1960S IN-ACTION: 1966 JOE MORGAN

On the blog today, spotlighting my 1966 "In-Action" card for Joe Morgan, from my recent set released a few months ago:

 

For Mr. Morgan, the man was just beginning a run that would send him straight to the Hall of Fame, while helping eventually build a juggernaut of a team forever known as the "Big Red Machine" when he was dealt to to Cincinnati before the 1972 season.

Those Reds teams would win two straight World Series in 1975 and 1976, and field teams with the likes of Pete Rose, Johnny Bench, George Foster and Ken Griffey Sr.

By the time he retired after the 1984 season at the age of 40, he finished with two MVP Awards, 10 All-Star nods, five Gold Gloves, 2517 hits, 1650 runs scored, 268 homers and a cool 689 stolen bases with 1865 walks.
One of the all-timers right there at second base!

 

MISSING IN ACTION: 1966 RUDY MAY

Let's go way back into the 1960s for today's "missing" card, that of pitcher Rudy May, then of the California Angels, and a 1966 edition:

May made his Major League debut in 1965 as a 20-year-old, appearing in 30 games and tossing 124 innings, certainly good enough for a card in the 1966 set.

He posted a record of 4-9 with a 3.92 earned run average, striking out 76 batters while throwing a shutout.

All told, he posted a 152-159 career record, with a 3.46 earned run average, 24 shutouts, 12 saves and 1760 strikeouts between 1965 and 1983.

His finest year was easily 1980, when he led the American League in E.R.A. with a nice 2.46 mark, WHIP at 1.044 and strikeouts-to-walks with a 3.41 number as a member of the New York Yankees.

DEDICATED ROOKIE: 1966 BOBBY MURCER

Today on the blog, we have a fun addition to my 1960's "dedicated rookies", my 1966 edition for Bobby Murcer, a beloved man not only in the Bronx but wherever he laid his ball-cap over his illustrious career:

Murcer 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.

 

THE WHOLE NINE: SERIES 2- 1966 MASANORI MURAKAMI

On the blog today, from my recent "Whole Nine: Series 2" custom set released a few months back, my "missing" 1966 card for Masanori Murakami, the first Japanese-player to play Major League ball:

While mainly known as the groundbreaking player from Japan, many may forget that he was nothing short of excellent in his brief two year career in the Big Leagues, and could have gone on to put in a wonderful career here in the States if it wasn't for issues with the fact that he was wanted back in Japan to play by Japanese officials.

As a 20-year-old making the historic switch to American ball, Murakami fared very well in 1964, going 1-0 over nine appearances, with a sparkling 1.80 ERA over 15 innings of work, striking out 15 against only one walk, picking up a save.

After an off-season that had a lot of arguing between both sides of the Pacific as to where he'd play in 1965, Murakami was back with the San Francisco Giants, once again proving himself a worthy pitcher in the Majors, going 4-1 over 45 appearances with a 3.75 ERA in 74.1 innings of work, striking out 85 against 22 walks, recording eight saves.

This performance got him a ton of attention both here and in Japan, becoming somewhat of a folk hero in his home country, with Murakami believing he'd be playing in the States for the foreseeable future.

However, Japanese officials convinced him to stay in Japan to play there, causing some fighting among officials for both countries, each side arguing as to why Murakami should be playing for them, eventually causing a rift between American and Japanese ball that would exist for decades after that.

With his home country putting pressure on the young pitcher, he decided to resign with the Nankai Hawks, even though he did want to return to the States to play for the Giants, thus ending his career in the Big Leagues.

His final numbers were great, going 5-1 over 54 games, with a 3.43 ERA over 89.1 innings, striking out 100 batters against only 23 walks, with nine saves for the Giants.

He would return to play in Japan, where he'd put in another 17 seasons, finishing with a record of 103-82 over 566 games, retiring after the 1982 season.

Incredible that we'd have to wait until a fellow by the name of Hideo Nomo came along to see another Japanese player make it here in the States.

 

1960'S "IN-ACTION": 1966 SANDY KOUFAX

Closing out another week here on the blog, we spotlight my 1966 "In-Action" card for Hall of Fame lefty Sandy Koufax, Los Angeles Dodgers legend and fellow-Bensonhurst, Brooklyn native:

Just a fun card imagining if Topps got into producing cards with action photography years before the 1971 set, making for a more varied card collection in the 1960s.

