REVISIT: DEDICATED ROOKIE- 1976 HENRY CRUZ

Up on the blog today, we have a "Dedicated" rookie card for Henry Cruz, originally posted 10 years ago as part of my "1976 Project" for my buddy Jim:

Cruz actually saw a chunk of playing time during the 1975 season, appearing in 53 games and collecting 25 hits over 94 at-bats, good for a .266 average.
Jim needed him on a dedicated card for his special project so here you go.
Actually, as far as I’m concerned, Cruz has two other “missing” cards, in the 1977 and 1979 sets, which will be tackled in the near future.
What’s funny about that is the fact that he DOES get a card in the 1978 set, after seeing the LEAST playing time of his short 4-year career the year before!
Go figure...

REVISIT: DEDICATED ROOKIE: 1974 KEN GRIFFEY Sr.

Thought it'd be fun to delve into the archives and revisit another ten-year-old post, this time my 1974 "Dedicated Rookie" for Ken Griffey Sr:

Griffey began what was to become a brilliant 19-year career that saw him hit .296 with 2143 hits in 7229 at-bats, with 1129 runs scored, 152 homers and 859 runs batted in.
During the 1973 season he made the most of his short stay, hitting .384 in 25 games with 33 hits in 86 at-bats.
He was named to three all-star games during his career, and was a member of the “Big Red Machine” Cincinnati Reds of the 1970’s, taking home two consecutive World Championships in 1975 and 1976.
Of course, we HAVE to mention something else he did, which was father a kid who would become one of the players of his generation, Ken Griffey Jr, recent Hall of Fame inductee and super-star extraordinaire.
I still think one of the coolest moments in baseball history was when Griffey Sr and Griffey Jr BOTH hit homers for the same team in the same game!  I just couldn’t believe it actually happened.

 

DEDICATED ROOKIE: 1972 DON BAYLOR

Good day all. On the blog we have a 1972 Dedicated Rookie" for Don Baylor, to go with my 1971 Dedicated Rookie created years ago:

Baylor had two straight years of multi-player rookie cards before becoming a regular Major League ballplayer, getting his first solo card in the 1973 set.

As a young teen in NYC in the early 1980's, I can tell you Baylor was a favorite of ours in the schoolyards of Brooklyn for his hard-nosed play. He was cool as a cucumber, yet as likable as you can be when we'd see him at baseball card shows around town. Besides, he looked bad-ass standing there at the plate, upright and waiting to crush a ball into the stands. He finished his 19-year career in 1988, playing for his third straight American League Champion team, and all three were different: Red Sox in '86, Twins in '87, and the A's in 1988. Of those, the Twins brought home the title, giving Baylor his only Championship ring as somewhat of a "regular player". He retired with over 2000 hits, 330 homers, 285 stolen bases and over 1200 runs scored and runs batted in. In 1979 he exploded while with the Angels, bringing home the American league Most Valuable Player Award after slamming 36 home runs while leading the league in runs scored (120) and runs batted in (139), while hitting .296 with 22 stolen bases thrown in. Of course, he'll also be remembered as one of the key components in the Orioles-A's trade that sent Reggie Jackson to Baltimore in April of 1976. But by the time he hung up his cleats for good, he put together a very solid career himself, even winning the National League Manager of the Year Award in 1995 while steering the Colorado Rockies to a 77 and 67 record (good for second place). Here's to you "Groove"! 

SPECIAL REQUEST: 1969 DEDICATED ROOKIE FOR AMOS OTIS

By special request today, a fun 1969 "dedicated rookie" for one of my favorite underrated players of the era, Amos Otis, who began his wonderful Major League career as a member of the New York Mets:

He came up with the New York Mets and played in 48 games for the World Champs that year, while making his Big League debut in 1967 with 19 games as a 20-year-old (watch for my "missing 1968 card soon!).

Topps had him as an inaugural member of the Kansas City Royals for his actual multi-player rookie card in the 1969 set.

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. driving in 90+ three times while 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.

 

DEDICATED ROOKIE: 1969 AL OLIVER

Super psyched to post today's card creation, a 1969 "Dedicated Rookie" of "Scoop" Al Oliver, which I definitely hope to have printed up sometime soon:

Now, what do you call a guy who was a seven-time all-star, Silver Slugger winner at three different positions, collector of over 2700 hits, 200 home runs, .300 career average, 1300 runs batted in, and 500 doubles?

