Tom Satriano (#238)

Tom Satriano was the Angels’ backup catcher and 3rd baseman from 1961-69, and also played for the Red Sox from 1969-70.

He and Jim Fregosi, Dean Chance, and Ron Kline were the only members of the expansion 1961 Angels still playing into the 1970s, and Satriano played more games during that first season than any of the others.

Tom was signed out of USC by the Angels on July 22, 1961, and made his Angels’ debut the very next day. After playing in 35 games as a rookie, he spent most of 1962 and 1963 in the minors. Satriano was primarily a 3rd baseman and 2nd baseman, and didn’t start catching on a regular basis until 1964.

He played all of 1964 with the Angels, but split the ’65 season between the Angels and their triple-A team.

Satriano was back with the Angels on a full-time basis beginning in 1966. From 1966-68 (as in 1964) he came to bat more than 200 times each season. His 83 starts in 1968 were the most for his career.

In June 1969 Tom was traded to the Red Sox for catcher Joe Azcue, and backed up Russ Gibson ('69) and Jerry Moses ('70) in his final 2 seasons.

He was released in April 1971, and played for the Padres’ AAA team in Hawaii that season before retiring.

Bobby Knoop (#271)

Here is Angels’ 2nd baseman Bobby Knoop, at 78 the oldest living player from 1966-70 that I haven’t blogged about yet. (Back in the Sixties, my brother and I thought his name was pronounced NEWP, but it is Kuh-NOP.)

Knoop was signed by the Milwaukee Braves in 1956, and after 8 long years in the minors, the Angels acquired him in the Rule 5 draft after the 1963 season. (Hmm… the record shows he played for the Angels’ AAA team in Hawaii in ’62 and ’63. Maybe he was on loan, and the Angels liked him so much that they acquired him outright.) 

Like all other Rule 5 picks, he needed to stay on the major-league roster the following year. Unlike so many, he was a real contributor, playing in all 162 games (starting 156) as a rookie in 1964.

Bobby was a mainstay during his 5 full seasons with the Angels. He played in 162, 162, 161, 159, and 152 games over that span, always accumulating more than 500 plate appearances. In 1966 he made his only All-Star team, and led the AL with 11 triples. However, he hit higher than .249 only once.

After starting 23 of the first 24 games in 1969, he was traded in mid-May to the White Sox for 2nd baseman Sandy Alomar and pitcher Bob Priddy. Knoop started 100 and 117 games in his 2 seasons with Chicago.

With the Sox having acquired 2nd baseman Mike Andrews from Boston in December 1970, Knoop was traded to the Royals during spring training 1971 for infielder Luis Alcaraz.

Bobby was the backup infielder for KC in 1971, but started 41 games at 2nd base, mostly after Cookie Rojas was lost for the season in late-August. In 1972 he only started 22 times, his final game coming on September 20th.

 He was released after the 1972 season, ending his 9-year career.

 He was a coach for the White Sox, Angels, and Blue Jays for 21 seasons (1977-2000).

Jim McGlothlin (#493)

Jim McGlothlin pitched for the Angels, Reds, and White Sox for 9 seasons from 1965-1973.

McGlothlin was signed by the Los Angeles Angels in 1962. After 3 season in the minors (with excellent seasons in 1963 (13-5, 165 Ks) and 1965 (14-8, 180 Ks)), Jim made his MLB debut with 3 starts in September 1965.

He began the 1966 season with the Angels, but with a 3-1 record in 19 games, he was sent down in July for the remainder of the season.

Jim returned to the Angels to start the 1967 season and was among the team’s top 3 starters (with George Brunet and Rickey Clark), posting a 12-8 record while leading the league with 6 shutouts. He also made his only All-Star team that year (the game was played in the Angels’ park).

McGlothlin was near the top of the Angels’ rotation for 2 more seasons, with Brunet, Clark, and Sammy Ellis, who was acquired from the Reds prior to 1968. (For years thought the Angels had traded McGlothlin to the Reds for Ellis.) 

After the 1969 season, Jim was traded to the Reds (along with pitchers Pedro Borbon and Vern Geishert) for outfielder Alex Johnson and infielder Chico Ruiz.

In 1970, McGlothlin won 14 games as the #3 starter behind Gary Nolan (18 wins) and Jim Merritt (20 wins). He also started 1 game in the 1970 World Series.

Like the Reds’ team in general, Jim’s production slipped in 1971, compiling a 8-12 record.

In 1972 he went 9-8, and moved farther down the rotation ladder that season, while also relieving in several games. The Reds went to the World Series that year, and Jim pitched in 2 post-season games.

McGlothlin played most of 1973 with the Reds, but was traded to the White Sox for pitcher Steve Kealey in late August. The White Sox released him in March 1974.

He was stricken with cancer during the spring of 1975, and died in December 1975 at age 32.