Koufax was unstoppable yet again in 1966, posting an incredible 27-9 record along with a 1.72 earned run average and 317 strikeouts in 41 starts, along with five shutouts and 27 complete games.
Along with an easy Cy Young Award, giving him an unprecedented third such claim to baseball’s top pitching prize, he finished second to the Pirates’ Roberto Clemente for league MVP.
It was the fifth season in a row that Koufax overpowered National League batters, leading the league in ERA each and every time, along with THREE 25+ win & 300+ strikeout campaigns.
But sadly and shockingly, Koufax would have to retire at the top of his game because of recurring arm problems that could have left him without the use of his left arm the rest of his life.
Rather than suffer long-term injury, Koufax left the game and many of us to wonder so many “what-if’s” had he been able to continue on into the 1970’s.

 

1960'S DEDICATED ROOKIE: 1966 FERGIE JENKINS

On the blog today, we spotlight my 1966 "dedicated rookie" card for pitching great Fergie Jenkins, who began his fantastic career as a member of the Philadelphia Phillies:

The card was part of my fun "1960's Dedicated Rookie" set released a few years back, easily one of the more popular sets I've produced since starting the blog.

For Jenkins, the 22-year-old appeared in seven games for the Phillies in 1965, going 2-1 over 12.1 innings with a very nice 2.19 EAR and 10 strikeouts.

After one game with Philadelphia in 1966 he was shipped to Chicago in a multi-player trade that the Phillies would LOVE to take back, as Jenkins would go on to reel off six straight 20-win seasons beginning in 1967, taking home the Cy Young Award in 1971.

As we all know, by the time he hung them up he put together a Hall of Fame career, topping 280 wins, 3000 strikeouts, with 49 shutouts, a Cy Young Award in 1971 and four other top-3 finishes in the award voting.
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.
On a geeky side-note, “Fly” was also the first pitcher to ever register 3000+ strikeouts while issuing less than 1000 base on balls.

The man was truly "Fly"!

 

1960'S DEDICATED ROOKIES: 1966 DON SUTTON

Today's blog post has us putting a spotlight on my 1966 "dedicated rookie" for the great Don Sutton, from my custom set released a few years ago:

A really fun set to produce, and one of the most popular sets among you all over the years, there was a plethora of future Hall of Famers to create dedicated cards for from the 1960s.

Sutton was set to start a wonderful 23-year run in the Major Leagues, reeling off win after win for the Los Angeles Dodgers coming up as a 21-year-old in 1966.

The man was a machine, and while some people think incredible steadiness like this doesn’t warrant a Hall of Fame selection, I do!

There is something to celebrate when a player performs year after year over a long period of time (think Eddie Murray) without having a “mega-season” along the way.
By the time Sutton left the game after the 1988 season, he finished with 324 wins, a 3.26 earned run average, 58 shutouts and 3574 strikeouts in 774 appearances, 756 of them starts.
Needless to say, in 1998, on his fifth try, he made it into Cooperstown, joining former teammates Sandy Koufax and Don Drysdale, with 81.6% of the vote.

 

MISSING IN ACTION: 1966 WORLD SERIES CARD: 1965 GAME SEVEN

On the blog today, we finally get to the seventh game of the 1965 World Series, in a 1966 sub-set that Topps decided to skip in their set:

After falling behind in the Series two-games-to-one, the Los Angeles Dodgers came all the way back to win it all in the seventh game, thanks in part to Sandy Koufax and his three-hit shutout, in which he struck out ten.

Koufax was masterful, as he walked three while giving up two singles and a double, winning his second game of the Series after a Game Two loss, giving the Dodgers their second championship in three years.

For the Minnesota Twins, their Game Two winner Jim Kaat took the loss this time, giving up two runs in his three innings of work, the only two runs the Dodgers would score, or even need for that matter.

Lou Johnson hit a homer while Wes Parker went two-for-four with an RBI for the Dodgers, with Jim Gilliam also collecting two hits in the Fall Classic.

That wraps up a fun "missing" 1960's sub-set here on the blog, and I hope to tackle a few others over the rest of the year.

See you then!

MISSING IN ACTION: 1965 WORLD SERIES GAME 6

Good day everyone!

