Brooks Robinson (#600)

STOP THE PRESSES!!! 

Forty-nine years ago this month, I started collecting baseball cards. (I think I began when the 2nd or 3rd series of 1967 cards were in the stores, so I had to get the earlier cards through trades and "shooting" cards.) Anyway, by the end of that season I had collected every card in the first 6 series except the Cardinals Team card.

The high-numbered 7th series wasn't sold in my area, so I didn't get any of them until visiting card stores and shows in the 1980s. In a year or so, I was able to get all but five of those high-numbers. Six years ago, I got the Maury Wills card, cutting my want list to four.

Today, I scored the hard-to-find Brooks Robinson card, at the same antique store where I picked up 100 or so 1965 cards last year, and also these Topps 1964 giant cards.

I have already posted my 1966 Brooks Robinson card here, so I won't re-hash his playing career. Just want to say "1 more down, 3 to go!"

While at that store, I also picked up these two Mickey Mantle cards, which I will feature on my '65 and '66 blogs at some point. These are 1996 reprints with Stadium Club-like cardstock, and are glossy on both sides. Even so, they will now take their place in my '65 and '66 binders, because there's little chance that I will get the originals.

1967 Topps Card Set Vying for the Final Four

Robert over at the $30 a Week Habit blog has been running a 16-set tournament, where bloggers vote for which set he should complete next. Last week, the 1969 set fell short by a few votes, so I'm hitting the campaign trail again, this time for the 1967 set.


This set includes the final baseball card for Hall of Fame catcher broadcaster Bob Uecker!

Wait, what? That's not enough for you? I suppose you could continue reading then...


There's also the final card for 76 other players, including Whitey Ford, Curt Simmons, Lou/Lew Burdette, Joe Nuxhall, Smoky Burgess, and Jim Piersall.

The final Topps appearance for Sandy Koufax:

41 future Hall of Famers are in the set, including Willie Mays, Mickey Mantle, Roberto Clemente, Whitey Ford, Bob Gibson, Juan Marichal, Don Drysdale, Ernie Banks, Harmon Killebrew, and Eddie Mathews, none of who are in the 1976 set.

THIRTEEN multi-player cards, the most for any year in that era:

In addition to the well-known high-number rookie cards for Tom Seaver and Rod Carew, the set also includes the rookie cards for Chris Short and Maury Wills (both 8-year veterans by then) and Ken Holtzman. Also, there are more than 40 Rookie Stars cards, the most in any set.

Here are some other guys in the set:

.                            (That's one heck of a sunrise behind Tony C.!)


Vote now! Don't let Robert have to deal with hanging chads at the last minute.

Billy Williams (#315)

Billy Williams was one of the Cubs’ 3 key position players (along with Ernie Banks and Ron Santo) all through the 1960s.

Williams was signed by the Cubs in 1956, and played in the minors for all of 1956-58 and most of 1959 and 1960. Billy made his big-league debut in August 1959, and played in 18 games over the final 2 months of the season. He also appeared in 12 games for the Cubs during late-September 1960.

Billy made the Cubs for good at the start of the 1961 season, and took over the left field duties from the tandem of Ernie Banks (!) and Richie Ashburn. Beginning on June 26th, Williams started the final 100 games in left field. He clubbed 25 homers as a rookie, and won the NL Rookie of the Year award, with 10 of the 16 votes.

He made his first 3 all-star squads early in his career (’62, ’64, and ’65), another in ’68, then two more times late in his career (’72, ’73). Williams hit over .300 five times, including a career-high .333 in 1972, which led the National League. He also led the league in runs (137) and hits (205) in 1970.

Billy was the Cubs’ regular left fielder from 1961 to 1964, then after 2 seasons in right field he returned to his familiar left field post from 1967 to 1973, although he worked in 19 starts at 1st base in ’73. The following season (at age 36) he split his time 60/40 between 1st base and left field.

After the 1974 season, he was traded to the Athletics for pitchers Darold Knowles and Bob Locker, and 2nd base prospect Manny Trillo. Williams spent his final 2 seasons in Oakland as their designated hitter.

