1977 Topps Baseball #309 - Boston Red Sox / Don Zimmer

• Don Zimmer has had a long and storied career in major league baseball. He once noted that he never drew a paycheck from a source other than baseball.
• Zimmer played in the minor leagues from 1949-1954. He almost died when he was hit in the head by a pitched ball in 1953. He wasn't fully conscious for 13 days and he had to have holes drilled in his skull to relieve the pressure. It has often been reported that he has a metal plate in his skull, but the metal is from the tantalum plugs used to cover the holes after Don recovered.
• Don played for various teams in the majors from 1954-1965. He earned World Series rings with the 1955 Brooklyn Dodgers and the 1959 LA Dodgers and also played for part of the season on the "legendary" 1962 New York Mets team.
• Zimmer played in Japan in 1966 and then embarked on a coaching and managing career.
• From 1967-1970 Don was a manager in the minor leagues.
• In 1971 Zimmer coached for the Montreal Expos. He moved over to the San Diego Padres in 1972 but was promoted to manager after only 11 games. Don managed the Padres through the 1973 season. Here is his 1973 card.
• Don coached with the Boston Red Sox from 1974-1976. He became the manager of the Red Sox when Darrel Johnson was fired in July.
• Zimmer managed the Red Sox through the 1980 season. His tenure is probably best remembered for the collapse the team had in 1978. The Red Sox lost a 14 game lead and ended up losing the AL East to the New York Yankees in a 1 game playoff. Don was fired in October 1980.
• After the 1980 season Zimmer was hired to manage the Texas Rangers. He managed the team until mid-1982. Texas owner Eddie Chiles was asked why Zimmer was fired but he would only say it was "something personal."
• From 1983-1987 Don had coaching stints with the Yankees (1983), the Chicago Cubs (1984-1986), and the San Francisco Giants (1987)
• In 1988 Zimmer was hired to manage the Chicago Cubs. The Cubs won an NL East title in 1989 and Don was named NL Manager of the Year.
• Zimmer was let go as manager of the Cubs in May 1991. He coached with the Red Sox in 1992 and then coached with the Colorado Rockies from 1993-1995.
• Don became Joe Torre's bench coach in 1996 and he stayed with the Yankees through the 2003 season.
• Since 2004 Zimmer has worked for the Tampa Bay Rays.

• Team Highlights:
• March 14 - The LA Dodgers offer Don Sutton in a trade for Jim Rice. At the time Rice and pitcher Luis Tiant were both holding out. The Red Sox passed on the potential deal.
• March 29 - Infielder Rico Petrocelli is cut after spending 12 seasons with the Red Sox.
• July 3 - Manager Don Zimmer's contract is extended through the 1978 season.
• Aug 14 - Dwight Evans and Carlton Fisk homer to lead the Red Sox to an 11-1 win over the Seattle Mariners. It was their 14th win in 16 games
• Sept 6 - George Scott benches himself, saying that he is "not ready to play."
• Sept 29 - Haywood Sullivan and Buddy LeRoux win a bid to buy the Boston Red Sox. The sale didn't go through until a few months later.
• Dec 8 - The Red Sox trade pitcher Don Aase to the California Angels for Jerry Remy. The AL owners also rejected the sale of the club to Sullivan and LeRoux.
• Dec 15 - Fergie Jenkins is traded to the Texas Rangers for $25,000 and pitcher John Poloni. Jenkins didn't fit into Zimmer's plans for the 1978 season.
• • Record: 97-64, 2nd in AL East, 2.5 games behind New  York Yankees
  • Attendance:  2,074,549 (2nd in AL)
  • Team Batting: .281 (2nd in AL)
  • Team HR: 213 (1st in AL)
  • Team Stolen Bases: 66 (12th in AL)
  • Team ERA: 4.11 (8th in AL)
  • Team Fielding: .978 (5th in AL)
  • All Stars: Carlton Fisk (starting C), Carl Yastrzemski (starting CF), Bill Campbell (P), Fred Lynn (OF), Jim Rice (OF), George Scott (1B)
  • Awards: Bill Campbell (AL Rolaids Relief Pitcher of the Year), Carl Yastrzemski (Gold Glove)
  • AL Leaders: Jim Rice (slugging - .593, HR - 39); Bill Campbell (saves - 31)
  • Batting Leader: Jim Rice - .320
  • Home Run Leader: Jim Rice - 39
  • RBI Leader: Jim Rice - 114
  • Stolen Base Leader: Rick Burleson - 13
  • Victories Leader: Bill Campbell - 13
  • Losses Leader: Fergie Jenkins - 10
  • Strikeout Leader: Luis Tiant - 124
  • Saves Leader: Bill Campbell - 31
  • ERA Leader (starters): Don Aase - 3.12
  • ERA Leader (relievers): Bill Campbell - 2.96
  • Players who could have had Red Sox cards in 1977 (batters with over 100 AB, pitchers with over 40 innings) : 
  • Bernie Carbo - pictured as a Milwaukee Brewer (.289, 15 HR, 34 RBI in 86 games)
  • Mike Paxton (10-5, 3.83 ERA in 29 games - 12 starts)