On the blog today, we move on to a "missing" 1966 World Series card for the 1965 "Fall Classic", which Topps decided to leave out of their set for some reason:

With their backs up against the wall heading into the game down three games to two, the Minnesota Twins tied it all up with a 5-1 win thanks to Game 1 winner Jim "Mudcat" Grant, who picked up HIS second win of the series.

Grant was masterful as he pitched a six-hit complete game, giving up one earned run while striking out five, the only blemish a 7th inning home run by Ron Fairly.

For the Los Angeles Dodgers, Game three hero Claude Osteen took the mound in hopes of taking the title, and he didn't pitch bad at all, giving up two runs, only one earned, over five innings while striking out two and walking three.

Incredibly, Grant also helped his own cause by slamming a three-run homer of reliever Howie Reed in the sixth, giving himself all the run support he needed.

This all set up a Game Seven showdown for the title, with Dodger ace Sandy Koufax facing Twins ace Jim Kaat.

See you next week for THAT card!

MISSING IN ACTION: 1965 WORLD SERIES GAME 5

Today on the blog, we move on to Game 5 of the 1965 World Series in my "missing" 1966 sub-set, which Topps decided to skip in their set:

And just like that the Los Angeles Dodgers came all the way back from a two-games-to-none hole to take the Series lead, three-games-to-two, thanks to Game Two loser Sandy Koufax, who came back to toss a fantastic four-hit shutout, striking out 10 batters.

It was ALL Dodgers this game, with L.A. pouncing on Twins' starter Jim Kaat early for two runs in the first and two more in the third, giving Koufax all the support he needed as he cruised to the complete game win.

For the Dodgers, Maury Wills would go 4-for-5 while Ron Fairly went 3-for-5, out-hitting the Twins themselves by three hits!

Twins starters mustered three hits against Koufax, with pinch-hitter Sandy Valdespino picking up a hit as well.

Heading into Game Six, the Dodgers were poised to win their second championship in three years, see you next week for that card!

 

MISSING IN ACTION: 1965 WORLD SERIES GAME 4

On the blog today, we move on to Game 4 of the 1965 World Series, which was left out of the 1966 Topps set for some reason:

The Los Angeles Dodgers came back to tie the Series up two games apiece after the Twins stunned everyone, taking the first two games for a commanding lead.

Thanks to pitcher Don Drysdale, who took the Game 1 loss, the Dodgers won Game 4 7-2, with Drysdale throwing a complete game, striking out 11 batters while walking two.

Wes Parker and Lou Johnson hit solo homers for the Dodgers, while Ron Fairly drove in three runs, giving Drysdale all the support he needed.

For the Twins, opening game winner Jim "Mudcat" Grant took the loss, giving up five runs in five innings, while Harmon Killebrew and Tony Oliva hit homers in the losing cause.

Next up, game 5!

MISSING IN ACTION: 1965 WORLD SERIES GAME 3

On the blog today, we move on to Game Three of the 1965 World Series in my 1966 sub-set, which Topps inexplicably left out of their set:

With the Minnesota Twins shocking everyone, taking a two-games-to-none lead by beating Los Angeles Dodger aces Don Drysdale and Sandy Koufax, the Series moved to L.A. and the Dodgers needed a win badly.

Luckily for them, young pitcher Claude Osteen was up to the challenge, tossing a complete game shutout with a 4-0 win, striking out two while issuing two walks and allowing five hits.

Twins starter Camilo Pascual allowed three runs over five innings, with Lou Johnson and John Roseboro driving in the three runs in the fourth and fifth innings.

The game was completed in an economical two hours and six minutes, giving the Dodgers life in trying to recapture the Title that they last won two seasons earlier in 1963.

Incredibly, there were only three strikeouts TOTAL in the game, something I cannot imagine nowadays! Incredible.

1965 MISSING WORLD SERIES SUB-SET IN 1966 SET: GAME 2

Today on the blog we have a "missing" 1966 World Series card, this time for Game 2 of the 1965 "Fall Classic" between the Minnesota Twins and Los Angeles Dodgers, which Topps (for some reason) left out of their set:

Shocking the Dodgers and their starter Don Drysdale for a win in Game 1, the Twins would do it again against L.A.'s ace Sandy Koufax, with young Jim Kaat outdueling the reigning N.L. Cy Young winner by a final score of 5-1 to take a commanding 2-0 lead, winning both their games at home at Metropolitan Stadium.

