CLOSED...1961 Topps $15 Auction...Day 36

[HercDriver]

OK, here's a different sort of auction. I have a bunch of 1961 Topps hanging around, so I'm offering them up this way, to keep me entertained. I already know the final price...$15 (edited from $50). But I don't know how many cards that will take. I'm going to start with these ones. Assuming I don't get a bid today, I'll add a few more tomorrow. I'll keep adding cards until I get a $50 bid. I'll pay shipping, in one of those $7.35 flat rate envelopes, so keep that cost savings in mind when bidding. Here's the one extra caveat to the bidding...once I get a $15 bid, the auction isn't quite over. Since all those big guys have extended bidding, so will I. The auction will end exactly eight hours later, based on the time stamp of the initial bid. Please bid in whole dollar increments. Since scans are hard to decipher, I've added a list with my sharp-eyed grade, which is good to +/- one grade, I suppose. If you have any questions, just ask.

BTW, you may be asking yourself, why the big jump from #40 to #225. I know it's killing you to know. Is it because these guys need a manager? Adult supervision? The lure of Candlestick Park's first Giants manager will trigger an early bid? An Angels fan won't be able to resist their initial, expansion manager? Actually none of those. I knocked the stack over when getting ready to scan my first lot. I picked them all up, but when I went to scan, Rigney was still on the floor, looking lonely, so I included him.

Have fun!
Geno

21 Zorro Versalles Vg
22 Clem Labine Ex
23 Don Demeter Vg
24 Ken Johnson ExMt
26 Wes Stock Ex
27 Jerry Kindall Vg
29 Don Nottebart NrMt
31 Bob Schmidt Vg
32 Ray Sadecki NrMt
33 Gary Geiger Ex
34 Wynn Hawkins Vg
36 Jack Kralick Vg
37 Charley Maxwell Ex
38 Bob Lillis Vg
39 Leo Posada NrMt
40 Bob Turley Vg
45 NL ERA Leaders Ex
46 AL ERA Leaders ExMt
48 AL Pitching Leaders ExMt
50 AL Strikeout Leaders Ex
52 George Crowe NrMt
53 Russ Nixon ExMt
54 Earl Francis NrMt
55 Jim Davenport NrMt
56 Russ Kemmerer Vg
58 Joe Schaffernoth Ex
59 Jim Woods ExMt
61 Ron Piche Ex
62 Al Pilarcik Pr
63 Jim Kaat Gd
66 Bill Henry Ex
67 Ossie Virgil Gd
70 Bill Virdon NrMt
71 Jerry Adair ExMt
72 Stu Miller Vg
73 Al Spangler Vg
74 Joe Pignatano ExMt
75 Lindy Shows Larry ExMt
76 Harry Anderson NrMt
77 Dick Stigman ExMt
78 Lee Walls Vg
79 Joe Ginsberg Vg
81 Tracy Stallard ExMt
82 Joe Christopher NrMt
83 Bob Bruce Gd
84 Lee Maye Ex
85 Jerry Walker NrMt
87 Joe Amalfitano Vg
89 Billy Martin ExMt
90 Gerry Staley Vg
91 Walt Moryn ExMt
92 Hal Naragon ExMt
93 Tony Gonzalez Ex
94 Johnny Kucks Vg
95 Norm Cash Vg
101 Bubba Phillips Vg
102 Gene Stephens ExMt
103 Ruben Amaro Vg
104 John Blanchard Vg
105 Carl Willey Pr
107 Seth Morehead Ex
108 Dan Dobbek NrMt
109 Johnny Podres ExMt
110 Vada Pinson Ex
111 Jack Meyer ExMt
112 Chico Fernandez NrMt
113 Mike Fornieles ExMt
114 Hobie Landrith Ex
115 Johnny Antonelli ExMt
116 Joe DeMaestri Vg
117 Dale Long ExMt
118 Chris Cannizzaro NrMt
119 A's Big Armor Ex
121 Eli Grba Ex
123 Billy Gardner Vg
125 Steve Barber ExMt
127 Ron Kline NrMt
128 Rip Repulski Vg
129 Ed Hobaugh Gd
130 Norm Larker Gd
131 Paul Richards Vg
132 Al Lopez Ex
134 Mickey Vernon Fr
135 Fred Hutchinson Fr
137 Chuck Dressen Vg
138 Danny Murtaugh Vg
139 Solly Hemus Vg
140 Gus Triandos ExMt
142 Luis Arroyo ExMt
143 Russ Snyder NrMt
144 Jim Coker ExMt
144 Jim Coker ExMt
145 Bob Buhl Vg
146 Marty Keough NrMt
147 Ed Rakow ExMt
149 Bob Oldis Vg
151 Jim Donohue NrMt
152 Earl Torgeson Ex
153 Don Lee Vg
154 Bobby Del Greco Fr
155 Johnny Temple Ex
157 Cal McLish Ex
158 Pete Daley Ex
161 Sherman Jones Vg
162 Jay Hook ExMt
163 Ed Sadowski Ex
164 Felix Mantilla Vg
165 Gino Cimoli Vg
166 Danny Kravitz Vg
167 Giants Team ExMt
169 Don Elston NrMt
170 Al Smith ExMt
172 Don Dilliard Vg
173 Beantown Bombers Ex
174 Ray Semproch Vg
175 Gene Freese ExMt
176 Ken Aspromonte Vg
177 Don Larsen Ex
179 Joe Koppe ExMt
181 Fred Green Ex
182 Dave Nicholson ExMt
183 Andre Rogers NrMt
184 Steve Bilko Ex
185 Herb Score Ex
186 Elmer Valo ExMt
188 Jim Marshall Ex
190 Stan Williams Vg
191 Mike De La Hoz Ex
192 Dick Brown NrMt
193 Gene Conley Vg
194 Gordy Coleman Ex
195 Jerry Casale Fr
196 Ed Bouchee Ex
196 Ed Bouchee - autographed Vg
198 Carl Sawatski Vg
199 Bob Boyd NrMt
225 Bill Rigney ExMt

