CAREER-CAPPER: 1973 JIM ROLAND

Up on the blog today we have a 1973 "career-capper" for pitcher Jim Roland, who put in ten seasons on a Big League mound:

Roland appeared in 23 games during the 1972 season, split between three teams: the New York Yankees, Oakland A's and Chicago White Sox.

Over those appearances he finished with a record of 0-1 with a 5.28 earned run average in 30.2 innings, striking out 17 while walking 18 (ouch!).

Originally up as a 19-year-old with the Minnesota Twins in 1962, he'd generally be used out of the bullpen as a middle reliever, moving on to the Oakland A's in 1969 until that final 1972 season.

Overall, he'd finish with a record of 19-17 over 216 games, with a nice 3.22 ERA in 450.1 innings, saving nine while tossing a complete game back in 1963.

 

REVISIT: MISSING IN ACTION 1978 JIM UMBARGER

On the blog today, we revisit another 10-year-old post, this one my "missing" 1978 card for former pitcher Jim Umbarger of the Texas Rangers:

Umbarger appeared in 15 games over the 1977 season, split between the Oakland A’s and Texas, posting a 2-6 record with a 6.32 earned run average over 57 innings of work.
His first two years in the Majors were much better, as he went 8-7 and 10-12 in 1975 and 1976 respectively with Texas, posting ERA’s of 4.12 and 3.15 with five shutouts splitting time between starting and the bullpen.
He wouldn’t fare much better in 1978, posting a 5-8 record with a 4.88 ERA, thus completing what would be his 4-year career, giving him a 25-33 record with a 4.14 ERA over 133 games, 61 of which were starts, and 483 innings pitched.

 

MISSING IN ACTION- 1978 MIKE MARSHALL

Good day all!

At long last! After 12 years of creating cards for this blog, I have finally found an image good "enough" to create a "missing" 1978 card for reliever extraordinaire Mike Marshall:

Granted, it took a ton of work to make this card actually usable for this card, but dammit, it has been way too long and I wanted to put this card behind me.

Marshall split the 1977 season between the Atlanta Braves and Texas Rangers, where he went a combined 3-2 over 16 games, four of them starts, picking up a save and pitching to an ERA of 4.75.

But the man was FAR from finished in the Big Leagues, as evidenced by his comeback 1978 campaign with the Minnesota Twins.

He'd finish that season with a record of 10-12 over 54 games, all out of the bullpen, saving 21 games while posting a very nice 2.45 ERA over 99 innings.

Mike Marshall is about as interesting a character in Major League baseball during the 1970's as any other. And considering some of the characters we've looked at in the past, that is saying something.
How else can you describe a guy who seriously considered retiring from the sport so he could focus on his P.H.D. studies before his record setting 1974 season?
If you've ever read Jim Bouton's hilarious and landmark book "Ball Four" you read about Marshall's legendary battles with his then-manager Jim Schultz while both were members of the ill-fated single-season organization Seattle Pilots.
This guy was something else. And his arm was undoubtedly something else as well. In no less than three seasons, Marshall appeared in 90 or more games, including his record-setting mark of 106 in 1974 that still stands today.
And UNLIKE today with specialty pitchers who come in and face a batter or two, when Marshall came into a game, he pitched.
In 1974, purely a relief role, Marshall threw an astounding 208.1 innings, going 15-12 with a 2.42 E.R.A. and a league-leading 21 saves. Amazing by any standard, any era.
This easily got him a Cy Young award that year, beating out fellow teammate Andy Messersmith, while also finishing third in M.V.P. voting as well.
When it came to baseball cards, Marshall was equally as "unique". Rumor has it that he was a bit of a headache for Topps, refusing to "pose" for pictures. Because of this, his cards featured action shots between 1974 through 1977.
Then, after his '77 card, he disappeared altogether. Why I have no idea. But even though Marshall played through the rest of the decade, there were no cards for him in the 1978 and 1979 set.
The 1979 season was another amazing year for Marshall. He appeared in an A.L. record 90 games, closing out 84 of them, good enough for a 10-15 record with a league-leading 32 saves. Those numbers got him a fifth-place finish in the Cy Young voting that year, which marked the fifth time he was in the running for the award in his career.
He even finished in 11th place for M.V.P. as well, which was the fourth time he garnered serious attention as "Most Valuable Player" during his playing days.
But because of what I understand as "problems" between Topps and Marshall, he was not included in the set that year, leaving a gaping hole for a guy who was as good as any coming into a game as a reliever.
It must have been frustrating for fans of the Twins, and more specifically Marshall, to rip open packs during the late '70's only to find that one of your best pitchers wasn't even depicted on a card.
Then again, from everything I've read online, he's about as tough an autograph to get as anyone else out there, long refusing to sign his name for fans, so perhaps they weren't really missing him too much after all.