Jim Fregosi (#367, #170)

A quick look at the cards of Jim Fregosi, who passed away on Friday.

I was a bit surprised that Fregosi was selected to the 1967 All-Star team. Luis Aparicio had the advantage of his reputation, and a 1966 World Series championship behind him, but as the back of Fregosi's base card says, he led all shortstops in 1967 with a .290 batting average.

I previously posted Fregosi's 1966 and 1967 cards to those blogs.

Rest in Peace, Jim Fregosi.

Angels in the Outfield: Eight is Enough

Duplicating a feat from the previous year, Topps again issued cards for EIGHT Angels' outfielders. (This doesn't even include "INF-OF" Woodie Held.) The pitching staff took the hit for this, with only 7 cards. At least Topps cut back from 4 to 3 catchers this year.

Here they are in order of 1968 games played in the outfield:
Rick Reichardt (148), Roger Repoz (114), Bubba Morton (50), Ed Kirkpatrick (45), Jimmie Hall (39), Chuck Hinton (37), Jay Johnstone (29), Jose Cardenal (0).

Cardenal was traded to the Indians in the off-season for Chuck Hinton, not in time to change his 1st-series card. The Angels also acquired Vic Davalillo, who played 86 games in the outfield.

Final Card: Pete Cimino

Philadelphia-area native Pete Cimino (#143) had a brief career in the mid-1960s. (Briefer than I realized before checking his past stats for this post. I always assumed he played a role in the Twins' 1965 World Series season.)

Cimino was a high-school basketball star, and once scored 114 points in a game.  From Wikipedia:
A star athlete at Bristol High School...Cimino might be best known for scoring 114 points in a high school basketball game on January 22, 1960. The single-game shooting outburst occurred during a 134–86 win over Palisades High School, in a Lower Bucks County League match. In the game, Cimino made 44 of 79 field goal attempts and 26 of 29 free throw attempts. He scored all 69 of his team's second half points. The 114-point total is still a Pennsylvania state record and is also the fourth highest in any United States boys high school game.

Pete was signed by the Washington Senators (soon to be Minnesota Twins) in 1960, and pitched 6 seasons in the minors, as a starter for 4 seasons, then primarily a reliever in '64 and '65. His major-league debut came on 9/22/1965, as he pitched the last inning in a 5-2 loss to the Orioles. It was his only appearance that season.

Cimino appeared in 35 games (all in relief) for the Twins in 1966, as the #2 reliever behind veteran Al Worthington (14 years his senior). After the season, he was packaged up with 1st baseman Don Mincher and center fielder Jimmie Hall, and sent to the Angels for 1964 Cy Young winner Dean Chance and shortstop Jackie Hernandez.

Pete's time as an Angel was pretty much just 1967, where he was the team's #3 reliever behind ace Minnie Rojas (27 saves) and rookie Bill Kelso (11 saves), and ahead of aging veterans Lou Burdette and Jim Coates.

After only 4 games in 1968, Cimino was sent down to the minors in mid-May, and spent the rest of the season with the Angels' AAA and AA clubs. It was his last pro season.

Bubba Morton (#216)

The 2nd Bubba for today is Wycliffe "Bubba" Morton, outfielder for the California Angels in the late 1960s.

Morton was signed by the Tigers back in 1955, and spent 6 seasons in the minors before breaking in with the Tigers in April 1961. Bubba spent all of 1961 and 1962 as a spare outfielder, behind starters Al Kaline, Rocky Colavito, and Bill Bruton.

In May 1963, he was purchased by the Milwaukee Braves, but played only 15 games for them before spending most of '63, and all of 1964 in the minors. His minor-league adventures continued in 1965, but this time as a member of the Indians' organization.



Morton was traded to the Angels at the end of the 1965 season, and after spending most of '66 in triple-A, he returned to the majors and played his final 3 seasons with California. He played about 80 games in each of those 3 seasons, but the Angels' roster was packed with outfielders in those days. The 1967 Topps set features EIGHT outfielders on the team. The Angels' 1968 and 1969 rosters also featured 8 outfielders with significant major-league experience. If your name wasn't Rick Reichardt, you pretty much scrambled for playing time.

Morton spent the 1970 season playing in Japan.

Sammy Ellis (#453)

Sammy Ellis had a 7-year career as a starting pitcher in the 1960s, mostly with the Reds. He was signed by Cincinnati in 1961, and although he appeared in 7 games for the Reds in 1962, he spent most of 1961-63 in the minors.

In his rookie season of 1964, Sammy led the bullpen with 52 games, 122 innings, and 14 saves. The following season, he joined the rotation and compiled a 22-10 record, which, along with Jim Maloney's 20-9 gave the Reds a nice one-two punch.