[HercDriver]

Here’s a couple ERA Leaders...well, nine to be exact. On two cards, so you get your money’s worth as a kid buying packs! Not as cool as a Home Run Leaders, but you would have got Don Drysdale, at least. And as a kid, you would watch him brush back batters and even hit homers. But later, as an adult, you would get to hear him call Kirk Gibson’s homer:

“Gibson a deep sigh, re-gripping the bat, shoulders just shrugged, now goes to the top of the helmet as he always does, steps in with that left foot. Eckersly working out of a stretch, now here’s the 3-2 pitch...and a drive into right field (losing voice) WAY BACK! THIS BALL IS GONE! (followed by two minutes of crowd noise) This crowd will not stop! They can't believe the ending! And this time, Mighty Casey did NOT strike out!!!!”

Still brings chills to the spine!

[Promethius88]

Can we skip to the day you start adding some high numbers?

[HercDriver]

Patience my young Jedi. This auction is all about the journey...

[HercDriver]

A couple more heads today, and the odd man out in the 1957 All-Star Ballot Stuffiing Debacle. A lot of you know that the Reds basically stole the 1957 all-star lineup, with preprinted ballots that fans just put into the box. They were printed by the Cincy paper, so it was easy enough to drop it in the box when you got to the park, no pencil required. So sure enough, of the eight position players on the NL starting roster, seven were Reds. Ford Frick intervened and put Mays and Aaron into the lineup, to go along with Stan Musial. Musial actually won, making him the only non-Red to be voted in. The Reds first baseman he beat out, even with ballot shenanigans, you ask? The fella you see there, George Crowe, who by the time this card appeared, was backing up Musial in St Louis. Crowe, by the way, retired with the most pinch hit homers in history, which is a record now owned by Matt Stairs.

Take Care,
Geno

[HercDriver]

A couple new additions today. Not MVP candidates by any means, but in decent shape, at least. Probably what a lot of our wives think about us, actually. It’s hard to come up with a lot to say about Russ Nixon and Earl Francis, but the Nixon card just makes me remember when I went back in time to collect all these sets, way back when. My first Topps year as a seven year old, was 1974. Those cards were awesome! No gaudy border...that would come next year. Lots of action shots, with guys sliding into catchers or shortstops. There were even cards where I didn’t know which guy in the photo was the subject of the card! And very few “heads.” Just a great set. So eventually, I got older, and couldn’t deal with the 1981 Dave Lopes Fleer “hand” variation, or the Fernando Valenzuela rookie craze. I sort of got over that in 1979 with Bump Wills. So I went back in time, and found some great sets, like the 1967 set, and the cool colors and horizontalness of 1960. But I just hated cards like that Nixon card. Can you really tell it’s a baseball player, or am I just collecting pictures of random men? Too weird. That’s what no competition gets you...head shots, no caps. Or basketball cards with jerseys on backwards...why, for goodness sake? Can’t we have Earl Francis brushing back Russ Nixon on a card, instead of pitching off of the carpet in my den, with a Quonset hut in the background? No kid was fooled by that stuff in the seventies, I can assure you. If that showed up in 1974, I would have stuck to Hostess and Kellogg’s cards. Anyway, I present Russ Nixon and Earl Francis. I guess I’m not much of a salesman...

[HercDriver]

Here's a few more to add to the kitty! As I was looking at the exploits of these three players, I noticed that Russ Kemmerer was traded from Boston to the Senators, in 1957, for Dean Stone. The Senators then traded Kemmerer to Houston in 1962...for Dean Stone. Hmmm...that can't be the only time that happened, so I poked around a bit. Believe it or not, two players have actually been traded for each other twice, in the same season. In Feb 1968, the White Sox and Senators traded Ron Hansen for Tim Cullen, then in August, traded them back again. But wait...it gets better. In 1982, two players were traded for each other in eleven days, although a bit more convoluted. It went like this:

June 15, 1982:
Philadelphia Phillies trade Dick Davis to Toronto Blue Jays for Wayne Nordhagen
Philadelphia Phillies trade Wayne Nordhagen to Pittsburgh Pirates for Bill Robinson.

