appearances for the Boston Red Sox, not factoring in a decision while pitching to a 5.54 ERA over 13 innings at the age of 19.

The reliever-turned-starter strung four straight 20-win seasons for the Chicago White Sox after some pretty amazing years coming out of the bullpen in the late-60’s, with three top-5 Cy Young finishes between 1971-1973.
His 1972 season is the stuff of legends, as he started 49 games, knuckling his way through an astounding 376.2 innings!!!
The following season he worked another 359.1 innings on 48 starts, equaling his 24 wins from the year prior and leading the American League once again.
I’ve also always been fascinated with his 1968 season when, appearing in 88 games, all but two as a reliever, he went 13-12 with a microscopic 1.87 earned run average, with 16 saves over 159 innings pitched.
The man was incredible no matter where his team used him!
Sadly for him however, when you’re pitching during the same era as Jim Palmer, Jim Hunter, etc, you’ll tend to get lost in the shuffle, thus the Cy Young snubs each year.
By the time he retired after the 1978 season, Wood finished with a 164-156 record, appearing in 651 games, with 297 of them starts.
He’d have a final ERA of 3.24, with 24 career shutouts, 1411 strikeouts and 57 saves over 2684 innings pitched.
He led his league in pitching appearances three times, all consecutive, then went on to lead the league in starts four years in a row soon after.

 

REVISIT: MISSING IN ACTION: 1977 CHAMP SUMMERS

Thought it'd be a good time to revisit another 10+ year old post from the blog!

This time we'll go with my "missing" 1977 card for former outfielder Champ Summers:

Summers played in 83 games with the North-Siders in 1976, batting .206 with 26 hits in 126 at-bats, with 11 runs scored and 13 runs batted in.

However as the 1977 season started he would actually be suiting up for the World Champion Cincinnati Reds as he was traded for former New York Mets player Dave Schneck.

He’d put in about two-and-a-half years there before moving on to the Detroit Tigers midway through the 1979 season, seeing pretty much the only full-time action of his eleven-year career before closing it all out with two years for the San Francisco Giants and a final stop for the San Diego Padres in 1984.

All told he wound up with a .255 career average based on his 350 hits in 1371 at-bats spread out over 698 games, with 199 runs and 218 RBI’s, with 54 homers, 21 of which were hit in 1979 for his personal best.

FIXING UP ALL-STAR CARDS: 1985 DAVE STIEB

Seriously! Has there been a player from this era that was more "shafted" than Dave Stieb?

Topps did him wrong yet again by leaving him out of the "All-Star" mix, even though he was the starting pitcher for the American League for the second straight year.

So today we go and give him his rightful All-Star card in the 1985 set:

 

He was such a work-horse in the 1980s!

Stieb would lead the A.L. in WAR three seasons in a row from 1982-1984, and would make seven All-Star teams, while getting Cy Young attention four times.

He would post 15+ wins six times, with a high of 18 in 1990, when he finally spun a no-hitter after a few near-misses in the ninth-inning.

By the time he retired he finished with a record of 176-137 over 443 games, with 30 shutouts and 1669 strikeouts, completing 103 of this starts.

I dreaded any time Stieb was starting against the Yankees, as he seemed to have their number every single time.

Such a great pitcher any team would have been lucky to have on their roster!

 

CAREER-CAPPER: 1981 PAUL BLAIR

As requested a while back, here is the long overdue 1981 "Career-Capper" for defensive outfielder extraordinaire, Paul Blar, who wrapped up a wonderful Major League career in 1980 as a member of the New York Yankees:

Blair appeared in only 12 games for the Yankees in his final Big League season, going 0-for-2 at the plate while putting in time as a defensive replacement in the outfield.

Though a decent hitter in his own right, Blair was a superstar fielding outfielder for the O's, taking home eight Gold Gloves for his excellence in the field, seven consecutively between 1969-1975.

He was known to taunt hitters by playing shallow, then sprinting deep to track down fly balls.