I call that a Hall of Famer, especially when you consider that the first nine years or so of his career were the "dead" 1970's.

Yes I know an argument can be made here for Oliver's Hall-worthiness.

But I have always felt that he fell into that Vada Pinson, Dave Parker, Steve Garvey crowd that should have gotten, at the very LEAST, more of a shot at Cooperstown.

I mean, when he was finally eligible for Hall voting, he only got 4.3% and was dropped just like that! THAT is just insane.

He won three consecutive Silver Slugger Awards in 1980-1982, as an outfielder, a designated hitter and a first baseman and he batted .300 or better eleven times in his 18-year career!

He finished in the top-10 in batting eight times during his career, in the top-10 in hits eight times in his career, top-10 in doubles nine times in his career, top-10 in total bases five times, runs scored four times, runs batted in four times, triples three times, extra base hits five times and slugging percentage twice.

Is THAT enough of a statement? His consistency was amazing.

And to top it off, he should have been the National League Rookie of the Year in 1969 but got ripped off, with the award going to Los Angeles Dodger Ted Sizemore.

Al Oliver is grossly overlooked as far as players of that era in my book.

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.

 

"DEDICATED ROOKIE"- 1964 TONY OLIVA

Let's dip into the 1960's for another sweet "dedicated rookie" card, this one for Hall of Fame hitter Tony Oliva and a 1964 edition:

Now, interestingly, Oliva's actual FIRST Topps card was on a 1963 multi-player rookie card, before appearing on a 1964 multi-player card again, so for now I chose to create a '64 version with a '63 coming soon.

He burst onto the Major League scene in 1964 when he easily won the American League Rookie of the Year award.
In that year, all he did was lead the league in batting, hitting .323, while slamming 32 homers with 94 runs batted in. 
He also lead the league in runs scored with 109, hits with 217, doubles with 43 and total bases with 374!
Those numbers also got him a fourth place finish in M.V.P. voting as well.
The following year there was no sign of a sophomore jinx, as he once again led the lead in batting, this time hitting .321, with 16 homers, 98 R.B.I.'s, 40 doubles and 107 runs scored.
He also led the league in total hits again, this time with 185.
All told in his career, Oliva would win three batting titles (the third coming in 1971 when he hit .337), and would lead the league in hits five times, slugging once (1971), get named to eight straight all-star teams, and have two second-place finishes for M.V.P., in 1965 and 1970.
I wouldn't say his final numbers "definitely" warranted a Hall of Fame spot for Oliva. But I'll admit that you can argue a good point for it with the career he left us with, and come 2022 he would be selected for a spot in Cooperstown, which is just fine with me!
When you really take a look, he only had 11 full seasons in the Majors, with the half-season in 1976 and three pretty much non-existent years in 1962, 1963 and 1972. 
So his numbers carry a bit more weight in that light.
And wow, what a great hitting combo he and Rod Carew made for the Twins, huh?!
Nice 1-2 punch right there.

 

DEDICATED ROOKIES: 1962 BOB VEALE

Branching out into the 1960s with my "Dedicated Rookies" theme, this time a 1962 card for flame-thrower Bob Veale of the Pittsburgh Pirates:

Veale would make his MLB debut that season at the age of 26, appearing in elevel games for the Pirates, going 2-2 with a 3.74 earned run average over 45.2 innings.

After a Sophomore season that saw him go 5-1 with a brilliant 1.04 ERA over 34 games in 1963, generally in relief, the lefty put in his first full year in 1964 and had a great year, going 18-12 over 39 games, all but two of them starts, posting an ERA of 2.74 in 279.2 innings with a league-leading 250 strikeouts, the first of what would be four seasons topping 200 K's.

He'd retire after the 1974 season with a tidy 120-95 record, with a 3.07 earned run average and 1703 K's with 20 shutouts.

Between 1964 and 1970 Veale was a very solid Major League starter, averaging 15 wins and 213 strikeouts over those seven years, easily keeping pace with contemporaries like Don Drysdale, Jim Bunning and Jim Maloney.