After slipping to 12-19 in 1966 and 8-11 in 1967, Ellis was shipped off to the Angels for pitcher Bill Kelso. His one season in California was more of the same (9-10 record), and Sammy was traded to the White Sox in January 1969 for outfielder Bill Voss. After only 10 games with Chicago, he was traded to the Indians for pitcher Jack Hamilton, and was assigned to triple-A for the remainder of the season.

Ellis' final major-league game was in June 1969. His last baseball card was also in 1969. He spent the next 2 seasons in the minors before retiring.

Jack Hamilton (#193)

Jack Hamilton spent 8 years as a big-league pitcher, but unfortunately is most remembered for one grim event in 1967.

Jack was signed by the Cardinals in 1957, and spent 4 seasons in the low minors before the Phillies selected him in the minor-league draft following the 1960 season. After one season with the Phillies' class-A team in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, he made his major-league debut in April 1962. Appearing in 41 games in his rookie season, his 26 starts were 2nd on the Phillies behind Art Mahaffey's 39 starts. Unfortunately, Jack also led the league with 107 walks and 22 wild pitches. In 1963, he made 19 appearances for the Phillies, but played almost as many games for the team's AAA squad in Little Rock, Arkansas.



Jack's biggest contribution to the Phillies came after the 1963 season, when he was shipped off to the Tigers (along with outfielder Don Demeter) for pitcher Jim Bunning and catcher Gus Triandos. Hamilton spent the next 2 seasons with the Tigers, or, more accurately, as a starter with their AAA team in Syracuse. He did manage to play 9 games with the Tigers over 2 seasons.

The Mets purchased his contract after the 1965 season, and he became a fixture in New York's bullpen in 1966. He picked up 13 saves for the Mets, and led the relievers in games and innings pitched. Jack even managed to squeeze in 13 starts around his bullpen duties.

After 17 appearances in 1967, Jack was traded to the Angels on June 10th for pitcher Nick Willhite. He was used almost exclusively as a starter for the remainder of the 1967 season. On August 18th Hamilton was pitching against the Red Sox. With 2 out in the 4th inning, Jack severely beaned Boston right fielder Tony Conigliaro, which caused Conigliaro to miss the rest of 1967 and all of 1968.

1967 would be Hamilton's last full season in the majors. He became primarily a reliever in 1968, and divided his time between California and the Angels' triple-A team in Seattle.

After the 1968 season, Jack was traded to the Indians for pitcher Eddie Fisher (no, this one). After 20 relief appearances with Cleveland, he was traded on June 13th to the White Sox for pitcher Sammy Ellis. Hamilton only pitched in 8 games for the White Sox, the last coming on August 10th. He spent the rest on 1969 and all of 1970 pitching for the White Sox' AAA team in Tucson, AZ.

His last card was issued in 1969.

Bob Rodgers (#433)

I don't care how he's listed in Baseball-Reference.com, I'm not calling him "Buck" Rodgers!

"Boog" Powell? yes
"Satchel" Paige? yes
"Yogi" Berra? yes
"Turk" Farrell? yes
"Catfish" Hunter? yes, (grudgingly)
"Mudcat" Grant? (you're pushing it!)
"Oil Can" Boyd? Since I don't have a 1970s blog, no worries!
"Buck" Rodgers? no!
"Bucky" Brandon? no!
"Vinegar Bend" Mizell? heh!


BOB Rodgers was the Angels regular catcher during their first 9 years in existence (although not until September 8, 1961). Rodgers was signed by the Tigers in 1956 as an outfielder (converting to catcher in 1957), and spent 6 seasons in the minors before being selected by the Angels in the December 1960 expansion draft.

Bob spent most of 1961 with the Angels' triple-A team in Dallas-Fort Worth, before making his major-league debut on September 8th. He started 13 of the final 20 games behind the plate in 1961.



In 1962 he took over the Angels' catching job, starting 144 games and finishing a distant 2nd (to the Yankees' Tom Tresh) for AL Rookie-of-the-Year. In 1963, he must have had some nagging injuries because he only played in 100 games, and only 77 of those were as the starting catcher.

From 1964 to 1967, he was back as the undisputed #1 catcher, playing in over 130 games in each season.

1968 was the beginning of the end for Bob. He split the catching duties evenly with Tom Satriano, the Angels' long-time backup infielder/catcher.

By 1969, Rodgers was done. Satriano and Tom Egan split the starting catcher assignments for the first few months. On June 15th, Satriano was traded to the Indians for catcher Joe Azcue, who started most of the games for the remainder of the season. Meanwhile, Bob played more games with triple-A Hawaii (44) than he did with the Angels (18). His final major-league game was on October 1, 1969.


After retiring, he was a major-league coach and minor-league manager, before spending 13 seasons as a major-league manager for the Brewers (1980-82), Expos (1985-91), and Angels (1991-94).

