REVISITING A BLOG POST FROM DECEMBER 2013: 1977 FANTASY ROOKIE EDDIE MURRAY

Thought it'd be fun to revisit a blog post from just under 10 years ago, my "fantasy" 1977 card for all-timer Eddie Murray, one of the game's greatest switch-hitters in it's long history:

Here's the original write-up I did way back when:

"Now, even though Eddie Murray's 1978 rookie card is one of my favorite cards to this day, I always felt that since the guy was the 1977 American League rookie of the year, it would have been nice to have a card for him for that season.

This doesn't really fit into either a "dedicated rookie card" or a "missing" card, but I still wanted to design one for the future Hall of Famer since he was one of my favorite players growing up.

Odds are Murray probably would have been included on one of those awful multi-player rookie cards like Andre Dawson or Dale Murphy, but since we know how much I am NOT a fan of those cards, I went with a dedicated card for him here.

I won't get into Murray too much here, since I covered that when I profiled his rookie card, but wow, what an understated superstar he was.

While the Schmidts, Ripkens, Murphy's, etc were racking up awards and acknowledgment, all Murray did was quietly rack up 3000+ hits, 500+ home runs, 1900+ runs batted in and more.

The man was awesome, simply put."

ROOKIES OF THE YEAR- 1978 SUB-SET

Talk about a powerhouse rookie class! Today I post up a 1978 “Rookies of the Year” card for the 1977 winners of the award, both future Hall of Fame members Andre Dawson of the Montreal Expos and Eddie Murray of the Baltimore Orioles:

Has to be one of the best rookie years, up there with 1967 (Seaver & Carew) and 2001 (Pujols and Ichiro)!
In the National League Dawson was yet another good-looking prospect with Montreal at the time, joining guys like Ellis Valentine, Gary Carter and Warren Cromartie, yet ending up as the only one to win the Rookie of the Year Award.
Dawson edged out New York Mets prospect Steve Henderson by hitting 19 home runs with 65 runs batted in and 21 stolen bases, along with a .282 batting average.
In the American League you had future RBI-machine Eddie Murray, who just set the table for what was to become an incredible 21-year career by hitting 27 homers, with 88 RBIs and a .283 batting average. Basically, you could pencil that average in over the rest of his career as he’d go on to knock in 1917 RBIs and hit 504 homers, while collecting 3255 hits with a .287 average the rest of the way.
The man was a model of consistency, knocking in over 90 RBIs twelve times, including six 100+ seasons, along with 20+ homers 16 times!
Two absolute studs of the game who happened to come up at the same time, and both ending up as members of the Baseball Hall of Fame.

A CARD THAT SHOULD HAVE BEEN- 1977 EDDIE MURRAY

Now, even though Eddie Murray's 1978 rookie card is one of my favorite cards to this day, I always felt that since the guy was the 1977 American League rookie of the year, it would have been nice to have a card for him for that season.

This doesn't really fit into either a "dedicated rookie card" or a "missing" card, but I still wanted to design one for the future Hall of Famer since he was one of my favorite players growing up.

Take a look at my imagined 1977 card for the great switch-hitter:

Next to Mantle, the greatest switch-hitter in the game?

Odds are Murray probably would have been included on one of those awful multi-player rookie cards like Andre Dawson or Dale Murphy, but since we know how much I am NOT a fan of those cards, I went with a dedicated card for him here.

I won't get into Murray too much here, since I covered that when I profiled his rookie card, but wow, what an understated superstar he was.

While the Schmidts, Ripkens, Murphy's, etc were racking up awards and acknowledgment, all Murray did was quietly rack up 3000+ hits, 500+ home runs, 1900+ runs batted in and more.

The man was awesome, simply put.

ONE OF MY ALL-TIME FAVORITES: 1978 EDDIE MURRAY ROOKIE CARD

Today I'd like to profile another of my all-time favorite cards: 1978 Topps Eddie Murray (#36) rookie card.

God I love this card!

The colors, the great image of the young star, the rookie cup at the bottom. It was perfect!

What a cock-sure look on the young slugger's face, coming off a rookie of the year season in 1977 which saw him slug 27 homers with 88 runs batted in while hitting at a .283 pace.

Take a look:

 

An all-time classic rookie card!

 

That rookie season was ONLY the beginning for Murray, as he would go on to become one of the most consistent hitters in baseball history over the course of the next 21 years.

From 1977 through 1996, TWENTY YEARS, Murray would never drive in less than 76 runs in any season, including six 100+ and six 90+ seasons.

In those twenty years, he'd also hit 20+ homers 16 times, and would finish with eight top five finishes in M.V.P. voting!

A little known bit regarding Murray and his amazing career: In 1990 he would lead the Major Leagues in batting with a .330 average, yet never get credit for a title since Willie McGee hit .335 for the Cardinals before getting traded to the A's, where he would only hit .274, lowering his season average to .324 combined.

But as it is, his .335 average is what counts towards the N.L. title, with George Brett hitting .329 to lead the American league, leaving Murray with the odd fate of having the highest batting average for the 1990 season without winning the title.

Seems like the perfect example of Murray's career: a guy who basically stayed in the shadows, producing year after year without much fanfare, while guys like Cal Ripken, Robin Yount and Willie McGee took the spotlight and awards by season's end.

But when it was all said and done, Eddie Murray put together a monster of a Hall of Fame career, hitting 504 home runs, driving in 1917 runs, scoring 1627 of them himself, and totaling 3255 hits!

After hanging them up in 1997, he was an easy inductee to the Hall of Fame in 2003, getting named on 423 of 496 ballots.

It only leaves me wondering what sportswriters left him OFF the ballot!

The whole "unanimous" paranoia of Hall of Fame voting leaves me shaking my head every time…