DEDICATED ROOKIE: 1968 JERRY KOOSMAN

On the blog today, we dip into the 1960s and post up my 1968 "Dedicated Rookie" card for New York Mets pitcher Jerry Koosman, who had himself a wonderful Major League career:

“Kooz” spent the first 12 years of his Major League career as a New York Met, and performed marvelously, posting solid seasons which saw him finish behind Johnny Bench in 1968 for National League Rookie of the Year in 1968, and in second-place for Cy Young in 1976 when he won a career high 21 games to along with a 2.69 earned run average and 200 strikeouts.
But over the following two seasons, and not entirely HIS fault, Koosman posted a combined 11-35 record, even though his ERA was around 3.62 and he struck out 352 batters.
That was enough for the Mets to ship him to Minnesota on December 8th, 1978 for a relief pitcher that would pay off years later, Jesse Orosco.
Koosman immediately made an impact in Minnesota, posting another 20-win season (at the time one of the few to do so in both leagues), while posting a 3.38 ERA and 157 strikeouts.
By the time he retired after the 1985 season he’d win 222 games, while collecting a nice 3.36 ERA with 2556 strikeouts and 33 shutouts over 612 games, 527 of which were starts.
I remember hearing years ago that Koosman loved to tell people how his “rookie card” was worth a lot of money and was the hottest card in the 1968 set, only to follow up and casually mention that “Oh yeah, some guy named Nolan Ryan is on there too.”
Love it...

REVISITING A POST FROM 2015: 1975 DEDICATED ROOKIE FOR KEITH HERNANDEZ

Good day all.

On the blog today, we revisit a post from just about 10 years ago, my 1975 "dedicated rookie" for Keith Hernandez, of the the greatest fielding first baseman in the game's long, rich history:

Hernandez was just about to launch his stellar Major League career in 1975 after playing in 14 games during the 1974 season.

Topps gave him a spot on one of the multi-player rookie cards in the 1975 set, but a dedicated card for him seems like a natural for this blog.

As far as his career, all he would do from then on is win a batting title in 1979, a co-MVP Award the very same year (sharing it with Pirate legend Willie Stargell), take home 11 Gold Glove Awards for his magic at first base, and get named to five all-star games.

He was part of a World Champion team with both the St. Louis Cardinals in 1982 and the New York Mets in 1986, and would finish his 17-year career with over 2000 hits, 1000 runs scored, 1000 runs batted in and a .296 average.

He became an instant darling here in New York to so many kids when he arrived during the 1983 season, and I have to admit even though I was a rabid Yankee fan and WORSHIPPED Don Mattingly, Hernandez was a guy I just had to like no matter what.

It just seemed that it was the Hernandez trade that got the mid-80's Mets team going in the right direction, soon to be joined by the likes of Cone, Gooden, Carter and crew.

 

REVISITING A POST FROM 2014: DEDICATED ROOKIE- 1971 DON BAYLOR

Good day everyone!

Thought it'd be fun to revisit my post from 2014, a "dedicated rookie" for Don Baylor, a favorite player of mine from my youth as I followed the New York Yankees in the mid-80's:

 

Nice shot of the slugger as he began what ended up being an excellent Major League career spanning almost two decades.

Here's the original write-up:

Let's go and give Don Baylor a dedicated rookie card in the 1971 set, where he originally shared a multi-player rookie card with Tom Paciorek and Dusty Baker.

Now while his original rookie wasn't too shabby a card, I found this nice image of Baylor during his very early years and decided to whip up a 1971 card for him. Some of you may wonder about his uniform! But if you notice all the late-series Orioles players in that 1971 set were photographed with the "new" Baltimore uniform, which Baylor is wearing on this card. As a young teen in NYC in the early 1980's, I can tell you Baylor was a favorite of ours in the schoolyards of Brooklyn for his hard-nosed play. He was cool as a cucumber, yet as likable as you can be when we'd see him at baseball card shows around town. Besides, he looked bad-ass standing there at the plate, upright and waiting to crush a ball into the stands. He finished his 19-year career in 1988, playing for his third straight American League Champion team, and all three were different: Red Sox in '86, Twins in '87, and the A's in 1988. Of those, the Twins brought home the title, giving Baylor his only Championship ring as somewhat of a "regular player". He retired with over 2000 hits, 330 homers, 285 stolen bases and over 1200 runs scored and runs batted in. In 1979 he exploded while with the Angels, bringing home the American league Most Valuable Player Award after slamming 36 home runs while leading the league in runs scored (120) and runs batted in (139), while hitting .296 with 22 stolen bases thrown in. Of course, he'll also be remembered as one of the key components in the Orioles-A's trade that sent Reggie Jackson to Baltimore in April of 1976. But by the time he hung up his cleats for good, he put together a very solid career himself, even winning the National League Manager of the Year Award in 1995 while steering the Colorado Rockies to a 77 and 67 record (good for second place). Here's to you "Groove"! 