June 22, 1982:
Toronto Blue Jays trade Dick Davis to Pittsburgh Pirates for PTBNL.

June 25, 1982:
Pittsburgh Pirates send Wayne Nordhagen to Toronto Blue Jays to complete the June 22 deal for Dick Davis. So not only did Nordhagen get traded for Davis twice, he also went to three new teams in eleven days, with the third one being his original team.

And of course, there is the all-time best trade, when Harry Chiti was traded for a PTBNL, then later, he became the PTBNL...thus being traded for himself. And just because the day would not be complete without knowing this fact...three other players since then have been traded for themselves. So there.

Take Care,
Geno

[HercDriver]

We'll add five cards today, including the only one-armed pitcher in baseball that year, Bill Henry. And Jim Kaat, who pitched through the administrations of Eisenhower, Kennedy, Johnson, Nixon, Ford, Carter, and Reagan. And Ron Pinche, who has just smelled somebody's lunch escaping them. And Jim Wood, who might actually be on the stadium construction crew.

[HercDriver]

As an airline pilot, I see a lot of airports. Most are named after the city they serve, but not all, of course. Some are named after politicians, like Reagan in DC, LaGuardia and JFK in NYC, and Logan in Boston. Some are named after military heroes, like O'Hare in Chicago, and Joe Foss Field in Sioux Falls. There's musicians, like John Lennon Airport in Liverpool, and my own Denver International, named for John Denver (just seeing if you're paying attention). There's even fictional characters, like Robin Hood Airport in Doncaster (since renamed, unfortunately).

But there is only one airport I know of, named for a baseball player. Just one. Not Roberto Clemente, which would be my first guess. Not Ted Williams, who was a military pilot. Just one, named after the first MLBer from the Dominican Republic. That airport is Osvaldo Virgil National Airport in the DR. So today, I give you Ozzie himself! I bet you can win a beer with that bit of knowledge...

[HercDriver]

Here's four more players for your perusal to start week two of the auction! Stu Miller is interesting for more than just get blown off the mound in the All-Star Game. Apparently, that was pretty exaggerated. He did balk, after swaying a bit, but he was never "blown off" like the reports have grown to. Anyway, he's also part of a very rare feat in MLB, which is the Lost No-Hitter. Only five times has a team lost, while no-hitting the opposition. And of those, two were combined no-no's. One of those was fairly recently, in 2008, with the Angel's Jered Weaver and Jose Arredondo combining for a 0-1 loss to the Dodgers. The only other one...Steve Barber and Stu Miller, losing 1-2 to the Tigers in 1967. The other three solo losses were Ken Johnson (1964), Andy Hawkins (1990), and Matt Young (1992). I just thought you should know...

[HercDriver]

In breaking news...I just noticed the aforementioned Ken Johnson is also in this lot. You are getting 40% of MLB's lost no-hitters in this lot...what a bargain!! I probably need Steve Barber to make that technically correct. Another thing I noticed is that Jerry Kindall reminds me of the scene in Christmas Story, when Ralphie's about to beat up the bully. I know, it's backwards...the bully was throwing the snowballs, not Ralphie. But Kindall just looks like he's cornered and about to drill somebody with a snowball, don't you think? Maybe it's just me.

[xplainer]

With fifty bucks, can you share any stewardess stories. Would pay almost that ....for that.😀
And you got a bump.

[HercDriver]

Meal time on an airline isn't like the old days...

A flight attendant asks a passenger if he would like dinner.

"What are my choices?" he asked.

"Yes or No," she replied.

[HercDriver]

Ahhh...those multi-player cards. I'm torn between whether I'm for them or against them. Some are pretty cool, like the Mantle and Mays card. And maybe the 1968 one that adds Killebrew with those two. But they are sort of averaged out by ones like this, or Buc Hill Aces. And I don't need to see coaches. Manager cards are bad enough. I'd trade all the multi-player cards for more In Action cards from 1972...now those are cool! Curt Blefary IA? Yes!!

And if you're heading to the pub today and need to win a beer, you can ask "What member of the Delaware Sports HOF was the last MLB player to lead the league in strikeouts, while recording less than 100 whiffs?" The answer, of course, is Harry Anderson, in 1958, with 95 K's. That was before he became a judge on Night Court.

[HercDriver]

Day 10 is a bit early, since I have a 3AM start to my day tomorrow, which runs until late tomorrow night. I know everyone is chomping at the bit for the next few cards, so I didn't want to let you down. No time for any research tonight, although I will say that I'm not sure how Joe Ginsberg knows if his jersey is on sideways, or correctly. Did the Sox get a good deal on numbers of all the same size?!? That number might, just might, look normal on Big Klu...but not Little Joe. See you again on Thursday!

