CT CotD-1969 Topps Willie Stargell

Good morning collectors! Time for a quick card of the day post before working another double shift… The exciting thing about today is it is a split double-1st and 3rd shift. The reason is Mrs. Troll is graduating tonight!!! With honors, as you can imagine I am mega-proud! Pictures will probably follow. Anyway, the card of the day comes from the 1969 Topps set, card #545 of Pittsburgh Pirates leftfielder Willie Stargell. I picked this card because Willie had a very off year (for him) in ’68 ('68 was the year of the pitcher), but bounced back huge in ’69 and he was just getting started. Stargell was an All Star 3 times in his 20s, but he really came into his own in his thirties. He was an All Star 4 times, but was in the top-10 in All Star voting 7 times from 30 on up. When he finally won the MVP Award he was 39 years old and he didn’t just win the MVP, he won the NLCS MVP, the World Series MVP, the Major League Player of the Year, the Babe Ruth Award and he and the Pirates won the World Championship. That would also be his final full season in the big leagues. I am getting ahead of myself though… In ’69 Stargell was 29 and he had bounced back from a year (1968) where he hit just .237 with 67 RBI. In ’69 he raised his batting average 70 points (.307-8th in NL), raised his slugging percentage 115 points to .556 (4th in NL) and drove in 24 more runs. The back of the card mentions that on June 24, 1965 Willie belted 3 homers in one game. It is unusual that it only mentions that one time because he also did it in 1968-hitting 3 homers on 5/22/68. Of course he did it twice more after that, too. The back of the card also mentions: Pittsburgh’s slugging star set the club record for homeruns by a left-handed batter when he clouted 33 round trippers in 1966. Last year Willie topped the Bucs with 24 homers.” He would top the Bucs in homers many more times and he topped the NL in homeruns twice (’71,’73), too. He also raised the club record from 33 up to 48 homers in 1971. Willie Stargell was the greatest slugger in Pirates history-he owns the club record with 475 career longballs (28th All-Time) and he did it with grace, class and without steroids. Maybe the most impressive thing is that he spent 24 years with the Pirates organization, never playing for another team. From the time he signed as an 18-year-old in 1958 till his final game in 1982, he was a Pirate. As a fan I only knew of Willie “Pops” Stargell, the elder, veteran leader of the “We Are Family” teams-I like looking back at this youthful Stargell, 7 years into his career, optimistic, but with no idea he would be one of the greatest to ever play the game. I love this hobby! Troll out.

Brock's Leadoff HR Starts Cards Romp!

Today’s card of the day is from the 1969 Topps set, card #165 titled “Brock’s Lead-Off HR Starts Cards’ Romp; Gibson Wins 7th in a Row”. The front of the card shows Brock hitting the second pitch of the game from Denny McClain into the seats to spark a 10-1 St. Louis win. Bob Gibson pitched a complete game 5-hit, 1 run victory while striking out 10 Tigers and both Brock and Tim McCarver had 3 hits on the day for the Cards. Al Kaline was the lone Tiger to have 2 hits and only 3 of his teammates reached base that day. The game was Bob Gibson’s 7th consecutive World Series victory and improved his career mark to 7-1 in the Series. Lou Brock was 3-5 with a pair of runs scored that day and he had an outstanding Series himself. His final stats included a .464 batting average, 2 homers, 5 RBI and 7 stolen bases. This victory gave the Cards a 3 games to 1 advantage over the Tigers in the 1968 World Series. Of course the Tigers came back and took game 5, pummeled 7 different Cardinals pitchers in game 6, winning 13-1 to set up a decisive game 7. Gibson started for the Cards trying for his 3rd win in that Series and his 8th consecutive. His opposition would be Mickey Lolich, the Tigers number 2 starter that year, who was on fire in the Classic. Lolich was the better man that day and his pitched his 3rd complete game of the Series, collecting his 3rd win and sealing the Cards doom. It was a tight game, both pitchers went the distance, but the Tigers rallied in the 7th inning scoring 3 runs, which is all Lolich needed. The scoring began when Jim Northrup belted a 2-run triple to center which scored Cash and Horton. Northrup scored himself when Bill Freehan doubled him home. The Tigers took game seven 4-1 and Lolich (3-0 1.67 ERA) was the surprise hero and the Series MVP after putting in a Gibson-like performance in the Classic. This is the second Gibson related World Series card that I have focused on, but he was that good-especially in the big games. Gibby’s career numbers in the Series are awe inspiring. Check this out: He was 7-2 in 9 starts. 8 complete games and 2 shutouts. He had a 1.89 ERA with only 17 walks to 92 strikeouts. That’s right, 92 freaking Ks in the World Series! They came over 81 innings giving Gibson an average of 9 innings per start in the WS. He finished every game he started except for 1 where he left after 8 innings, but 1 complete game went 10 innings. He pitched in 3 World Series for the Cards during the sixties, winning the first 2 and losing the final against the Detroit Tigers in 1969. He was the World Series MVP in the two that the Cards won in 1964 and 1968. At the plate he had 28 at-bats, getting 4 hits for a .143 batting average. Not too great, but 2 of those hits left the park. Not many players have 2 career World Series homers, especially a pitcher who averages 9 innings a start…
I really miss the days when the Ace of a staff went 9 innings regardless… At least I have my cards to remind me that it used to happen. I think that free agent starters should look at the box score on the back of this card and see what Bob Gibson did BEFORE they think they deserve 100 million dollar contracts because that is the bar of a great pitcher. I love this game, I love this hobby! Oh-by the by... A Colorado Rockies collector has stepped forward! Waiting for an e-mail and then the trading-free-for-all can beging! Troll out.