A member of four world champion teams (Orioles in 1966/70; Yankees 1977/78), Blair put together an excellent 17-year career playing between 1964 and 1980 for the Orioles, Yanks and Reds.

He'd finish with a .250 batting average with 1513 hits, 134 homers and 171 stolen bases over 1947 games and 6673 plate appearances.

 

"CLASSIC BASEBALL" CUSTOM WTHBALLS SET: GAYLORD PERRY

The next baseball great to get a card in my long-running "Classic Baseball" WTHBALLS custom set is HOF pitcher Gaylord Perry:

For me growing up in the late-70’s/early-80s, Perry was the stuff of legend since he was the first player I remember reaching 3000 strikeouts, which at the time made him only the THIRD player to do so behind Walter Johnson and Bob Gibson.
He was also (and I remember this vividly) the first pitcher to reach 300 wins since Early Wynn, which was a 20 year gap, the first pitcher to win a Cy Young Award in both leagues, which he did with the Indians in 1972 and the Padres in 1978.
That 1978 season saw him take home the award after a fantastic year that saw him go 21-6 with a 2.73 earned run average at the age of 39 after coming over from the Texas Rangers.
People may also forget that for a relatively brief moment he was the all-time strikeout king before a couple of guys by the name of Nolan Ryan and Steve Carlton caught up soon after.
He posted five 20-win seasons, finishing with 314 for his career, along with 53 shutouts and 3534 strikeouts over a 22-year Big League career, tossing 300+ innings six times.
Is it safe to say that he’s almost a forgotten all-time great?

WTHBALLS 1950 CUSTOM SET: YOGI BERRA

Today we'll finally put a spotlight on my 1950 WTHBALLS custom set, released back in 2018, celebrating the stars of the game at that time, beginning with Hall of Fame catcher Yogi Berra:

The set of bookmark sized cards were packaged with a bonus "all-time leaders" six card set, packaged inside a candy bar themes wrap as seen in the image included here.

It was a popular release and sold out quickly, and I thank you all who purchased one!

As for Mr. Berra, let's see, the man was a three-time American League Most Valuable Player, a FIFTEEN-TIME all-star, and received Most Valuable Player votes every single year between 1947 and 1961. As a matter of fact, between 1950 and 1956 he never finished lower than fourth for the MVP, with three wins, and two second place finishes!

That's seven top-4 finishes in seven years! Just awesome.

Oh yeah, let's not forget the fact that he was a member of TEN world championship teams! Amazing!

Except for four scant games in 1965 with the New York Mets, Berra played the rest of his 19-year career with the Bronx Bombers, amassing 358 homers, 1430 runs batted in and a .285 average.

One other note about his amazing career: the man only struck out 414 times over 8359 at-bats!

YOGI!!! I loved that man!

A true baseball treasure…

 

NOT REALLY MISSING IN ACTION: 1969 HAL McRAE

Up on the blog today, we have a "not so missing" 1969 card for DHing master Hal McRae, who started out his career with the Cincinnati Reds:

McRae appeared in 17 games for the Reds in 1968, hitting .196 with the first ten hits of his very nice Big League career, driving in two while scoring one himself.

McRae didn’t actually play in any Major League games during the 1969 season, but he did make his Big League debut in 1968 with 17 games, hitting .196 with 10 hits over 51 at-bats as a 22-year-old second baseman.
He’d be back in the Majors in 1970, where he would stay for the next 18 seasons putting together an excellent career, becoming one of the first true full-time designated hitters once he was traded to the Kansas City Royals before the 1973 campaign.
All McRae would end up doing once in a Royals uniform is put in a 15-year run where he became one of the best hitters in the league, with three All-Star nods, six .300+ batting average seasons, and MVP consideration four times.
By the time he was done, he retired with a career .290 batting average, with 2091 hits, 484 doubles and 1097 runs batted in over 2084 games and 7218 at-bats, making three All-Star teams and finishing top-5 in MVP voting twice (1976 and 1982).