Friday, December 9, 2011

1977 Topps Baseball #34 - California Angels / Norm Sherry


  • Norm Sherry managed the 1976 California Angels after replacing Dick Williams on July 23.
    • The Angels had a 37-29 record under Sherry to finish the 1976 season
  • The Angels were picked by many to contend for the AL West title in 1977
  • Sherry managed the Angels for the first 81 games of the 1977 season and had a 39-42 record before being fired on July 11.
  • Norm had a long minor league career in the Brooklyn/LA Dodgers system before  making it to the  majors at the age of 27 at the end of the 1959 season.
    • He played for various minor league clubs from 1950-1959 (excluding the two years he spent serving in Korea)
    • Sherry was a backup catcher for the Dodgers from 1959-1962. He was credited for helping Sandy Koufax become a great pitcher by advising him to take a little off of his fastball to get better control.
    • Norm was sold to the New York Mets after the 1962 season.
    • He spent one year with the Mets (1963) and another year with the Mets' AAA Buffalo ballclub before calling it quits as a full-time player.
    • Sherry was a player-manager for the Dodgers' Class A club from 1965-1967.
    • Norm coached for the Angels in 1970 and 1971.
    • In 1972 Sherry started managing in the Angels' system. Norm worked his way up the organization  until he became the manager of the major league club in 1976
    • Sherry never managed again. He was a pitching coach for several seasons under Dick Williams at Montreal and San Diego and under Roger Craig in San Francisco.
  • Team Highlights:
  • Team Leaders:
    • Batting Average: Gil Flores (.278)
    • Runs: Bobby Bonds (103)
    • Home Runs: Bobby Bonds (37)
    • RBI: Bobby Bonds (115)
    • Stolen Bases: Bobby Bonds / Jerry Remy (41)
    • Wins: Nolan Ryan (19)
    • Losses: Nolan Ryan (16)
    • Strikeouts: Nolan Ryan (341)
    • ERA (starter): Frank Tanana (2.54)
    • ERA (reliever): Dyar Miller (3.02)
    • Saves: Dave LaRoche (13)
  • Team Stats:
    • Record: 74-88, 5th in AL West, 28 games behind the Kansas City Royals
    • Attendance: 1,432,633 (6th of 14 in AL)
    • Batting Average: .255 (12th in AL)
    • Runs Scored: 675 (10th in AL)
    • Home Runs: 131 (9th in AL)
    • Stolen Bases: 159 (3rd in AL)
    • ERA: 3.72 (4th in AL)
    • Fielding Percentage: .976 (10th in AL)
  • League Leaders:
    • ERA - Frank Tanana (2.54)
    • Strikeouts - Nolan Ryan (341)
    • Shutouts - Frank Tanana (7)
    • Bases on Balls Nolan Ryan (204) - this was more than double the #2 pitcher (Jim Palmer with 99)
  • Awards:
    • Nolan Ryan (TSN Pitcher of the Year)
  • AL All Stars:
    • Nolan Ryan (P), Frank Tanana (P)
  • Other card blogs (Norm Sherry): Number 5 Type Collection, centerfieldmaz, Baseball by the Letters


No comments:

Post a Comment