 

NOT REALLY MISSING IN ACTION: 1976 BOBBY JONES

Today on the blog, we gibe former outfielder Bob Jones another "not so missing" card to go with his 1978 edition, this time a 1976 card after playing in a handful of games with the Texas Rangers in 1975:

 

Jones appeared in only nine games in 1975, putting in time at all three outfield spots while collecting one hit over 11 at-bats, for an .091 average for those wondering.

He'd have somewhat of a break-through season in 1976 when he appeared in 78 games, collecting 187 plate-appearances, even if he hit only .211 with 35 hits over 166 official at-bats for the Angels.
In 1978 he had an excellent season in the Minor Leagues, hitting .307 with 14 homers and 102 RBIs, but never got a call up to the Big leagues, prompting him to go to Japan where he played for the Chunichi Dragons before coming back and suiting up for the Texas Rangers in 1981 when he played in 10 games.
He’d spend all of 1982 in the Minor Leagues again, but in 1983 made it back, where he’d play out his career through the 1986 seasons.
By the time he left the Majors in 1986, he finished with a career .221 batting average, with 133 hits over 603 at-bats in 314 games, with 20 home runs and 86 RBIs.
After his playing days, he pretty much made himself a baseball lifer, becoming a coach and Minor League manager in the Texas organization, eventually becoming the franchise’s all-time winning Minor League manager with 1285 career wins.

 

REVISITING MY 1974 "MISSING IN ACTION" FOR LARRY BIITNER

Time to revisit a ten-year-old post featuring my "missing" 1974 card for Larry Biitner, from October 23rd, 2015:

For some reason he was left out of the ‘74 set even though he played in 83 games during the 1973 season.
In that campaign he he collected 65 hits over 258 official at-bats. Good for a .252 average with a homer and 12 runs batted in.
He’d go on to play straight through to the 1983 season before retiring, a nice 14-year career that saw him hit a very respectable .273 with 861 hits in 3151 at-bats in 1217 games
I’ll always remember him as a Chicago Cubs player, for whom he suited up between 1976 and 1980, even though he also played for the Washington Senators/Texas Rangers, Montreal Expos and Cincinnati Reds.
And of course for his unique surname with the consecutive "I"...

GIMMIE A DO-OVER: 1974 SONNY SIEBERT

Thought it would be fun to go and re-do the 1974 card for former pitcher Sonny Siebert, who put in a nice Major league career before he hung them up:

My re-done version

Original Topps card

Siebert is one of those pitchers who flies under the radar in my book as far as good, solid hurlers during the 1960's and 1970's.

Between 1964 and 1972, pitching for the Cleveland Indians and Boston Red Sox, Siebert would post five seasons of sub-3.00 ERA's, five seasons of 14 wins or more, all while pitching for sub-par teams.

In 1973 he found himself wrapping up the season as a member of the Texas Rangers, but was shipped off to the St. Louis Cardinals by seasons end, which had Topps create the "looking-up" image you see here, with the non-descript cap.