The game was scoreless into the bottom of the sixth inning until Kaat himself drove in the first two runs of the game with a single, giving himself a 2-0 lead.

The Dodgers would cut that lead in half the next inning with a run, but the Twins answered back quickly, scoring a run in their half of the inning before breaking it open in the eighth with two more, with Kaat shutting them down in the top of the ninth for the win.

The Twins would be set up very nicely as the Series would shift to Los Angeles for Game 3, resting on a two game lead, both wins against the L.A. aces in Drysdale and Koufax.

Next week, my card for Game 3!

1960'S CAREER-CAPPERS: 1966 YOGI BERRA

Up on the blog today we have my 1966 "Career-Capper" for All-Time Great Yogi Berra, from my special custom set released a few years back:

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.

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…

1960'S CAREER-CAPPERS: 1966 WARREN SPAHN

A fun one today on the blog, from my "1960's Career-Cappers" set released a few years ago, my 1966 capper for the great, and I mean GREAT, Warren Spahn, who called it an amazing career in 1965 after a brief tenure with the San Francisco Giants:

Spahn began the season with the New Yrok Mets before finding himself out West, appearing in 16 games for the Giants and going 3-4 over that time with a very nice 3.39 ERA in 71.2 innings.

Overall, the 44-year-old went 7-16 in his 21st year of Big League action, appearing in 36 games and ending up with a 4.01 ERA with eight complete games and 197.2 innings pitched with 90 strikeouts.

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 incredible talent! Was there anything he couldn’t do?
Once in a lifetime right there...

 

1960'S CAREER-CAPPERS: 1966 NELLIE FOX

On the blog today, we have my 1966 career-capper for Hall of Famer Nellie Fox, from my "1960's Career-cappers" set released a few years ago:

Fox put together a brilliant Major League career, first as a Hall of Fame second baseman mainly for the Chicago White Sox, then as a coach later on, a true baseball life before sadly passing away at the young age of 47 in 1975.
He led the AL in hits four times in the 1950’s, and of course would lead the Chicago White Sox to the 1959 World Series, taking home the league’s MVP Award for his efforts.
By the time he retired as a player after two years with the Houston Astros in 1964-65, he finished with 2663 hits and a .288 batting average, with twelve all-star nods and three Gold Gloves.
Defensively, it’s incredible to see he led the American League in putouts every single season between 1952 and 1961, while leading the league’s second basemen in fielding percentage six times, double-plays five times and assists six times.
In 1997, the Veteran’s Committee selected Fox for the Hall of Fame, joining former teammates Luis Aparicio and Early Wynn from that 1959 pennant winning team.

1971 BASEBALL'S GREATEST MOMENTS: JIM PALMER 1966 WORLD SERIES SHUTOUT

Today’s blog post has another addition to my new thread adding to the great 1971 Topps “Baseball’s Greatest Moments” set, this time adding Baltimore Orioles Hall of Fame pitcher Jim Palmer, celebrating his 1966 World Series shutout at the age of 20:

 

The Orioles stunned the baseball world with a four-game sweep of the defending champion Los Angeles Dodgers, led by a quartet of young pitchers, including the 20-year-old Palmer.

Palmer was facing off against all-world starter Sandy Koufax, who was coming off another incredible season that saw him win 27 games while posting an incredible 1.73 ERA, good enough for an unprecedented third Cy Young Award.

Palmer was up for the challenge, as he would match zero’s with Koufax through the first four innings, until the Dodgers defense allowed Baltimore to break though.

Palmer in the meantime kept tossing zero’s, eventually winning the game 6-0, with a complete game shutout that gave the Orioles a two-games-to-none lead in the Series, straight to the aforementioned sweep and the unlikely championship.

He scattered four hits in the game, while striking out six batters, this nine days short of his 21^st birthday, becoming the youngest pitcher to win a World Series game.

Just a sign of what the young righty was to do on a Big League mound over the next 16 or so seasons, leading straight to Cooperstown and his place as a “Hall of Fame” pitcher.