[HercDriver]

Ahhh yes, Tracy Stallard. You really only think of one thing when you think of Tracy Stallard, and that’s serving up Maris 61st homer. That wasn’t his only brush with infamy, though, as he also lost the longest game in MLB history, at that time, a 7 hour, 23 minute marathon. Oh, and he lost Jim Bunning’s prefecto in 1964. You could say he had a bit of bad luck, but if you look beyond the field, you might think differently. You see, when he was with the Mets, he was dating the girl who played Catwoman on Batman. Yep, he could blow a lead, give up a dinger, whatever...but when he got home that night, he had Catwoman, running around his living room, in that outfit. That’s probably a pretty good trade, I suspect. Which brings me to The Big Sexy...what, you say?!? What does Bartolo Colon have to do with Tracy Stallard? Well, when Colon drew his first walk after 281 plate appearances, the honor of most plate appearances, without drawing a walk, came right back to Tracy Stallard, with 258. The takeaway here is that if you are dating Catwoman, don’t waste time taking pitches. The night is short...you need to be elsewhere.

[clydepepper]

Originally Posted by xplainer

With fifty bucks, can you share any stewardess stories. Would pay almost that ....for that.��
And you got a bump.

Would you settle for a waitress story?

WHAT DON'T YOU WANT?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gdYXQ-IPZcc


Now, THAT'S a bump!


=

[HercDriver]

It’s Friday, so you probably need to go to happy hour armed with a decent trivia question, so here you go. Who threw the last pitch in Colt Stadium in 1964, then threw the first pitch to open the Astrodome in 1965? If the bartender or the guy next to you comes up with Bob Bruce, then they earned that beer today. Is it just me, or does it look like Jerry Walker just told Lee Maye that he’ll be taking airplanes to games now? Have a great day!!

[frankbmd]

If you gave this commentary on a long haul international flight to Cairo or Taipei, I would love to see the reaction of your passengers.

The Chinese would be googling Lacy Starrald and the flight crew would be handing out prayer rugs. Many would offer you $50 just to land somewhere.

[HercDriver]

I just flew from Atlanta to San Fran and spent the whole five hours going over the Cubs/Indians World Series on the PA. People just love that stuff, Frank!!

[HercDriver]

I’m too tired to say much. My alarm goes off in a couple hours, so min run today. But I’ll give you Billy Martin to make it fair. Good night, my friends!!

[HercDriver]

OK, back at hime with the 'ol scanner, so here's five more cards with my morning Joe! A bit of a batting helmet theme with Cash and Gonzalez, as Cash was one of the last guys not required to wear a helmet, and Gonzalez was the first one to wear one with an ear flap. I love that card of Cash, I have to admit. I was too young to see him play, but anybody who would bring a table leg up to the plate to hit against Nolan Ryan, is my kind of guy. He did that, coming to bat as the last out during one of Ryan's no-hitters, but the ump turned him around to get a bat, with which he promptly popped out. He was also famous for coming back to a base ahead of where he left, during rain delays, trying to catch the umps off guard. Reading about him, he seemed like somebody that everybody enjoyed in the clubhouse. His 1961 card, showing his strong forearms, just make him look like a ball player. In a set of heads, this is one of the best. Enjoy!

[HercDriver]

Well...I guess I could tell you that Johnny Blanchard probably wish he would have dropped another finger or two when he called the pitch that Mazeroski hit to win the World Series, but that's just not obscure enough. So I'll tell you that another Johnny, Johnny Damon, became the 2nd MLBer in history to collect three hits in an inning, during a game in 2003. The Red Sox plated 10 runs that inning, with Damon just a homer short of the cycle in that first inning. The 2nd MLBer, you ask?!? Yes, the first is here today...Gene Stephens, who accomplished the feat, also for Boston, in 1953 during a 17-run inning. He spent most of his career backing up Ted Williams, but for one inning, one day, he did something The Splinter never accomplished.

[edhans]

Originally Posted by HercDriver

Johnny Damon, became the 2nd MLBer in history to collect three hits in an inning, during a game in 2003. The Red Sox plated 10 runs that inning

There's something amiss with that math. If at least 19 men came to the plate, at least 13 runs must have scored; no?

[HercDriver]

Very astute!! You’re right...14 runs. Damon went 5-7 that day, while the Sox scored 25 runs.

[edhans]

Not sure that qualifies as astute; but thanks and good luck with the sale.

[HercDriver]

Today I give you the 'traded" version of Carl Willey, courtesy of a young lad in the early sixties. Willey was traded to the Mets in 1963, so we know this card hung around in a shoebox for a couple years, at least. I wonder how many other places it's been. Seth Morehead is aptly named, since he looks to have the largest head in the 1961 Topps issue. Does he still have more head under that giant cap, or is he going to pull Freddie Patek from out of there? Morehead's first big league win was memorable, as he shut out Brooklyn on the last day of 1957, making him the last guy to throw a pitch in that borough. Unfortunately, that made him the last pitcher to pitch to Roy Campanella. Don't have much to say about Dan Dobbek, other than he reminds me of Eddie Haskell from Leave it to Beaver. Have an awesome day!

[obcmac]

This is less an auction and more Geno's own version of "the great American baseball card flipping, trading, and bubble gum book"...which is also awesome. I bid 3 beers.

[HercDriver]

Yep...I have a platform to ramble on about nothing, under the guise of an auction! Maybe the next one I do, I'll do it at night, after beers, instead of in the morning, with coffee. And yes, that is one of the best books ever. Somebody in OBC was trying to get every card from that book, but not sure if it was ever finished.