I figured I'd create a card with him as a Ranger since I'm of the "reflection of previous year" for cards.

He'd go 8-8 for the Cardinals in 1974, with a 3.84 ERA over 28 games and 133.2 innings of work, with three shutouts and five complete games.

He kind of gets grouped in with the Gary Peters, Joel Horlens and such of the world for me.

Anyway, in 1975 he started the season with the San Diego Padres, but found himself off to Oakland where he appeared in the final 17 games of his career, ending up with a 7-6 record with a 3.90 ERA over 23 games before retiring.

 

NOT REALLY MISSING IN ACTION: 1972 RICK STELMASZEK

On the blog today, we have a "not so missing" 1972 card for former catcher Rick Stelmaszek, who made his MLB debut in 1971 with a handful of games with the Washington Senators in their last season of play before relocating to Texas as the Rangers:

Stelmaszek went 0-for-9 at the plate over six games while putting in time behind the plate for the Senators before spending all of 1972 in the Minors.

He'd make it back to the Big Leagues in 1973, going on to appear in seven games for the now relocated franchise before a trade in May sent him to the Angels.
He’d appear in 22 games for California, one of the MANY catchers the Angels seemed to have at that time, batting .154 for them and a combined .143 between the two organizations.
It was a short-lived tenure with his new team, and he would find himself playing for his hometown Chicago Cubs by the time the 1974 season opened up, playing in 25 games and batting .227 with 10 hits over 56 at-bats while filling in behind the plate.
Those would actually be the last Big League games for Stelmaszek, though he would toil in the Minors for another four years, each year for a different organization, retiring as a player after the 1978 season.
All told, he finished with a .170 batting average, with 15 hits over 88 at-bats in 60 lifetime games, driving in 10 runs while scoring four himself.

"NOT REALLY MISSING IN ACTION": 1978 GARY GRAY

Up on the blog today, a 1978 "not so missing" card for Gary Gray, a player with one of the cooler names in the course of baseball history:

Gray appeared in one game for the Texas Rangers in 1977, his first taste of the Big Leagues, going 0-for-2 at the plate while putting in some time out in leftfield.

He'd go on to put in parts of six years in the Majors, playing for the Rangers, Cleveland Indians and Seattle Mariners between 1977 and 1982.

Over that time he'd never put in a full season, topping out with 80 games in his last year as a Big league first baseman/outfielder.

By the time he hung them up, he hit .240 with 150 hits in 625 at-bats, appearing in 211 games, with 65 runs scored and 71 runs batted in, moving on to the Mexican League in the mid-80s and playing through the 1987 season.

 

NOT REALLY MISSING IN ACTION: 1979 ROGELIO MORET

On the blog today, a "not so missing" 1979 card for Rogelio Moret, who actually saw the last Major League action of his career in 1978 with seven games for the Texas Rangers:

Moret was still only 28 when he saw that last action on a Big League mound, going 0-1 with a 4.91 earned run average in 14.2 innings pitched.

He put in two seasons with the Rangers, with a year in Atlanta with the Braves before that in 1976 when he posted a record of 3-5 over 27 games, about half of those starts, with a bloated 5.00 ERA.

The first six years of his career were with the Boston Red Sox, where he did shine for two of those seasons, going 13-2 and 14-3 in 1973 and 1975 respectively.

He was a versatile pitcher who could start and come out of the bullpen, giving the Sox a valuable arm during their 1975 American League championship year when he led the A.L. with a sparkling .824 winning percentage.

Because of those two big seasons, he finished his career with a very nice record of 47-27, for a .635 winning percentage, with a 3.66 ERA over 168 games, 82 of them starts, with five shutouts and 12 saves between 1970 and 1978.