1968 Topps All Rookie Team Outfielder

A lot has been made this year of Orioles rookie catcher Matt Wieters not being named to the Topps All Star Rookie team. It got me thinking and looking at all the old cup cards I could find. I love the rookie cup, especially the old style with the gigantic trophy on them. Many cup rookie players have been well deserved, played in multiple All Star games and now reside in the Hall of Fame. There have been a few though that had to have family working for Topps. My first case in point is brought to you by 1969 Topps, card #464 of Giants outfielder Dave Marshall.
The 1968 Topps All Rookie Team featured a Hall of Fame catcher in Johnny Bench, as well as a few names that most folks have heard of like AL ROY Stan Bahnsen, Bobby Bonds, Del Unser, Jerry Koosman and Bobby Cox. The player who sticks out like a sore thumb on the team is probably Johnny Bench because he was so great, but his “teammate” Dave Marshall also doesn’t seem to fit for other reasons. Since I wasn’t born yet in 1968 I don’t really know what the rookie crop was like. Bench won the NL ROY and Jerry Koosman took second place as the only other player to receive a vote, Bahnsen took the honor in the AL and Del Unser was the only other player mentioned.
I just have to believe that there was someone better than Marshall. He was an outfielder with the Giants, playing both left and right field in an outfield that starred Willie Mays, Jesus Alou and Bobby Bonds. Marshall only started 45 games that year. The rest of his action was as a pinch hitter. Being a left handed bat, he was valuable off the bench for his skipper, Herm Franks. The back of the card touts: “A promising young outfielder, Dave was selected to the 1968 Topps Rookie All Star team. As a pinch hitter last year, he was 7-23 with 5 RBI’s!”
Call me crazy, but batting .304 is nice as a pinch hitter, but is it nice enough to be on the All Rookie team? For the season Marshall batted .264 with 1 homerun and 16 RBI. He stole 2 bases and scored 17 times. Those numbers just don’t strike me as All Rookie Team material. What am I missing here?
He did improve the following season, in 1969 he played in 110 games, doubled his home run and RBI totals, but his average dropped to .232. He would be traded to the Mets next year and his playing career ended in 1973 with the Padres after 7 big league seasons. I don’t mean to knock the guy-playing 7 years in the Majors is no small feat, but I just don’t think he was worthy of the coveted Gold Cup Trophy on his card-the same one that Johnny Bench, Rod Carew and so many other great players earned. Marshall’s final numbers are as follows: 16 homeruns, 114 RBI and 13 stolen bases. He batted .246 over his career with 258 hits, 41 doubles and 4 triples. The back of the card also mentions that "in 1965 Dave smashed 13 triples to pace the California League". That year he would also hit 8 homers and bat .260. Two years after leading the A-level Caly League in triples he was in the Majors with the Giants. Sorry Mr. Marshall, I don’t mean to pick on you, congratulations on the honor. I love this hobby! Troll out.

Bird Hill Aces!