[Ricky]

This thread has become the first one I go to on this site every day... very entertaining! I hate to say it, Geno, but I almost hope no one ever bids just so we can keep getting these stories...

[HercDriver]

Ricky...thanks for the thumbs up! I had done one like this a long time ago, and after enjoying Frank's auctions for so long, I thought it was time to try it again! I told somebody else, it makes it fun to take the cards out of the binder and actually look at them again. I sold/traded a couple of the big cards, so this is a great way to go through the commons and get a little cash for my Sovereign collection. Anyway, tomorrow might be the last installment until the Super Bowl, since I'll be out and about, nowhere near my cards for a bit. Cheers!

[HercDriver]

Today I'm adding two pretty solid players, Johnny Podres and Vada Pinson. A few people used to pull for Pinson to get in the HOF, but it never happened. Podres did get in, sort of. He, of course, shut out the Yankees in Game 7 of the 1955 World Series, thus ending the drought in Brooklyn in their fight for supremacy over the Bronx. If you haven't been to the HOF, there is a statue to commemorate that event, or two statues, I guess. I borrowed this photo of somebody's travel blog, so you can see it. It's Podres pitching to Campanella, so Johnny did get in:



When the Dodgers went west, Podres pitched the first night game in the LA Coliseum, and also threw the first shutout. The fact that he recorded the first shutout is actually pretty amazing, considering not just his competition in Koufax and Drysdale, but mostly because he was a lefty, facing right handers. If you don't appreciate that fact, look at this picture of the Coliseum:



I'm pretty sure there's people on this forum that could homer to left field there...it's only 250 feet! So good on ya, Johnny, for mowing down the Reds that day!

[AGuinness]

Originally Posted by Ricky

This thread has become the first one I go to on this site every day... very entertaining! I hate to say it, Geno, but I almost hope no one ever bids just so we can keep getting these stories...

I'll second this ^^

[HercDriver]

An early start for Day 18, and expect a late start to Day 19, as I’ll be out of pocket for a couple days, but will do my best to post when I can.

A bit of a sad story today, or maybe a wasted career, whatever you want to call it. Jack Meyer was one of three Phillies pitchers who tried to live up to the Mantle-Ford-Martin tradition of baseball by day, lunacy by night. From the Seamheads.com website, I found some good stuff on them. The three, with Turk Farrell and Jim Owens, were just as disorderly and drunk, but not nearly as good the next day as the famed Yankees were. They were known as the Dalton Gang, and tended to end their inebriated nights with a fight or two, either with strangers or teammates. They usually left bar tabs, bloodied noses, and shattered mirrors in their wake. Sometimes they had fun on the field, like when Farrell got into the game balls and left messages on them for the opposing pitcher to read, which resulted in Lew Burdette yelling into the Phillies dugout after he received each ball, with it's not so nice message on it. After one particularly long night, Farrell poured ice water on Meyer, resulting in a fight that left Meyer on the DL for an injured back. The Phillies were not pleased about that, so they fined Meyer $1200. That might not sound like much, but he only made $14,000, so it was almost 10% of his salary. That may have been the largest proportion fine for a player, until today’s long PED suspensions. All that hard living didn't do Jack much good, as he was dead of a heart attack, six years after a kid pulled this card out of a Topps pack. Farrell only made it to age 43, before a car accident got him.

[jimmysuitcase]

Originally Posted by HercDriver

And yes, that is one of the best books ever. Somebody in OBC was trying to get every card from that book, but not sure if it was ever finished.

I'm not sure that I am/was the only one, Geno, but getting everyone from Boyd & Harris's epic book was one of the first set quests I KO'd in OBC. From the T206s up through the late 60s, I acquired everyone. My last card was the 52T hi# Crosetti...and I even got a good deal on it!

Good night, Sibby Sisti, wherever you are...

[HercDriver]

Well, my airplane is broken, so I have a few seconds to post a few more cards, starting with Mike Fornieles, and a theme of “that would never happen today.” In 1960, he won the first Fireman of the Year award, for the AL, with a whopping 14 saves. Since I’m stuck at JFK, it seems appropriate that I post the Original Met, Hobie Landrith. He was plucked from San Fran, who also supplied the #1 pick to Houston, with Eddie Bressoud. The Mets then offered him a contract worth $4K less than he was making with the Giants, which he was forced to accept. Speaking of money, Johnny Antonelli was a $50K bonus baby, so had to remain on the big league roster for the Braves in 1948. He only appeared in four games that year, but the Braves won the pennant. Because his salary was so much higher than everybody else’s, the players did not vote him a share of the World Series pot...wow, that makes you feel wanted! So the players could complain about cheap owners, but they weren’t much better, themselves...