MISSING IN ACTION: 1980 "FIREMEN LEAGUE LEADER" CARD

On the blog today, an interesting "missing" card to create, the "missing" 1980 Firemen League Leader card that was conspicuously missing as we ripped open packs that year:

Now, I'm not 100% sure, but I'm assuming the reason Topps didn't create this card was because one of the American League guys, Mike Marshall, would not allow them to use his image for cards at that time, with his last card in the 1977 set, so you could see how that would be an issue here.

Nevertheless, I went and whipped one up all these years later!

In the National League, we have all-world reliever in 1979 Bruce Sutter, who would take home the N.L. Cy Young Award for his monster 1979 campaign.

Ironically, though his 1977 year was better, his 1979 season was also great enough to bring him the hardware, as he'd post a record of 6-6 over 62 appearances, with a league-leading 37 saves, striking out 110 batters over 101.1 innings while pitching to a 2.22 earned run average.

Of course, we all know that he would also go on to lead the league in saves four of the next five years, including his record 45 saves in 1984 as a member of the St. Louis Cardinals.

In the American League, it was a tie with Mike Marshall of the Minnesota Twins and Texas Rangers closer Jim Kern, both having excellent years.

For Marshall, he would appear in a league-leading 90 games, going 10-15 with a 2.65 ERA over 142.2 innings, with an A.L. high 32 saves.

It was the third time he reached the 90-game mark in his career, the first time since his Cy Young winning 1974 season with the Los Angeles Dodgers when he set the STILL standing record of 106 appearances.

As for Kern, I would say he had a serious case for the A.L. Cy Young in 1979, having an incredible year for the Texas Rangers, going 13-5 with a microscopic 1.57 ERA over 71 games and 143 innings, with 136 strikeouts.

Absolute beast!

Sadly for him it would easily be the high point of his career, though he would pitch until the 1986 season, getting in 13 seasons under the Big League sun.

Well, there you have it, filling in a blank in the 1980 set 43 years later!

Hope you enjoyed this one!

DEDICATED ROOKIE: 1977 LEN BARKER

Up on the blog this fine day, we have a 1977 "dedicated rookie" for pitcher Len barker, who'd have himself a decent eleven-year Major League career ahead of him with some truly bright moments:

Barker made his Big League debut in 1976, appearing in two games while going 1-0 for the Texas Rangers, pitching to a nice 2.40 earned run average over 15 innings, including a complete-game shutout.

He'd be back in 1977, appearing in 15 games, with three of those starts, going 4-1 with a 2.66 ERA in 47.1 innings, giving the Rangers hope that they found a home grown ace.

Sadly the 1978 season had Barker struggle, going 1-5 over 29 games, seeing his ERA blow up more than two full runs to 4.82, eventually leading to a trade to the Cleveland Indians along with Bobby Bonds for Larvell Blanks and Jim Kern.

In Cleveland, Barker found his groove, putting in solid seasons between 1980 and 1982, including 19 wins in 1980 and two straight strikeout titles in 1980 & 1981.

Of course, the high point of his career would be May 15th of 1981 in Cleveland, when Barker reached the ultimate pitching accomplishment, tossing a perfect game against the Toronto Blue Jays, at the time the ninth such gem in MLB history.

At this writing it is STILL the last no-hitter thrown by a Cleveland pitcher, and something Barker to this day loves to talk about, never tiring of that grand performance.

Sadly by 1983, still only 27 years of age and now a member of the Atlanta Braves, Barker starting having arm trouble, which quickly led to his retirement by 1983, on 31.

Over his 11 year career, Barker finished with a record of 74-76, with an ERA of 4.34 over 248 games and 1323.2 innings, with seven shutouts and five saves, with the aforementioned two K-titles and an All-Star game appearance in 1981, and of course that perfect game.

EXPANDED LEAGUE LEADERS: 1979 A.L. E.R.A.

Up on the blog today, we have a 1979 "expanded league leader" card celebrating the top three ERA men in the American League for 1978:

Of course we begin with the pitching apex of 1978 in Major League baseball, New York Yankees great Ron Guidry.