In ’75 he also started 5 games at 1st base, but was strictly the DH (and occasional pinch-hitter) in 1976. However, he did play 2 innings in left field that season (on August 27th, for old-times’ sake I guess). Billy played in the ALCS in 1975, but never made it to the World Series in his 18 seasons.

Williams was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1987. The Cubs retired his #26 the same year.


Billy was well-known for playing almost every game for 8 to 10 years in the 1960s. I decided to research this to see if it was fact, folklore, or just an impression. From 1962 through 1973, Williams played in 1920 of the Cubs’ 1941 games, including 1117 consecutive games from 9/22/63 to 9/2/70.

Hoyt Wilhelm (#422)

Hoyt Wilhelm was one of the all-time great relief pitchers in baseball. He pitched in 1070 games, while only starting 72 games (mostly between 1958-60). He was best known as a knuckleball pitcher, which contributed to his long career. He finished his career with the most wins as a reliever (124), and was the first pitcher to reach 200 saves and 1000 games.

Wilhelm began his minor-league career in 1942 at age 20. After one season in class-D ball, he missed the next 3 years while in military service during World War II. He returned from the war to pitch another 6 seasons in the minors, the first two with the same class-D team from 1942, before working his way up to the triple-A level.

Wilhelm finally made the New York Giants in 1952 at age 30. In his rookie season, he compiled a 15-3 record (all in relief), and led the NL in winning percentage, ERA (2.43), and games (71). He finished 2nd in the Rookie of the Year voting to Brooklyn’s Joe Black.

In 1953, he again led the league in games pitched (68), and made his first all-star team. Wilhelm continued to head up the Giants’ bullpen through the 1956 season.

Hoyt was traded to the Cardinals before the 1957 season for Whitey Lockman. He pitched in 40 games for the Cards, then was claimed off waivers by the Indians in the final weeks of the season. Wilhelm remained with the Indians for most of 1958, primarily relieving but making a few starts as well.

In August he was claimed by the Orioles. Wilhelm pitched for the Orioles from August 1958 through the 1962 season. 1959 was his only season as a full-time starting pitcher. He compiled a 15-11 record that season, along with posting a league-best 2.19 ERA and making his 2nd all-star team. While an Oriole, he also made the ’61 and ’62 all-star squads.

In January 1963, Hoyt (at age 40) was traded to the White Sox (along with shortstop Ron Hansen, 3rd baseman Pete Ward, and outfielder Dave Nicholson) for shortstop Luis Aparicio and outfielder Al Smith. Except for 3 random starts in 1963, Wilhelm switched back to being a reliever for the remainder of his career. He pitched the next 6 seasons for Chicago, and posted an ERA under 2.00 in each of his last 5 seasons with the Sox.

After the 1968 season, Wilhelm was drafted by the expansion Kansas City Royals, but quickly traded to the Angels for OF/C Ed Kirkpatrick. That September, California shipped him (and pitcher Bob Priddy) to the Braves for outfield prospect Mickey Rivers.

Hoyt pitched for the Braves for the remainder 1969 and most of 1970, until he was claimed by the Cubs late in 1970. After the season, Chicago traded him back to the Braves, essentially renting him for their failed stretch run against the Pirates.

Wilhelm began the 1971 season with the Braves, but with an ERA of 15.43 after 3 games, and at age 48, he was released on June 29th. Two weeks later the Dodgers picked him up, and used him in 25 games between mid-1971 and July 10, 1972. He was released 2 weeks later, 5 days before his FIFTIETH birthday.

Wilhelm was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1985.

He passed away in August 2002 at age 80.

Red Schoendienst (#512)

Continuing the theme from the last post, today we have 91-year-old Albert “Red” Schoendienst, a baseball lifer, first as a player for several teams from 1942 to 1963, then as a manager and coach for the Cardinals since his retirement as a player.

Red was signed by the Cardinals in 1942, and was a shortstop in their farm system from 1942-44. He made the Cardinals at the start of 1945, and was the team’s regular left fielder during his rookie season. He also led the league with 26 stolen bases that year.