[HercDriver]

Three more today, starting with Dale Long, who was obviously aptly named, since he managed to hit homers in eight straight games. It was a long time until that feat was matched, by Don Mattingly, and Ken Griffey, Jr. Long also caught in two games as a lefty, making him one of only 23 guys to catch multiple games, as a lefty. Speaking of catchers, here’s Chris Cannizzaro, who managed to be picked in two expansion drafts. He was picked by the Mets in 1961, and then the Padres in 1969, where he became their first All- Star representative. Hmmm...what to say about Joe DeMaestri? Other than those sixties windbreakers are hideous. It always made me think their mothers made them wear it to leave the house. DeMaestri took over for Tony Kubek in the 1960 World Series, Game 7, after Kubek took that ball in the throat. But he didn’t get to watch Mazeroski’s homer sail over his head, because he was pinch hit for, in the top of the ninth. By Dale Long. Wow...that’s almost Kevin Bacon spooky. Have a great one!!

[HercDriver]

I have a couple minutes between flights, so here’s four more cards for your viewing pleasure. Another multi-player gem, another first pick expansion player in Grba, and finally, Steve Barber. If you go back and read Day 8, you can see why this gives me closure. I have no idea if that’s the proper use of that word, I just hear it a lot from my wife and nod like I know what she’s talking about. It generally works, at least in the short term. Enjoy the game tonight!

New feature...card counter!!
77 cards, so 65 cents per card, shipped

[HercDriver]

Day 22 brings two more gems to the party...Ron Kline and Rip Repulski. I was going to write something about cool baseball nicknames, like Johnny "Ugly" Dickshot. But when I looked up Repulski, I noticed that he was born and died in Sauk Rapids, MN. Going to Google Maps, it's a town of about 12,000 people by St Cloud, MN. That must have been cool, having a big leaguer in a small town, where kids could listen to his stories at the diner after church on Sunday. I looked up my hometown of Freeport, IL, and only found one guy, who pitched in four games, in 2002-03. For those four games, he earned $500K. I'm guessing Rip didn't make $500K and had way better stories to tell. My dad grew up near Quincy, IL, where the Reuschel brothers were baseball kings. He was about the same age, and played against them in high school, if I remember right. My brothers and I always watched Cubs games, and we'd tell our friends that my dad was pals with the Reuschel boys. That was pretty cool, until this card came out in 1977:



Seriously? Could there be a worse card than that? Those uniforms the Cubs had back then were appalling. They couldn't even get the names with the right brother. And it looks like two N54 members just signed up for Cubs Fantasy Camp. Ugghhh...I hate that card. Anyway, we stopped telling people our dad was friends with them after that. I'm not sure how I got onto that this morning, but then again, my mind is not too clear, after waking up to the sound of the dog barfing next to my bed. Somehow it got me here. Oh yeah...Sauk Rapids, MN. RIP, Rip. Time for more coffee...have a great day!

Card Tracker:
79 cards, at 63 cents each, shipped.

[xplainer]

Originally Posted by HercDriver

Day 22 brings two more gems to the party...Ron Kline and Rip Repulski. I was going to write something about cool baseball nicknames, like Johnny "Ugly" Dickshot. But when I looked up Repulski, I noticed that he was born and died in Sauk Rapids, MN. Going to Google Maps, it's a town of about 12,000 people by St Cloud, MN. That must have been cool, having a big leaguer in a small town, where kids could listen to his stories at the diner after church on Sunday. I looked up my hometown of Freeport, IL, and only found one guy, who pitched in four games, in 2002-03. For those four games, he earned $500K. I'm guessing Rip didn't make $500K and had way better stories to tell. My dad grew up near Quincy, IL, where the Reuschel brothers were baseball kings. He was about the same age, and played against them in high school, if I remember right. My brothers and I always watched Cubs games, and we'd tell our friends that my dad was pals with the Reuschel boys. That was pretty cool, until this card came out in 1977:



Seriously? Could there be a worse card than that? Those uniforms the Cubs had back then were appalling. They couldn't even get the names with the right brother. And it looks like two N54 members just signed up for Cubs Fantasy Camp. Ugghhh...I hate that card. Anyway, we stopped telling people our dad was friends with them after that. I'm not sure how I got onto that this morning, but the again, my mind is not too clear, after waking up to the sound of the dog barfing next to my bed. Somehow it got me here. Oh yeah...Sauk Rapids, MN. RIP, Rip. Time for more coffee...have a great day!

Card Tracker:
79 cards, at 63 cents each, shipped.

I too, am enjoying the stories. But, if you throw in the Reuschel card, I might pull the trigger.
That is my golden era. Mid 70s to mid 80’s.
Born 1963.
And, yeah, it does look like a fantasy camp photo.
-Jimmy

[HercDriver]

I lived for those Cubs teams, running home from school to watch on WGN and listening to the radio in my room when they played on the West Coast. I remember Rick Monday saving the flag, Jerry Morales and the basket catch, the greatest catching platoon in MLB history of Steve Swisher and George Mitterwald, Jose Cardenal's afro coming out of his hat, Larry Biittner pitching an inning or two, Pete LaCock...just saying Pete LaCock in a French accent, the Lee Elia tirade, Jack Brickhouse before Harry, the 23-22 loss to the Phillies in OT, the debut of the kid from Mount Joy, PA who brought the split-finger fastball to MLB and made it to the Hall. And when Rick Reuschel was on the mound we had a chance. Ray Burris, Steve Stone, Steve Renko, and Bill Bonham were not in the same league as Reuschel. That's what we had. The Reds had Bench, Perez, Morgan, Concepcion, Rose, Griffey, Geronimo, and Foster. And we had Swisher/Mitterwald, and the hope that Rick Reuschel might win us one game out of the three. It's funny how you think as a kid...like you still have a chance, just because the math says so. Thanks for reading...and no, I'm not sure where that card is today, or I would just send it to you!