Guidry was unstoppable that season, cruising to an incredible 25-3 record, helping the Yankees win their second straight championship while setting a new MLB record .893 winning percentage for 20+ win seasons, which still stands today.

Along with his 25 wins, “Louisiana Lightning” led the league with his nine shutouts and 1.74 earned run average, while finishing second with 248 K’s, a new Yankee record that stood until last season when Gerrit Cole topped the mark.

That all resulted in a Cy Young Award while coming in second for the MVP, which arguably should have been his. Just a legendary season for the whip-it from Lafayette, Louisiana.

Lost in the Ron Guidry performance in 1978, the wonderful season the second place finisher in ERA had in his first year with the Texas Rangers, former N.L. Rookie of the Year Jon Matlack, who posted an excellent 2.27 ERA while going 15-13 over 35 appearances, completing 18 starts while striking out 157 batters.

Matlack, who spent the first seven years of his Big League career with the New York Mets, was as solid as they came between 1972 and 1980, regularly putting in 200+ innings of work a year with double digit wins for some pretty bad teams.

By the time he hung them up he finished with 125 wins and 1516 K's, with 30 shutouts  and a very nice 3.18 ERA.

In third place, the man who had the misfortune of having his best Big League season in 1978, Milwaukee Brewers pitcher Mike Caldwell, who along with his 22 wins and six shutouts, posted an ERA of 2.36 over 293.1 innings.

Incredibly Caldwell completed 23 of his 34 starts, the top mark in the A.L. that year, even picking up a save as he also made three relief appearances over the course of the season.

That year would begin a six-year run for him that saw double-digit wins and 200+ innings every year except the strike-year of 1981, when he still tossed 144.1 over 23 starts.

Three great starters right here!

EXPANDED LEAGUE-LEADERS: 1979 A.L. STOLEN BASES

Up on the blog this fine day, my 1979 "expanded league-leader" card featuring the top three stolen base thieves in the American League for 1978:

We begin with the Detroit Tigers All-Star outfielder Ron LeFlore, who would lead the league with his 68 stolen bases in what was his third straight All-Star caliber year.

LeFlore, who made it all the way to the Big Leagues after spending time in prison, led the A.L. with 126 runs scored, while just missing out on his second straight 200-hit campaign, with 198, and a .297 batting average.

Two years later he would lead the National league in thefts, with 97 as a member of the Montreal Expos, on his way to 455 lifetime steals in just nine seasons.

He'd finish his career with a .288 average, with 731 runs scored while garnering some MVP votes in four of his nine years under the Big League sun.

In second place with 59 stolen bases, Seattle Mariners second baseman Julio Cruz, who had himself a fine first full year in the Majors.

Cruz would go on to play 10 years in the Big Leagues, stealing 343 bases, with the 59 from 1978 his career-best, also stealing 57 in 1983 split between the Mariners and White Sox.

In third place with 52 steals, Texas Rangers second baseman Bump Wills, son of a man who knew a thing or two about stealing bases, Maury Wills.

Bump had a solid Sophomore year after finishing third in Rookie of the Year consideration in 1977, following up a .287 average with a .250 number in 1978.

He scored 78 runs to go with those 52 steals, driving in 57 with 30 extra base hits, going on to score 90 and a career-best 102 runs the following two years.

After a solid year with the Chicago Cubs in 1982 that saw him hit .272 with 35 steals at the age of 29, Wills went over to Japan where he played for two years as a member of the Hankyu Braves, retiring for good as a Pro after the 1984 season, still only 31.

EXPENDED LEAGUE LEADERS: 1979 A.L. BATTING

On the blog today, we move on to the American League with my “expanded league leaders” thread, and celebrate the top three hitters for the 1978 season:

 

Of course, we begin with Hall of Famer Rod Carew, who took home his seventh and final batting title that year, hitting .333 in his final season with the Minnesota Twins before heading for sunnier pastures in California.