REVISITING A POST FROM 2013: 1973 MIKE SCHMIDT DEDICATED ROOKIE

Thought it'd be fun today to revisit a post from October of 2013, a favorite creation of mine, my 1973 "dedicated rookie" for the great Mike Schmidt. One of the earliest dedicated rookies created for the blog.

Here's the post as it appeared way back when:

"Today I want to post up a card design for a rookie card I WISH existed instead of his multiple player version that Topps issued: Mike Schmidt and his 1973 introduction to the world of sports cards.
First off, let's look at his rookie card as we all know it:

Now, I'll admit it's not the worst rookie card out there, especially with Ron Cey carrying some weight as well.
But really, what could be better than a dedicated rookie of the greatest third baseman the game has ever seen?
I found a nice image of Schmidt during his rookie year and used it for my imaginary "rookie" shown below. Hope you all like it...

Not much to be said about Mike Schmidt that hasn't been said a million times before!
Growing up in the late-70's/early-80's, quite simply, he was THE third baseman in Major League baseball.
Three M.V.P.'s, 10 Gold Gloves, 12 All-Star games, and oh yeah...he hit 548 career homers and lead the National League EIGHT TIMES during his awesome eighteen-year career.
A no-brainer Hall of Famer whom was inducted on his first try in 1995. A "duh" if there ever was one.
"Schmitty" was the man"

 

REVISITING A POST FROM 2013: 1975 GARY CARTER DEDICATED ROOKIE

On the blog today, we revisit a post from October, 2013, my 1975 "Dedicated Rookie" for one of the all-time great catchers, Gary Carter:

Loved Carter as a kid growing up in the early 80's, seeing him pick up where Johnny Bench left off as the game's best catcher.

Here's the original write-up for that post:

Let's give another Hall of Famer a "proper" rookie card, as opposed to some lame multi-player card that was actually issued by Topps.
Today's player, Gary Carter, was a former teammate of my first subject in this thread (Andre Dawson), part of that young talented Montreal Expos roster in the late-70's/early-80's.
In 1975 Carter made his first card appearance on the multi-player card you see below (#620).
It was an awesome set with some fantastic rookies (Brett, Yount, Lynn, Hernandez) and all-time legends winding down their careers (Aaron, B. Williams, Ron Santo, F. Robinson), so really I'm not trying to complain about it here.
However as I stated with the first post on this thread, I was never a fan of these multi-player rookie cards. Looking back on them now it's incredible to see how many of the players depicted never even made it up to the Majors in the future. Wasted space in my eyes (the 1977 set was particularly brutal in this respect).
Sadly Gary Carter was picked by Topps to be on one of these cards, so we also have the "un"legendary Dan Meyer, Marc Hill and Leon Roberts taking up space on what should have been a classic card of the best catcher in the 1980's and eventual Hall of Famer.
But today, allow me to imagine what a "dedicated" rookie card of Gary Carter in 1975 could have looked like had Topps issued one.
Instead of using one of those "Gary Carter-like" smiling poses we're used to, I found a slightly more serious shot of him posing at-bat. Just seemed nice and different for a change.

I remember when Gary Carter really took over the "best catcher" tag from Johnny Bench around 1981. It was like he was suddenly everywhere with that smile of his!
Sure you still had Carlton Fisk producing in the American League, but Carter really took over as the top backstop and held onto that title for pretty much the rest of the decade.
This was a guy who had nine seasons of 20+ homers and four 100+ R.B.I. seasons as a catcher. Not too shabby!
After finishing second in Rookie of the Year voting in 1975, Carter also went on to have 11 All-Star game nods, five Silver Slugger awards, three Gold Gloves and seven seasons where he garnered M.V.P. votes, finishing in the Top-10 four times.
By the time he retired after the 1992 season, he finished with 2092 hits, 324 home runs and 1225 runs batted in.
Needless to say Cooperstown came calling, and in 2003 he easily got voted in after being selected on 387 of 496 ballots, securing his place in baseball history forever.
However, sadly years later Carter was diagnosed with brain cancer, and despite undergoing aggressive treatment he succumbed to the disease about nine months later in February of 2012.
A tragic and shocking loss for the baseball world to say the least.