CUSTOM SPOTLIGHT: 1966 STEVE CARLTON FROM THE "WHOLE NINE" CUSTOM SET

On the blog today, taking a closer look at my "missing" 1966 card for Hall of Fame lefty Steve Carlton, who was just about to embark on an incredible Big League career that would have him standing shoulder to shoulder with All-Time greats by the time he was done, from my "Whole Nine" card set released last year:

 

Carlton made his major League debut during the 1965 season, appearing in 15 games, with two of those starts, not factoring in a decision while pitching to a 2.52 earned run average as a 20-year-old.

In 1966 it would be more of the same, as he'd appear in only nine games, going 3-3 with a 3.12 ERA in 52 innings of work, striking out 25 while walking 18, also tossing the first shutout of his young Big League tenure.

1967 would see him begin his next level of play, as he'd go 14-9 with a 2.98 ERA over 30 appearances and 193 innings, with two shutouts and 168 strikeouts, helping the St. Louis Cardinals win it all, their second championship in three years.

For Carlton, all he did the rest of the way was top 300 wins, 4000 strikeouts, 50 shutouts and 700 starts in his 24 year career!

The first guy to take home four Cy Young Awards, he led his league in wins four times, strikeouts five times, E.R.A. once and was named to ten all-star teams.

Needless to say, by the time he was eligible for the Hall of Fame, he was in on his first try, getting named to 436 of 456 ballots.

Sure we already had "Lefty" Grove, and "Lefty" Gomez, but Carlton was more than worthy of the same nickname for all of his accomplishments.

JUST FOR THE FUN OF IT: 1966 SATCHEL PAIGE

Today on the blog, just for the fun of it, we have a "not so missing" 1966 card for the great Satchel Paige, a card that was featured in my last custom set the "Whole Nine":

 

On September 25th of 1965, as a publicity stunt by the publicity-loving Charlie Finley, owner of the Kansas City Athletics, the 58-year-old Paige was "signed" to pitch a Major League game.

Twelve years removed from his last Big League game, the incredible ageless one did not disappoint, as he pitched three innings of scoreless ball against the Boston Red Sox, allowing only one hit while striking out a batter.

Just phenomenal, and adding to the legend that was Satchel Paige!

From his start as a 20-year old playing for the Birmingham Black Barons in 1927 to his final Major League appearance as a 58-year old for the Kansas City Athletics, Paige became an American icon not only for his on-field play but for his infectious personality.
Though his career Negro League record is listed as 100-50 over 18-seasons, he won countless other games along the way, as was the usual for the Negro Leagues as they played exhibition and non-league games during gaps in their schedule.
His stories are legend, enough so that by the time the Baseball Hall of Fame got off their ass and finally began electing Negro League all-time greats to Cooperstown, Paige was the very 1st to be so honored.
A 5x time Negro League all-star, 2x American League all-star, Negro League champ in 1942 with the Homestead Grays, and Major League World Champion with the 1948 Cleveland Indians, Paige left a baseball legacy that few could come close to.

This card was one of 16 produced for my "Whole Nine" set, which also had full statistic backs in my October, 2021 set.

Featuring other fun cards "that never were" like 1959 Ted Williams, 1933 Delong Babe Ruth, 1966 Steve Carlton, it was available for a short time through yours truly.

TURN BACK THE CLOCK- 1966 ORIOLES STUN THE DODGERS WITH A WORLD SERIES SWEEP!

Today’s “Turn Back the Clock” moment is more like “moment(s)”, as we celebrate the Baltimore Orioles and their magical 1966 season which ended with a World Championship by SWEEPING the reigning champion Los Angeles Dodgers:

Led by Triple Crown winner Frank Robinson, who came over in a blockbuster deal before the season, the Orioles had a young pitching staff that would not disappoint, led by their “aged veteran” Steve Barber who was only 28.
After finishing their season with a 97-63 record, it was on to the World Series against a Dodger teamed anchored by Sandy Koufax and Don Drysdale.
But this year was all about the O’s, as their young staff did the improbable and limited the Dodgers to TWO runs (both scored in the first game) for the ENTIRE series, throwing three straight shutouts to close it out and take home the series win.
The Dodgers were shut out for 33 straight innings, from the fourth inning of game 1 through to the end of game four!
It would be the beginning of a nice run for the organization, as they’d reach the World Series again in 1969, 1970, 1971, with another championship in 1970 against the Cincinnati Reds (who were themselves starting up a dynasty of sorts at that time).