Carew was a machine, plain and simple, winning six of seven titles in his incredible run between 1972 and 1978, with a high of .388 during his MVP season of 1977, including his only 100 RBI season of his storied career.

By the time he retired after the 1985 season, he topped 3000 hits and finished with a .328 average for his 19-year Big League tenure, putting him in rare company, especially for the Post-War era.

In second place with a .324 batting average, the quiet man who just kept on hitting, “Scoop” Al Oliver, who had a very nice first season with the Texas Rangers after coming over from the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Oliver would collect 170 hits and drive in 89 runs for Texas in 1978, with 35 doubles and 14 homers, numbers he’d pretty much duplicate the next season before topping them in 1980 when he’d collect 209 hits and 117 RBIs along with a .319 average.

The man was such an under-the-radar All-Star player throughout his great 18-year career, a Hall of Fame career in my personal opinion, finishing with over 2700 hits, 200 homers and 1300 RBIs, while hitting .303 before hanging them up in 1985.

In third place, hitting at a .315 clip, the A.L. MVP for 1978, the great Jim Rice, who was an absolute beast that year, leading the league in hits, triples, homers, RBIs, slugging and total bases, demolishing Major League pitching while putting together an unbelievable three year run of 200 hits, 100 runs scored, 39+ homers, 100+RBIs and .315+ batting.

Just insane!

Of course his career path would eventually lead him to the Hall of Fame like Carew, finishing up with a .298 average with 382 homers and 1451 RBIs over 16 seasons, easily forgetting that the man also had four 200-hits seasons in addition to his power numbers.

There you go, the A.L.’s top hitters of the 1978 season, on display here on an “expanded league leader” card.

NOT REALLY MISSING IN ACTION: 1976 DAVID CLYDE

On the blog this fine day, we have a "not so missing" 1976 card for former #1 overall pick and pitching phenom David Clyde of the Texas Rangers:

After coming up straight to the Majors in 1973 to much fanfare after being drafted #1 in the nation by the Rangers out of High School, Clyde developed arm problems because of the organization's mishandling of the young pitching prodigy, to the point where he appeared in only one game during the 1975 season, tossing seven innings in a start while giving up only two runs.

Turns out he wouldn't be back to the Majors until 1978, now a member of the Cleveland Indians, where he'd pitch for only two years before retiring for good, his massive promise squashed because of Texas' greed at putting asses in seats back when Clyde was an 18-year-old state legend.

As profiled earlier on this blog, Clyde is a classic example of how an organization mishandled a young prospect for their own financial gains.

If you want more info on how the Rangers messed with him, click the following link for a more in-depth write up:

http://whentoppshadballs.blogspot.com/2013/10/some-respect-for-david-clydea-not-so.html

During his senior year at Westchester High School, Clyde had an incredible record of 18–0, giving up only three earned runs in 148 innings pitched, while pitching five no-hitters and setting 14 national high school records.

Clyde was a hometown hero of sorts after his outrageous exploits at Westchester High School in Houston, Texas, so it seemed like a marriage made in heaven for the struggling Rangers and their attendance problem.

But as we all know it didn't quite turn out the way the Rangers (or Clyde) had hoped, and what makes the pick all the more incredible is that the third and fourth picks in the amateur draft that year were two future Hall of Famers that each played for over 20 years at the big league level: Robin Yount at #3 and Dave Winfield at #4.

You think Texas would have wanted a "do-over" with THAT draft?

 

EXPANDED LEAGUE LEADER: 1978 A.L. E.R.A.

On the blog today, we move on to the American League and the top three pitchers in regards to earned run average for the 1977 season, displayed on an “expanded league leader” card:

 

We begin with young power-pitching stud Frank Tanana, who was building an impressive career in just a couple of seasons in the Big Leagues, leading the American League with his 2.54 ERA for the California Angels.