Woody Held (#289)

Nothing says "jack-of-all-trades, master-of-none" better than having "INF-OF" appear on your baseball card.

Woody (a/k/a Woodie) Held was signed by the Yankees in 1951, and played in their farm system through part of the 1957 season.

Although having a cup of coffee with the Yanks in 1954, Held returned to the majors for good during the 1957 season. On June 15th 1957 Held, Billy Martin, and 2 other players were traded to the Athletics for 3 players. Exactly one year later, he and Vic Power were traded to the Indians for Roger Maris and 2 others.



Woody was the Indians' regular shortstop from 1959 to 1962, making over 100 starts there in each season. In 1963, he moved over to second base, and although he was the regular there, he also started some games in the outfield (INF-OF alert!).

With the Indians' acquisition of shortstop Dick Howser, Larry Brown (who had taken Held's shortstop job the previous season) was moved to second base in 1964, replacing Held again. Woody was now in full INF-OF mode, and would remain there for the rest of his career.

After the 1964 season, Held and first baseman Bob Chance were traded to the Senators for outfielder Chuck Hinton. A year later he was traded to the Orioles for catcher John Orsino.

Midway through the 1967 season, he went to the Angels for pitcher Marcelino Lopez. His last move was in July 1968, when he was traded to the White Sox for infielder Wayne Causey. The Sox released him after the 1969 season, ending his 14-year career.

Final Card: Bobby Locke

This is Bobby Locke's final card (#24). It's also his first card since 1965, so I'm going to throw him into my "Back on Topps' Radar" series.

Topps spent little or no effort on this card. They used the same photo from the 1962 card, and on the back they omitted Locke's minor-league stats.

Locke was signed by the Indians in 1953, and spent the 1953 - 1956 seasons in their minor league system.



1957 and 1958 are unaccounted for in his record. Military service is not listed, so maybe he missed 2 seasons due to injuries.

Locke pitched for the Cleveland Indians from 1959 to 1961, while also spending some time in the minors.

In November 1961, Bobby was traded to the Cubs, but he was shipped to the Cardinals a few days before the season started. Three weeks later, the Cardinals traded him to the Phillies.

Locke bounced between Philadelphia and their triple-A team for the next 3 seasons, and was sold to the Angels after the 1964 season.

Midway through the 1965 season, the Angels traded Locke to the Reds, but reacquired him in June 1966. He continued bouncing up and down with the Angels. 1968 was his final major-league season, and he spent 1969 entirely in the minors before retiring.


To tell you the truth, I'm surprised Locke even has a card in this set. 1961 was the last season that he pitched more than 20 innings in the major leagues!

Back on Topps' Radar: Hawk Taylor

Now back to my series named "Back on Topps' Radar". I planned to include three of my last 4 posts (Bob Tiefenauer, Julio Gotay, and John Tsitouris) in that series, but as it turned out, their 1968 card was also their last.

Bob "Hawk" Taylor (#52) was a career backup catcher on some bad teams. Taylor has several baseball cards in the early 1960s, but none since 1964. (He also appeared in the 1969 card set as Bob Taylor, an outfielder for the Royals.) Since he didn't have a card in 1967, this 1st-series 1968 card was my first clue of his existence.

Hawk was signed by the Milwaukee Braves in 1957 as a bonus baby, requiring him to be on the major-league roster for the rest of the season. His debut was in early June. Later he spent time with the Braves' minor league teams, and rejoined the Braves in 1961. Since the Braves already had Del Crandall, Joe Torre, and Bob Uecker at catcher, Taylor as used as a spare outfielder for his last 3 seasons in Milwaukee.



After the 1963 season, he was sold to the Mets. The 1964 season was Taylor's first shot at significant playing time, as he appeared in 92 games and had over 200 at-bats. The Mets' entire catching staff consisted of 3 sub-par backups: Jesse Gonder, Chris Cannizarro, and Taylor. Even with that poor competition, Taylor was still 3rd string.

Hawk spent most of 1965 with the Mets' triple-A team in Buffalo, as Cannizarro took over the starting catcher's job, and the backup roles were filled by suspects such as John Stephenson, Jesse Gonder, and Jimmie Schaffer. Even coach Yogi Berra caught a few games.

In 1965, Taylor split time between New York and their triple-A team in Jacksonville. With the Mets, he was still the 3rd string catcher, this time behind newcomer Jerry Grote, and John Stephenson. Taylor also played a few games at first base.

In early 1967, he was traded to the Angels, where he filled a now-familiar role: 3rd string catcher. He spent all of 1968 in the minors, before the Royals scooped him up in the rule 5 draft.

He played for the Royals for parts of 2 seasons, as a pinch-hitter and backup outfielder in 1969, and as a pinch-hitter in 1970. Taylor was traded to the Red Sox prior to 1971, but did not play in the majors after 1970.