From 1946 to 1956 Red was the Cardinals’ 2nd baseman. He was also their lead-off hitter for his first 4 seasons, before dropping to the #2 slot for the duration of his Cardinals’ tenure. He led the NL with 43 doubles in 1950, and made the all-star team every season from 1946-55 (except for 1947). He also played in the 1946 World Series.

Red began the 1956 as the 2nd baseman, then was traded to the New York Giants in mid-June for shortstop Al Dark (who we just looked at in the last post). Seven other players were involved in the deal, including outfielder Jackie Brandt going to the Giants.

A year and a day later, Red moved on to the Milwaukee Braves in exchange for 3 players, including Bobby Thomson, slugger of 1951’s “Shot Heard ‘Round the World”. He manned the 2nd base post for the Braves in ’57 and ’58, and the team played the Yankees in the World Series both years, winning it in 1957. Schoendienst hit .278 and .300 in those two post-seasons.

Red missed almost the entire 1959 season with tuberculosis. He returned at the start of 1960, and started most games through July 1st. The Cardinals started Chuck Cottier in the 2nd game of the doubleheader that day, and stuck with him for the rest of the season, relegating Schoendienst to the bench for the rest of the season. He was released in October.

The Cardinals picked him up during spring training in 1961, and used him as coach and part-time player for the next 3 seasons. His final game as a player was in July 1963.

After the Cardinals’ 1964 World Series victory, manager Johnny Keane resigned to manage the Yankees, and Schoendienst was elevated to manager. The team went to the World Series in ’67 and ’68, winning in 1967. Red continued to manage the Cards through the 1976 season, then coached for the Athletics from 1977-78.

Red returned to the Cardinals in 1979, as a coach and later a special advisor to the GM. He also managed the team for a few dozen games at the end of the 1980 and 1990 seasons.

Schoendienst was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1989 by the Veterans Committee. Soon afterwards, the Cardinals retired his #2 uniform.

Willie McCovey (#480)

It's hard to believe I haven't gotten around to Willie McCovey yet on any of my blogs. Plus, the Giants are under-represented here, so I'm killing 2 birds with one stone.

Willie "Stretch" McCovey was a fan favorite in San Francisco (even more so, I've heard, than the transplanted New Yorker - Willie Mays). Back in the 60s and 70s, I heard more than a few pitchers say that McCovey was the most feared hitter they ever faced.

Willie was signed by the New York Giants in 1955, and after 4 1/2 seasons in the minors he made his big-league debut in late-July 1959. He started 49 of the final 55 games at 1st base (pushing Orlando Cepeda to left field) and won the NL Rookie of the Year award that season.

In 1960 McCovey picked up where he left off, but by early June he found himself riding the bench most of the time, and even spent the 2nd half of July back in the minors.

During the '61 and '62 seasons, Willie was used as a pinch-hitter and part time fielder. He shared the 1st base job evenly with Cepeda in 1961 (playing there when Orlando was in left field), then in '62 Willie's primary position was left field, where he started 42 games to Harvey Kuenn's 82 games. He was also 3-for-15 in the 1962 World Series, with a triple and a home run.

McCovey became an everyday player beginning in 1963. Playing in 152 games (including 130 starts in left and only 14 at first base), Willie led the NL with 44 home runs (the first of 3 times he would do so) and made his first all-star team.

His workload was cut back in 1964, playing only 130 games. with only 75 starts in left field and 21 at first base.

Willie took over as the Giants' everyday 1st baseman at the start of the 1965 season. Injuries relegated Cepeda to 34 at-bats over 33 games that year, so McCovey started all but 12 games at 1st base. The following season, Cepeda was traded to the Cardinals in early May, so Willie had a permanent home in the infield.

Between 1965 and 1970, McCovey hit over 30 homers every season, and led the NL in home runs and RBI in '68 (36, 105) and '69 (45, 126). He also bat .293 and .320 in those seasons. He finished 3rd in the 1968 MVP voting, and won the award in 1969.

Willie remained with the Giants through the 1973 season, then was traded to the Padres. After the better part of 3 seasons in San Diego, he was sold to the Athletics in August 1976, where he finished out the season.