The card of the day (later edition) today is from the 1969 Topps set, card #532, Bird Hill Aces. It features Tom Phoebus, Jim Hardin, Dave McNally and Mike Cuellar. Conspicuously absent is Jim Palmer. Of course Palmer spent the 1968 season in the minors re-discovering his stuff. By the time the ’69 season rolled around and this card came out Palmer had joined the quartet and moved into the 4th spot in the rotation. The card was accurate in that McNally and Cuellar were aces, Phoebus wasn’t too shabby either (14-7 in ’69), but Jim Harden fell off the mark in ’69 going 6-7 in 20 starts after an amazing 18 win campaign in 1968. Harden would hang on with the Orioles as a spot starter in 1970, but would be traded to the Yankees in ’71 and retire soon after. The other 3 plus Palmer would form the greatest pitching dynasty of the late 60’s and early 70’s. Mike Cuellar would win the Cy Young Award in ’69 and averaged 20 wins a year from 1969-1974 helping the Orioles to 5 playoff appearances and a World Series victory in 1970. Dave McNally topped 20 wins in 4 straight seasons beginning in 1968, but never won the Cy Young-he did league the AL in wins in 1970. Tom Phoebus was 14-7 in 1969, but was traded to the Padres in 1972, but he did collect a win in relief in the ’70 WS. Jim Palmer, who was left off of the card, would pitch for the Orioles until his retirement in 1984. He topped 20 wins eight times from 1970-1978 and also won Cy Young Awards in 1973, 1975 and 1976. He had already won a World Series with Baltimore in ’66, but he would win again in 1970 and 1983. He would win 268 games for the Orioles and went into the Hall of Fame in 1990. The card was correct in that those 4 young pitchers would lead Baltimore to greatness-they took the American League Flag in ’69, but lost to the Amazing Mets in the World Series. All 4 of them, plus Palmer took home the Pennant in 1970 before the group was broke up. Phoebus and Hardin were relegated to spot starts and some bullpen duty because the Big 3 of McNally, Cuellar and Palmer took care of nearly everything themselves. Each one of those starters pitched more than 290 innings in 1970 and Cuellar and McNally each won 24 games. Palmer chipped in 20 wins himself. Those three accounted for 54 complete games, 10 shutouts and 68 of the Orioles 108 wins that year. They beat the Reds in the World Series for their only Pennant as a group. The pitching led them there, but Brooks Robinson took home the WS MVP after batting .429 with 2 homers and 6 RBI. With 3 pitchers on the team having outstanding seasons they split Cy Young votes and didn’t win. Minnesota’s Jim Perry (24-12 3.04) took home the award. McNally (24-9 3.22) placed 2nd, Cuellar (24-8 3.48) was 4th and Palmer (20-10 2.71) was behind him in 5th place. That is my take on the card, here is what the writer’s at Topps Baseball said on the back:
“Four starting pitchers give the Orioles one of the most respected pitching staffs in the league. Tom Phoebus, a 14 game winner in his rookie year, rang up 15 wins in his sophomore campaign in ’68. Don’t forget this righthander also pitched shutouts in his first two appearances in the AL. Jim Hardin was another improved sophomore for Baltimore last year. As a rookie 1967, Jim won 8 games but last season he notched 18 victories. The ace of the staff is southpaw Dave McNally who was the #2 man in the AL in 1968 with 22 victories. Mike Cuellar joined the Orioles last winter via the deal that sent Curt Blefary to the Astros. With Houston last year, the righthander was their top starter with a fine 2.74 ERA.”
That sums it up pretty well. As big a fan of Curt Blefary as I am, the trade of him that brought Mike Cuellar to the Orioles may have had more influence on their Dynasty than any other move. I really love these group cards, I really love Topps card of the 60’s, I really love going back and seeing how true the card companies predictions were. I really like the pose here, too. The 4 four aces sitting on a park bench showing off their dangerous (except for McNally) right arms. In the case of this card, these 4 (plus Palmer) got the job done in ’69 and ’70, as advertised. Well done Topps! Today will probably be the final day of voting for my 1980 Rookie Cards Contest-Ken Griffey Jr and Ricky Henderson remain in a deadlock, how about a few more votes before I shut it down? Oh, a couple of endnotes... As I have mentioned before, all of the cards that I post for card of the day are available for trade. I have the notion that I would like to chase the '65 Topps set and I am about 5 per cent of the way there, so any of my cards from the 60's are available for '65 Topps. Also, this card is from the 1969 set which my friend over at Closet Full of Cardboard is trying to build. Get in touch with him if you have any '69s you want to get rid of. Also, I use Baseball Reference for all of my stats and lately I have tried to link the players with their stats page so you have a reference. Okay, that is it. I love this hobby! Troll out.