REVISITING A 10-YEAR OLD POST: 1972 CARLTON FISK DEDICATED ROOKIE

Thought it'd be fun to revisit an old post today, this one my 1972 "dedicated rookie" for all-time great Carlton Fisk:

Here's the original write-up as it appeared way back when:

While Carlton Fisk's 1972 rookie card (#79) is one of the nicer rookie cards of the decade in my book, both for design AND the fact that one of my favorite players from my childhood is also on it, Cecil Cooper, it still would have been nice to have a "dedicated" rookie card of "Pudge" instead of a three-player card as seen below:

Today I post up what could be the last "dedicated rookie" subject in the thread, since Fisk is the last of future Hall of Fame players who had a shared rookie card during the 70's.

(Jack Morris may make the Hall, but he DID have a nice 1978 Burger King card that would qualify as a dedicated rookie.)

I may branch out to other stars of the game during the era, like Thurman Munson and Dale Murphy, but time will tell.

But for now, allow me to present my design of a 1972 Carlton Fisk "dedicated" rookie card, using a great 1972 photo from Sports Illustrated as the card image.

Enjoy…

 

On a side note, Cecil Cooper really was one of my favorite players growing up, and I feel he is often a forgotten star of the late 1970's-early 1980's with the Milwaukee Brewers.

I'll have to find something to profile him with later on…

 

REVISITING A 10-YEAR-OLD POST: 1979 DEDICATED ROOKIE DALE MURPHY

Up on the blog today, revisiting a post just short of ten years old, my 1978 "dedicated rookie" for Dale Murphy, who unfortunately was on his second straight multi-player rookie card in the 1978 set:

Just a nice dedicated card to the man most feel is a Hall of Famer, me included.

Here's the original write-up from the post:

"Considering that the 1978 Topps set is rife with players that barely, if at all, played the previous year, why Topps didn't give this up-and-coming Braves prospect a card is beyond me.

A first round pick (5th pick overall) in the 1974 amateur draft out of Portland, Oregon, Murphy was already up for a cup of coffee in 1977, and performed well in his limited time in the Majors, hitting .316 with a couple of homers and 14 runs batted in in only 18 games.

Pretty nice if you ask me.

He was also up for 19 games in 1976, and did a decent job of it then as well, hitting .262 with nine R.B.I.'s.

He also ripped it up in the Minors during the 1977 season, hitting .305 with 22 homers and 90 ribbies in 127 games for Richmond in Triple-A ball.

You think this would have all been good enough to give the guy a card all by his lonesome.

As we all know, Murphy went on to have a borderline Hall of Fame career, winning the National League M.V.P. twice, in 1982 and 1983, as well as five Gold Gloves and appearing in five All-Star games.

During the first part of the 1980's he was up there as one of the best in the game.

By the time he retired after the 1993 season, his 18-year career gave us 398 homers, 1266 runs batted in, 2111 hits and 1197 runs scored.

But it was his peak years between 1980 and 1987 that made Murphy a household name in the baseball world, just falling short of Cooperstown as one of those players just outside the bubble (like Dave Parker, Steve Garvey, et al).

Factor in his boring 1979 Topps card as his first solo card, and this 1978 card would have been nice as a collector to have out there.

Oh well…"

DEDICATED ROOKIE (#2): 1972 JON MATLACK

Time to go and create a second "dedicated rookie" for former New York Mets pitcher Jon Matlack, who was on two straight multi-player rookie cards in 1971 and 1972. As I have previously created a 1971 edition, today we have the 1972 version:

Matlack joined an already solid New York Mets staff in 1972 and proceeded to post a 15-10 record in his rookie year, with a very nice 2.32 earned run average over 32 starts, including four shutouts.

Those numbers got him a Rookie of the Year Award, easily finishing ahead of second-place Dave Rader and fellow teammate John Milner, who finished third.

It would pretty much be the prototypical Matlack season as he’d go on to lead the league in shutouts twice, and average about 15 wins over the next seven years.

Easily overshadowed by teammates like Tom Seaver and Jerry Koosman through the 1970's, he was about as solid a #3 starter you could ask for.

Overall, he’d split his time as a big league pitcher evenly between the Mets and Texas Rangers, over 13 seasons, and retire with an excellent 3.18 E.R.A., along with a final record of 125-126 and 30 shutouts in 361 appearances, 318 of them starts, with 1516 strikeouts.

DEDICATED ROOKIE (#2): 1971 BILL BUCKNER

Today on the blog, we go and give terribly underrated All-Star Bill Buckner a second "Dedicated Rookie", this time a 1971 edition after he had one created for the 1970 earlier:

Buckner was one of those players that received more than one slot in the dreaded multi-player rookie cards Topps would sprinkle in their sets, hence today's creation.