In November 1976 he was granted free agency, and returned to the Giants. Willie was the team's primary (not everyday) first baseman for the next 3 seasons.

In 1980, he started 11 of the first 12 games at 1B, but then slipped into a part-time role alongside Mike Ivie. McCovey played his last game on July 6, 1980.

He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1986.

Tony Perez (#476)

Here is Reds' RBI machine Tony Perez. By the time this card was issued in mid-summer, Perez had already moved over to 3rd base.

I just recently posted his 1966 card on another blog, so I won't repeat myself here. What I wanted to do was show the unusual Cincinnati Reds' uniform from that time period.

Besides the "vest look" (which was also used by the Indians, Athletics, and Pirates), look at his name. Unlike a "normal" uni, the player's name is UNDER the number. I wonder if any other team used this same layout?

Roberto Clemente (#400)

Today is the 40th anniversary of Roberto Clemente's death.

In the 1967 set, Topps assigned #400 to his card, one of the "superstar" numbers (ending in "00"). The others were:
100 - Frank Robinson
200 - Mickey Mantle
300 - Willie Mays
400 - Bob Clemente
500 - Juan Marichal
600 - Brooks Robinson

In addition to the "00" number status, each player had their "floating head" appear on the checklist containing their base card. (Jim Kaat appeared on the 4th series checklist. Maybe his card number was 350?)  


Roberto Clemente was playing ball in Puerto Rico when the Brooklyn Dodgers signed him, and sent him to their AAA team in Montreal. After 1 season as a bench player, the Pirates selected him in the Rule 5 draft, and the rest is history.

After the 1958 season, Clemente joined the US Marine Corps Reserve. His 6-month stint in basic training was credited with improving Roberto's strength and conditioning (which had been affected by a car accident during his rookie season).

Clemente and the Pirates won the World Series in 1960. That year he began a string of 6 consecutive seasons as an all-star. Roberto led the NL in batting during the '61, '64, '65, and '67 seasons, and won the MVP award in 1966.

In 1968, his batting average dipped to .291, which would be his only season under .300 (and only all-star absence) after 1959. He bounced back with 4 more "Clemente" seasons.

Roberto led his team to a World Series victory in 1971, and collected his 3000th hit in the next-to-last game of his final season (1972).

He was 38 when his plane crashed off the coast of Puerto Rico, en route to Nicaragua on a humanitarian mission on 12/31/1972.


Also check out Clemente's 1970 card.  

Gaylord Perry (#320)

Gaylord Perry pitched for 22 seasons, accumulated 314 wins and 3534 strikeouts, and was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1991.

He spent the first 10 seasons of his career with the Giants, and although he won 20 games twice there, he usually pitched in the shadow of Juan Marichal:

1966: Perry goes 21-8 with 201 strikeouts, but teammate Marichal was 25-6 with 222 Ks.

1967: Perry wins 15 while Marichal slumps to 14-10, but wait, newcomer Mike McCormick leads the NL with 22 wins!

1968: Perry wins 16, with 173 Ks, but Marichal rebounds to 26-9 with 218 Ks. Teammate Ray Sadecki also strikes out 203.

1969: Perry goes 19-14, but still trails Marichal's 21-11. He does top Marichal in strikeouts though (233 to 205).

1970: Finally! Perry: 23-13, Marichal: 12-10.

1971: Oh well, Perry: 16-12, Marichal: 18-11.



After the 1971 season, Perry was traded to the Indians for strikeout artist Sam McDowell. In 1972, Gaylord led the AL in wins (24) and complete games (29), and won the Cy Young award. He pitched 2 more full seasons in Cleveland, winning 19 and 21 games. He was teammates with his brother Jim during 1974 and early 1975.

In June 1975, Perry was traded to the Rangers for pitcher Jim Bibby and others. He pitched 2 1/2 seasons for Texas.

Before the 1978 season, Gaylord was traded to the Padres. His first season in San Diego was a carbon copy of his first in Cleveland: He led the league in wins (21) and won the Cy Young award. Perry pitched one more season in San Diego before spending the last 4 seasons of his career bouncing from team to team.