[xplainer]

Don’t forget, that LaCocks dad was Peter Marshall, of Hollywood Squares fame.
The late, great Ernie Johnson used to reminded us on the Braves network of that, when he could. Also, that Mike Lumm was from Honolulu.
That was my personal heyday of baseball.
Sidenote. Born and grew up in Tampa. Home to the Reds spring training at Al Lopez Field. I saw them all. Rose, Bench, Concepcion. Billingsly, Geromino, Morgan, Perez and Sparky and all those guys. I did not know what I was witnessing at the time.
Today, I understand. Some of the best players ever.
I saw On tv or in person, Clemente, Hank, Mays and everyone from 72 on. Carlton’s season, greatest ever. Some many great players I got to see.
I appreciate it now. Then it was the norm.
Ok...done.

[HercDriver]

It turns out that you are limited to 20 pictures in any message, so I had to trim a couple off the top. It also turns out that it's snowing up in the hills and I have the day off...so going to go throw myself down the slopes of Beaver Creek today, for a bit. But before I do, I better post some more cards! I finally made it to that spot in the stack that has the cards we all hate, pretty much universally...manager cards. Ugghhh...what a horrible thing to find in your pack of cards, when you are looking for a Mantle, Banks, or Mays. I mean heads of dudes are horrible, but heads of managers are even worse. It's not like you could even trade them to anybody. When I met my wife, she used to tell me that some baseball player lived next to her grandma, but she couldn't remember who. When I finally made my first trip to Philly to meet her grandparents, it turned out it was Mickey Vernon, mowing his lawn. I never went over to say hello, and I've always regretted it. My wife had another run-in, after we were first married. She worked for a charity in St Louis and had a big lunch to raise money one day. She came home and said she sat next to an old Cardinal player, who was really nice and talked her ear off the whole time. She pulled out a ball and told me that he was signing a few, and gave her one. Yep, Stan Musial. When we went to a game one day, I pointed to the statue and asked if she recognized him. Nope. Haha...I said, "you had lunch with him!!" I didn't post the batting leaders card of 1960 in this auction, but if I had, Dick Groat would have been your winner. Who do you think was second? Second in the league, ahead of Mays, Clemente, Boyer, and all those big names...who would that be? Norm Larker. Really?!? Norm Larker? The Dodgers were so impressed, they let him go to the Colt 45's in the expansion draft of '62. If only you would have beat out a few more infield rollers, Normy...

Did Ed Hobaugh play Ice Man in Top Gun? Or did Val Kilmer play Ed Hobaugh on the Senators? Hmmm...

Card Tracker:
86 cards total, clocking in at 56 cents each, shipped

[obcmac]

Pointing out that in addition to Rip, St.Cloud also boasts t206 subject Jake thielman as well as two fine obc'ers...t.elliot and myself (though I no longer live there). Ted Williams also dated a girl from Sauk rapids I believe. In more modern times...Jim Eisenreich also hailed from there....the more you know.

Mac



QUOTE=HercDriver;1851887]Day 22 brings two more
gems to the party...Ron Kline and Rip Repulski. I was going to write something about cool baseball nicknames, like Johnny "Ugly" Dickshot. But when I looked up Repulski, I noticed that he was born and died in Sauk Rapids, MN. Going to Google Maps, it's a town of about 12,000 people by St Cloud, MN. That must have been cool, having a big leaguer in a small town, where kids could listen to his stories at the diner after church on Sunday. I looked up my hometown of Freeport, IL, and only found one guy, who pitched in four games, in 2002-03. For those four games, he earned $500K. I'm guessing Rip didn't make $500K and had way better stories to tell. My dad grew up near Quincy, IL, where the Reuschel brothers were baseball kings. He was about the same age, and played against them in high school, if I remember right. My brothers and I always watched Cubs games, and we'd tell our friends that my dad was pals with the Reuschel boys. That was pretty cool, until this card came out in 1977:



Seriously? Could there be a worse card than that? Those uniforms the Cubs had back then were appalling. They couldn't even get the names with the right brother. And it looks like two N54 members just signed up for Cubs Fantasy Camp. Ugghhh...I hate that card. Anyway, we stopped telling people our dad was friends with them after that. I'm not sure how I got onto that this morning, but then again, my mind is not too clear, after waking up to the sound of the dog barfing next to my bed. Somehow it got me here. Oh yeah...Sauk Rapids, MN. RIP, Rip. Time for more coffee...have a great day!