"Billy Buck" made his first appearance in a Major League uniform in 1969 with the Los Angeles Dodgers, getting into a single game and making one plate appearance.

However he would go on to play on the big league level straight on through to 1990, putting in seven .300+ seasons, winning a batting title while with the Cubs in 1980, posting three 100+ RBI years, reaching 200+ hits twice and leading the league in doubles in 1981 and 1983.

By the time he retired he collected over 2700 hits, with just under 500 doubles, 174 homers and 1208 runs batted in with a .289 career average.

What always got me with his career was the fact that in 9397 career at-bats, the man struck out only 453 times! Just awesome.

Some may even consider this career Hall-worthy. At the very least it can be argued, no?

"Billy Buck", a guy who is sadly remembered for one bad play instead of the great 22-year career…

DEDICATED ROOKIE: 1976 MIKE FLANAGAN

On the blog today, we have a 1976 "dedicated rookie" for former Cy Young winner and Baltimore Orioles ace Mike Flanagan, who made his MLB debut during the 1975 season:

Flanagan appeared in two games for the Orioles in 1975 before earning a spot the following season, which saw him appear in 20 games, half of those out of the bullpen, with 1977 his first true year as a Big League starter.

That season saw him go 15-10 over 36 games, 33 of them starts, tossing the first two shutouts of his career, while completing 15 and throwing 235 innings.

1978 would see him make the A.L. All-Star team, incredibly the only time that would happen for him, as he would go on to win 19 games against 15 losses, throwing what would end up being a career-best 281.1 innings.

In 1979, it would all come together for the lefty, as he would go on to have his best year as a Major League pitcher, winning a league-leading 23 games for the American League champs, going 23-9 with a 3.08 ERA and five shutouts, striking out 190 batters and completing 16 games.

Those numbers would also get him a sixth-place finish in the MVP race at season's end, teaming up with Jim Palmer, Denny Martinez, Scott McGregor and Steve Stone to give Baltimore one heck of a starting five.

Though he'd never reach those numbers again, he would end up putting in 18 years in the Big Leagues, winning 167 games against 143 losses, posting a 3.90 ERA over 2770 innings with 19 shutouts and 1491 strikeouts.

 

1973 DEDICATED ROOKIE: RON CEY

Time to go and give former All-Star third baseman Ron Cey a "dedicated" card in the 1973 set, after initially appearing (famously) on a multi-player card also featuring some guy named Mike Schmidt:

Now, for Cey this ISN'T a dedicated rookie since he also appeared on a 1972 multi-player rookie card, but nevertheless the "Penguin" deserves a solo edition here as well, and I'm happy to oblige!

Cey pretty much made an immediate impact in the Major Leagues, going on to a very nice 17-year career that saw him excel with the Los Angeles Dodgers at third base, being named to six consecutive all-star games between 1974 and 1979.
By the time he hung up the cleats after the 1987 season, he slammed 316 home runs while collecting 1139 runs batted in, with a .261 lifetime average.
As we all know he’d also be part of an infield that came up together, and stayed together for quite some time, Ron Cey at third, Bill Russell at short, Davel Lopes at second and Steve Garvey at first base.
And very solid and dependable quartet if there ever was one!
They’d help bring the Dodgers four National League Pennants and a World Series victory in 1981 over the New York Yankees.
Not bad at all...

 

DEDICATED ROOKIE: 1979 DWAYNE MURPHY

Fun card to add to the WTHBALLS stable today, my 1979 "dedicated rookie" for Oakland A's outfielder Dwayne Murphy:

Murphy put in a very nice 12-year career in the Major Leagues between 1978 and 1989, and sadly can be overlooked since he happened to come up at the same time as another Oakland outfielder, Hall of Famer Rickey Henderson.

But between 1980 and 1985 Murphy was as solid as you could ask, winning six straight Gold Glove Awards while also a "double-threat" at the plate, hitting as many as 33 home runs (1984) while also stealing as many as 26 bases (1980 and 1982).

The center-fielder led the league in putouts at his position three times, assists once and "Range Factor" for you analytics guys four straight seasons between 1980 and 1983.

By the time he retired after the 1989 season, he finished with 166 homers, 100 stolen bases and a .246 average over 1360 games and 4347 at-bats.