MISSING IN ACTION- 1970 BUBBA MORTON

Here’s a “missing” 1970 Topps card for the California Angels’ Bubba Morton:

Morton played in 87 games during the 1969 season while manning the outfield, batting .244 with 42 hits in 172 official at-bats, with 206 total plate appearances.
Those would actually be the final games of his seven-year career, which were spent with the Angels, Detroit Tigers and Milwaukee Braves.
All told he finished with a lifetime .267 average with 248 hits in 928 at-bats, with 37 doubles, eight triples and 14 homers in the mix, before moving on to some playing time in Japan.

JUST FOR THE FUN OF IT- 1970'S BASEBALL TRIVIA PART #122 (A REVISIT OF #40)

Let's hit some 1970's baseball trivia once again and revisit my set from March, 2014.
Today we'll deal with 200-hit seasons of the 1970's.
See what you can answer and I'll post the answers tomorrow, as usual…
1. Among all 200-hit seasons in the decade, who had the lowest batting average?

2. Who had the fewest at-bats in a 200-hit season during the '70's?

3. Who played in the fewest games in a 200-hit season during the 1970's?

4. Who hit the most homers while also getting 200+ hits in a season during the '70's?

5. Who posted the lowest on base percentage among all 200-hit seasons in the 1970's?



***SPOILER ALERT! ANSWERS BELOW: 

1.  Matty Alou, Pirates. He batted .297 in 1970.

2. Rod Carew, Twins. 580 AB's in 1973.

3. Ralph Garr, Braves. He played in only 143 games in 1974 and STILL lead the league with 214 hits.

4. Jim Rice, Red Sox. 213 hits and a whopping 46 homers in 1978.

5. Ralph Garr, Braves. He had a .323 OBP while getting 200 hits and a .299 average with only 22 walks in 698 plate appearances.

MISSING IN ACTION: 1976 DON HOPKINS

Here’s an interesting “missing” 1976 card: a card for former designated hitter/runner Don Hopkins of the Oakland A’s:

Hopkins line for the 1975 season is just as odd as Herb Washington’s was for the A’s in 1974.
Though he appeared in 82 games for Oakland during the 1975 season, Hopkins posted eight plate appearances and six official at-bats, yet scored 25 runs and stole 21 bases.
I LOVE stuff like this!
Used as a pinch runner he took over where Washington left off, and this would pretty much encompass the entirety of his career except for three games in 1976.
He’d finish with one single hit over six at-bats, with 25 runs scored and 21 stolen bases in 85 games.
Interesting bit of baseball oddity right here, and I think derserving of a card, no?

TRADED: 1978 VIDA BLUE

Next up in the “Traded” thread is former Cy Young winner Vida Blue, with a 1978 Topps card showing him as a San Francisco Giant, after a brilliant career with the Oakland A’s:

Blue was traded in March of 1978, and immediately made an impact, starting the 1978 All-Star game for the National League on his way to an 18-win season with a 2.79 earned run average and a third-place finish in Cy Young voting.
Of course we all know he won the award back in 1971 with a monster year, going 24-8 with a 1.82 ERA and 301 strikeouts.
Over the next three seasons in Oakland he’d anchor a staff that led the A’s to three straight World Series championships, and the Vida Blue superstar was born.
By the time he retired after the 1986 season he would post a 209-161 record with a nice 3.27 ERA and 2175 strikeouts with six all-star nods.

MISSING IN ACTION- 1973 BOBBY KNOOP

Let’s go and give former second baseman Bobby Knoop one last card as a Major League player, capping off his career with a 1973 Topps card:

Knoop finished off his nine-year career in 1972, playing in 44 games with the Kansas City Royals and hitting .237 with 23 hits over 97 at-bats.
Knoop was awarded three Gold Gloves for his excellent fielding, all consecutive between 1966-68 while with the California Angels, for whom he came up with.
In 1966 he was named to his only All-Star team, and also led the American League with 11 triples while hitting 17 homers and driving in 72 runs.
He’d retire with a .236 lifetime average, with 856 hits over 3622 at bats in 1153 games with the Angels, Chicago White Sox and Royals.
 

MAN, MY MEMORY IS SLIPPING BIG TIME! 1977 MAURY WILLS "TURN BACK THE CLOCK"

I tell you, this one has me wondering whether my “old” age is getting to my memory.
I recently came across the 1977 Maury Wills “Turn Back the Clock” card from that sub-set, and I swear I don’t remember it at all!
Now, of course I had it since the 1977 set was the very first set I completed as a kid when I was 8-years-old back during the “Summer of Sam” here in NYC.

But for the life of me when I saw it a couple weeks back I was sitting there, blank as hell, almost angry that I could possibly even NOT remember a card from the 1970’s.
Hilarious...
Just a “random quickie” that popped up recently.
Then again, seems more and more little memories keep slipping by me these days as I creep up to 50.
Ugh.

HALL OF FAME #37: MARTIN DIHIGO: CLASS OF 1977

Today’s Hall of Fame inductee is long time Negro League and Cuban legend Martin Dihigo, “El Maestro”., who was inducted into Cooperstown in 1977.
Check out my card first:

Dihigo starred in the American Negro Leagues for such teams as the Homestead Grays, as well as the Mexican and Cuban leagues as both a second baseman and a pitcher.
Though stats were not entirely kept in the leagues he played in, sources cite his final career numbers at a .302 batting average while also winning 252 games as a pitcher.
In 1938 in the Mexican League he posted an 18-2 record with a 0.90 earned run average, while winning the batting title with a .387 average!
He;s also one of two players (Willie Wells being the other) that is inducted into the American, Cuban and Mexican Baseball Halls of Fame, while Dihigo is ALSO in the Dominican and Venezuelan Hall of Fames!
Not too shabby!