Card Tracker:
79 cards, at 63 cents each, shipped.[/QUOTE]

[HercDriver]

Four more cards added today, including two more beloved skippers! Well, Solly Hemus may not have been beloved by all, since he wasn't exactly known for his racial diversity policies. Gus Triandos showed up today and reminded me of a good friend of mine who passed away years ago, way too early. One of his big collecting pleasures was his Gus Triandos shrine, so Gus always makes me smile. When I looked up his bio, Wikiedia says he is #6 on the all-time list of catching base stealers, so I went to Baseball Reference to see who the others were. Well, that Wikipedia article was a bit erroneous, as Gus was #69, actually. I know...it's on the internet, so how can it be wrong? Anyway, you'll be interested to know, only 13 catchers have managed to throw out over 50% of the runners in their career, and it's a wide smattering of eras, albeit nobody of recent stock. For your viewing pleasure, here's the 13:

Roy Campanella (57%)
Gabby Hartnett
Buddy Rosar
Al Lopez
Mickey O'Neil
Hank Gowdy
Ray Mueller
Jimmy Archer
Sam Agnew
Ray Schalk
Patsy Charity
Ray Mancuso
Paul Richards

Interestingly, two of those guys are on the same scan as Triandos, now as managers. George Mitterwald is #226, just thought you should know. And no active catcher is even close, with Yadier Molina topping the list at 41%. Have a great day!!

Card Tracker:
90 cards, at 56 cents each, shipped

[HercDriver]

Ahhh...the Topps All Rookie Team Trophies!! Now those were cool when you were a kid. This was just the second year of the trophies, and the first one where it looked pretty much like a normal card, with the trophy in the corner. The 1960 ones were more like the All-Star cards, and aren't nearly as cool as a full picture. Topps has been releasing the All-Rookie team ever since then, and has managed to pick out 23 future HOFers in the process. One of them showed up 1961, the Cubs third baseman, Ron Santo. Billy Williams also appeared for the first time in 1961, but his trophy didn't show up until next year. One oddity of the 1961 set was they totally forgot to put the trophy on Frank Howard's card, even though he was selected as an outfielder that year. Coker was the Wally Pipp of the Reds, as he was the last catcher to start for the Reds, before another trophy winner, Johnny Bench, debuted the next game. Have an awesome day!

Card Tracker:
92 cards, at 54 cents each, shipped

[HercDriver]

Today, I bring you one of the most futile hitters in MLB history, Bob Buhl. At least for one inglorious season, anyway. In 1962, Buhl went 0-70 at the dish. Yes, 0-70!! And if you add in 1961 and 1963, his streak was actually 0-87. Yep, eighty-seven at bats, no hits. Wow!! Do you know what his batting average would be when he finally got that hit? A 1-88 batting average is .011. He actually had 76 career hits, so he had some idea how to swing, but if you look at his stats, some of his seasons were appalling. He had BAs of .032, .057, and .060 in his three worst seasons. He did manage 14 hits in 1960, for a .157 BA. I guess it was enough to impress the Phillies, who traded away Fergie Jenkins to get him. I’m not sure which Phils/Cubs was worse, that one, or Ryne Sandberg for Ivan DeJesus. I looked at Buhl’s 0-70 season, and it looks like he struck out 36 times. So he put the ball in play 34 times and couldn’t find a gap. They must have perfected the Buhl Shift that year. At least he walked six times, so he could say he knew who the 1B coach was. Have a great day!!

Card Tracker:
95 cards, averaging 53 cents each, shipped

[jimmysuitcase]

that no one with a sense of nostalgia is going to nab this lot so long as there is the chance that you will continue journaling these gems! Sure, the cards keep edging closer and closer to being a great deal, but these posts are priceless.

Of course, maybe that was your plan all along...go the distance!

[HercDriver]

Haha...thanks for that! Flying Seattle to LAX to Tampa today, so will add the next one tonight. Have an awesome day!

[HercDriver]

Today is the day we hit the century mark, with 100 cards! Looking at Bob Oldis and Jim Donahue, takes me back to high school cut day for the varsity baseball team. We would tryout all week, then Friday, you would show up for practice with the cut list taped to the locker room door. So all day at school, it’s all you thought about. Some guys had the Jim Donahue look, knowing they were going to be the starting CF, or a starting pitcher. Then there were the guys like me, always battling for a lineup spot. We had the Bob Oldis look all day at school. Once you made the team, you got this orange jacket with your name on it. We would wear that jacket everywhere, no matter how hot it was. I found mine a couple years ago, when we finally unpacked boxes that hadn’t been opened in 20 years of military moving. Man, that brought back some memories! My best friend, Buddy, was a brawler when he got mad, a bit like Earl Torgeson was, as a matter of fact. He struck out a couple times one day and just came storming back to the dugout, smoke coming out of his nostrils. We also had a guy named Joe, who almost never played, and just yapped a lot. Well, Buddy walks in the dugout to get his glove and can’t find his hat. He’s so pissed, that everyone just moves out of the way. Except Joe. Buddy yells at him, “where’s my damn cap?!?” Joe just looks back, feigning a concerned sort of look, and says “what color is it?” That was the only bench clearing brawl I ever saw, involving only one bench, as Joe took off towards the outfield. I wonder where I put my orange jacket now...I might wear that tomorrow. Have a great one!!

Card Tracker:
100 cards, at 50 cents each, shipped