Still only 23 years of age, the man was already a strikeout king in 1975 with his 269 K’s, a 19-game winner the following year, and now an ERA leader along with a league-leading seven shutouts in 1977.

He’d continue this into 1978 when he posted 18 wins, though his strikeouts decreased from 205 in 1977 to 137, a sign of things to come.

In 1979 he’d appear in only 18 games, with arm trouble settling in, but he managed to successfully turn his pitching style into one of “pitcher” instead of “flamethrower”, incredibly putting in another 15 years in the Major Leagues, retiring in 1993 with 240 wins and 2773 K’s, along with 34 shutouts over 638 games.

In second place with a 2.72 ERA in 1977, a pitcher who seemed to be in second place in many categories over the decade, Hall of Famer Bert Blyleven, who put in another “typical” Blyleven-esque season with 14 wins, five shutouts and 182 strikeouts, the first time he didn’t reach 200 in over seven years.

Another absolute stud from that era who was grossly overlooked, thanks in part because of pitching at the same time as guys named “Seaver”, “Palmer” and “Carlton”, among many others.

Blyleven also pitched more than 20 years in the Majors, finishing up in 1992 after 22 years, with 287 wins and 3701 strikeouts, along with 60 shutouts and a very nice 3.31 ERA.

In third place with a 2.77 ERA in 1977, yet ANOTHER pitcher who played for over 20 years, the great Nolan Ryan, who put in a staggering 27 seasons under the Big League sun!

His 1977 season was another successful one for the “Ryan Express”, posting 19 wins along with a league-leading 22 complete games and 341 strikeouts, giving him a third place finish in the Cy Young race, one of three such finishes over the course of his career.

By the time he was done in 1993, all he did was post 324 wins over 807 appearances, with a 3.19 ERA and 61 shutouts, with an astronomical 5714 strikeouts over 5386 innings. Just insane.

What a trio of pitchers here! Perhaps a record for total number of years shown on a three-panel card!

EXPANDED LEAGUE LEADERS- 1977 A.L. STRIKEOUTS

Next up in my on-going "expanded league leaders" thread, the 1977 card celebrating the top three American League strikeout pitchers of 1976:

 

Of course, if we're talking strikeouts during the decade of the 1970's, we talk about the great Nolan Ryan of the California Angels, who led the league once again with his 327 K's.

It was the fourth time he topped the magic "300" in five seasons, all league leading totals, while also topping the league with his seven shutouts, while also ironically leading the league with 18 losses against 17 wins, with a 3.36 earned run average.

The man was a machine in his prime, and would go on to lead his league in strikeouts another seven times before he was done some 17 years later at the age of 46!

Behind him with 261 strikeouts, his teammate and the league leader in 1975, Frank Tanana, who put together another wonderful year, going 19-10 with a 2.43 ERA over 34 starts, with two shutouts and 23 complete games with 288 innings of work.

Those numbers got him a third place finish in the Cy Young race by the end of the season, while making his first All-Star team, something he'd do in the successive two seasons.

By the time HE was done in his Major League career, he'd have 2773 strikeouts and 240 wins over 21 seasons, reinventing himself from "power" pitcher to "professional" pitcher after injuries almost derailed him in the late 1970's.

In third place with 219 K's, Hall of Famer Bert Blyleven, who split the season between the Minnesota Twins and Texas Rangers.

It was the sixth consecutive year he topped 200 strikeouts, while posting a record of 13-16 over 36 starts, with six shutouts and 18 complete games.

By the time he hung them up in 1992 at the age of 41, he'd finish with 3701 K's with 287 wins and 60 shutouts, enough to get him into Cooperstown, albeit many years later in 2011.

TRADED: 1973 ALEX JOHNSON

For fun today, thought I'd whip up a 1973 "traded" variation card for former batting champ Alex Johnson, who found himself off to the Texas Rangers after one season with the Cleveland Indians:

 

Johnson, who won the 1970 batting title while with the California Angels, had a disappointing season in Cleveland in 1972, appearing in 108 games for the Tribe, hitting .239.