Ron Santo (#70)

WILL THIS GUY EVER MAKE IT INTO THE HALL OF FAME?

Many months ago, I had a discussion with Wrigley Wax, where I said that I (like many others, I suspect) overlooked the impact of Cubs' outfielder Billy Williams. To a lesser extent, the same is true of Ron Santo. Why? Probably a number of reasons, including playing in Ernie Banks' shadow, the Cubs having bad teams in the 1960s, the presence of so many headline-grabbing power hitters back in the day (Mays, Mantle, Aaron, Clemente, McCovey, Killebrew, Yastrzemski, etc, etc).

A few months ago, the MLB Network ran a Prime 9 episode on the greatest player at each position in the 1960s. Before watching it, I assumed that several players would be slam-dunks (Sandy Koufax, Brooks Robinson, etc..). I was shocked to learn that neither of those 2 were selected. RON SANTO was selected by MLB Network as the greatest 3rd baseman of the 1960s! On closer review, it's not that surprising. Santo was a notch below Robinson defensively, but although always edged out of the home run crown by Mays, Aaron, or McCovey, Santo was an RBI machine for most of his career.



Ron Santo was signed by the Cubs in 1959, and spent the year playing double-A ball. After 71 games with the Cubs' triple-A Houston team in 1960, Santo made his major-league debut on June 26th. He took over the 3rd base job from Don Zimmer, starting 94 of the final 96 games there in 1960.

Santo was a workhorse for the Cubs. He played 160 or more games in 7 of the 8 seasons from 1962 to 1969. His most productive seasons were from 1963 to 1970, when he tallied 98 or more RBI 7 times, cracked 30+ home runs 4 times, and led the league in walks 4 times. During that time, he made 6 all-star appearances and collected 5 gold gloves.

Although his numbers began to slip from "Santo standards" beginning in 1971, he still made the all-star team 3 more times as a Cub. Santo moved across town to the White Sox for his final season in 1974. With the Sox, he played 47 games as the DH, 39 games at 2nd base, and 28 games at 3rd base.

Following his playing career, Santo was a broadcaster for the Cubs for the past 20 years. He passed away in early December 2010.

Robin Roberts (1926-2010)

Robin Roberts, the greatest right-handed pitcher in Phillies' history passed away today at age 83, at his home in Florida.

Roberts pitched for the Phillies from 1948 to 1961, compiling a record of 234-199. With the Phillies, he made 472 starts and completed 272 of them. He won 20 or more games each season from 1950 to 1955, also leading all NL pitchers in games started those years.

He also pitched for the Orioles from 1962 to 1965, before finishing his major-league career in 1966 with the Astros and Cubs. In 1967, he pitched for the Phillies' double-A club in Reading, PA.

His #36 was the first number retired by the Phillies. This was done in 1962, while he was still active with another team (only the 2nd time that occurred, the 1st being Babe Ruth).

Roberts was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1976, and returned every summer since then for the ceremonies.

Juan Marichal (#500)

Card # 500 - always used for one of the best players. (Marichal's head also appeared on the 5th series checklist in 1967.)

Juan Marichal was signed by the Giants in 1957, and spent all of 1958-59, and part of 1960 in their farm system. His major-league debut was a 2-0 complete game shutout of the Phillies on July 19, 1960. Replacing Johnny Antonelli in the rotation, Juan started all 11 of his appearances in 1960.

In 1961, the Giants' big three starters (Jack Sanford, Mike McCormick, and Marichal) all won 13 games. Marichal's 124 strikeouts were 2nd on the Giants to McCormick's 163.

The Giants won the pennant in 1962, with excellent starting pitching from Sanford (24-7), Billy O'Dell (who returned from the bullpen to compile a 19-14 record), Marichal (18-11), and Billy Pierce (16-6, acquired from the White Sox in the off-season).

In 1963 Juan took over as the ace of the pitching staff, compiling a 25-8 record with 18 complete games. His 248 strikeouts were 90 more than Sanford's.



Marichal won 20 or more games 6 times in 7 years between 1963 and 1969. He completed 30 of his 38 starts in 1968 to lead the NL in that category.