On March 8th of 1973, the Indians sent him packing to the Texas Rangers for pitchers Vince Colbert and Rich Hinton.

Just three seasons earlier he hit a league-leading .329, barely out-hitting the Red Sox Carl Yastrzemski, with 202 hits, 86 runs batted in and 17 stolen bases while making the All-Star team.

However, issues regarding his play created problems with California management, leading to conflict between he and manager Lefty Phillips.

As the 1971 season opened these issues continued, limiting his play because of "indifference", eventually leading to a season ending suspension by the Angels' front-office without pay because of a few different incidences.

Sadly, though he had a couple of decent seasons over the next few years of his career, he never again reached the level of play between 1968-1970, done as an active player after the 1976 season at only 33 years of age.
By the time he retired, he finished with a very nice .288 batting average, with 1331 hits over 4623 at-bats in 1322 games, but sadly never again able to reach that level of play that made him one of the more promising young talents in 1970.

FOR FUN- A REDONE 1973 TEXAS RANGERS MANAGER CARD

Up on the blog today, I thought it’d be fun to re-do the 1973 Topps Texas Rangers manager card to reflect the skipper at the helm of the team in their first season down is Texas, the great Ted Williams. So here you go:

 

 

Originally, Topps had an airbrushed card showing manager Whitey Herzog, who was about to lead the team in 1973, but I thought a card showing the Hall of Famer would be fun to add to the “virtual” collection.

Williams had a rough year in 1972, leading the team to a record of 54-100, a last-place finish in the American League West, after the team was moved from Washington DC after the 1971 season.

Except for his first season of managing in 1969, when he led the team to a nice 86-76 record, good for a fourth-place finish, Williams didn’t fare much better, losing 92 games in 1970 and 96 games in 1971.

With a new manager in place, the team didn’t do much better, going on to lose 105 games in 1973, with Herzog dumped as skipper 138 games later after guiding them to a record of 47-91, before getting Billy Martin to step in and lead the team for the last 23 games of the year, going 9-14.

Nevertheless, I’ll never complain about another Ted Williams card in ANY collection, even a manager card well into the 1970s!

EXPANDED LEAGUE LEADERS- 1975 A.L. STRIKEOUTS

On the blog today, we move on to the American League and their top three strikeout pitchers of 1974, proudly displayed on a 1975 “Expanded League Leader” card, and boy are they some heavy duty arms:

 

 

The first of the three Hall of Fame pitchers is the top K-man of 1974, legend Nolan Ryan of course, who topped the Junior Circuit with 367 strikeouts, following up his historic 1973 season when he set the (still) standing Major League record of 383 K’s.

I mean, the man did this EVEN with the introduction of the Designated Hitter! Can we theoretically add about 10-20 more strikeouts per season for the man had he also faced pitchers batting in the ninth spot? Could he have reached 400 strikeouts in 1973? Just staggering.

Almost 120 strikeouts behind Ryan for second place, another Hall of Famer, Bert Blyleven of the Minnesota twins, who STILL managed to whiff a very nice 249 batters in 1974.

It was his fourth straight season of 200+ K’s, on his way to eight such seasons before he was done in 1992, finishing up with 3701 strikeouts over his incredible career.

In third place, another legend, who had no problem adjusting to a new league, Hall of Famer Fergie Jenkins, who made the most of his first season with the Texas Rangers after coming over in a blockbuster trade from the Chicago Cubs, striking out 225 batters while also tying for the league lead with 25 wins, his seventh and final 20+ win season of his amazing career. It was also his last season with 200+ K’s, the sixth of his career, on his way to 3192 strikeouts, while also becoming the first pitcher to ever finish his career with 3000+ strikeouts with LESS than 1000 base on balls, in his case just under the mark with 997.

Three of the era’s best pitchers on one nifty “expanded league leader” card right here!