After an off-year in 1970 (12-10), he came back to post a 18-11 record in 1971. Juan continued with the Giants through the 1973 season, and was sold to the Red Sox in December 1973.

Marichal was limited to 11 games in 1974, and was released after the season. The Dodgers signed him the following March, but he only pitched 2 games in 1975, the last on April 16th.

Carl Yastrzemski (#355)

Carl Yastrzemski made his major-league debut on opening day 1961, and started 146 games in left field that season. He replaced Ted Williams, who had retired after the 1960 season. (Williams had been Boston's leftfielder since 1939, except for the seasons he missed for military service.)

In 1967, Carl led the Red Sox to the American League pennant, although they lost the series to the Cardinals. Yaz won the triple crown that season, just 1 year after Frank Robinson had done the same. No player in either league has won the triple crown since.



The popular notion is that the Red Sox only had 3 regular leftfielders from 1939 to 1987 (Williams, Yastrzemski, and Jim Rice). Actually, there were several breaks in that string. In 1964, rookie Tony Conigliaro was the regular leftfielder, while Yaz played centerfield all season.
There was also a blip from 1972 to 1974: Yaz started only 83 of his 125 games in leftfield in 1972. The following season, he was the regular first baseman, and played more games at THIRD base (33) than in left field (15). Tommy Harper was the regular leftfielder that year. In 1974, Yaz and Harper each played about half the games at 1B and LF.
In 1975, Rice took over in left, but was limited to fulltime DH duties in 1977, so Yaz was back out in left for one more season.

Yastrzemski played for 23 years (all with the Red Sox), retiring after the 1983 season. He was a regular to the end. He never had less than 535 plate appearances in a season until his final four seasons, and even then he had over 390 plate appearances per season - a real workhorse!

Lou Brock (#285)

My labels in the sidebar tell me that I've not been paying enough attention to the Athletics, Cardinals, Giants, or Senators. This is particularly troublesome with the Cardinals, since they were world champs in 1967, so...

Lou Brock was one of many stars on the 1967 Cardinals team. Bob Gibson was the league's dominant pitcher. Orlando Cepeda crashed numerous homeruns. Brock, besides batting leadoff and stealing a gazillion bases, was voted a starter in the all-star game, pushing Willie Mays to the all-star bench after 14 straight all-star starts from 1957 to 1966!

Brock started in the Cubs system in 1961, and was traded to the Cardinals in June 1964 in a 3-for-3 deal which included pitcher Ernie Broglio going to the Cubs.



The back of this card mentions that "Out in right field, Lou is a pitcher's best friend." Although Brock played right field during his time with the Cubs, he was almost exclusively a leftfielder during his years with the Cardinals. His only significant time in right field for the Cardinals was starting the first 23 games there in 1966.

The card backs never include stolen bases, so since that was Brock's forte, let's check this out. From 1966 to 1974, Brock led the league in stolen bases 8 of the 9 seasons.

Lou retired after the 1979 season (at age 40), still an every day player right up to the end of his career.

Final Card: Whitey Ford (#5)

Whitey Ford made his debut with the Yankees in 1950, and after 2 years in the service, he became a fixture in the starting rotation from 1953 (or 1933, according to the back of this card!) to 1965.

After 13 consecutive seasons of winning in double figures (and better than .500 records), Whitey slipped to a 2-5 record in 1966. He pitched in 7 games (all starts) in 1967, his last being on May 21st, and he retired at the end of May.

#60 - Luis Aparicio ("Infield"?)

Back in 1967, as my brother and I were busting open packs of cards, anytime we found a player designated as "INFIELD" (or worse yet, "INF-OF"), we immediately sized him up as a stiff. There appears to be one exception:



Here, Topps' use of "INFIELD" doesn’t make any sense, since Aparicio was a perennial all-star shortstop with the Orioles (and White Sox). To add to the confusion, the back of his card stated his position as ‘Shortstop’. (The same situation occurs on Ron Hansen’s card, but he wasn’t at the same level as Aparicio.)

I wonder if Luis' teammates ribbed him for being a "utility infielder"?