Thursday, January 31, 2013

1977 Topps Baseball #445 - Ken Singleton




Wednesday, January 30, 2013

1977 Topps Baseball #444 - Wayne Twitchell

  • Wayne Twitchell started the season with the Phillies, but he was demoted to the bullpen in late May after going 0-4 in eight starts. On June 15 Wayne was traded with Tim Blackwell to the Montreal Expos for Barry Foote and Dan Warthen. Twitchell pitched better for the Expos and had a few no decisions in games he should have won.
  • 1977 Stats:
    • Philadelphia Phillies - 0-5, 4.53 ERA in 12 games (8 starts)
    • Montreal Expos - 6-5, 4.21 ERA in 22 starts
    • TOTAL: 6-10, 4.29 ERA in 34 games (30 starts)
  • 1977 Highlights:
    • June 24 - Pitched seven perfect innings before allowing an infield single to Bill Robinson in the 8th inning. Unfortunately the Expos lost to the Pittsburgh Pirates 6-5.
    • Aug 13 - Pitched nine shutout innings, but the Expos weren't able to score either. The Expos lost the game 1-0 in ten innings.
  • Other card blogs: 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1979



Tuesday, January 29, 2013

1977 Topps Baseball #443 - Lamar Johnson



  • Lamar Johnson split time between first base and designated hitter in 1977. He led the Chicago White Sox in batting average (.302)
  • 1977 Stats: .302, 18 HR, 65 RBI in 118 games
  • 1977 Highlights:
  • June 19 - Sang the national anthem before the game and then hit two solo home runs to lead the White Sox to a 2-1 victory over the Oakland A's.
  • July 22 - Got four hits and knocked in five runs in Chicago's 10-3 win over the Toronto Blue Jays.
  • Aug 8 - Hit the game-winning home run in the 9th inning as the White Sox beat the Seattle Mariners 5-4. It was Johnson's second home run of the game.
  • Other card blogs: 1976, 1979, 1980, 1983



Monday, January 28, 2013

1977 Topps Baseball #442 - Atlanta Braves / Dave Bristol

  • The post-Henry Aaron Atlanta Braves of the late 1970s must have been hard to watch. Braves fans didn't have a whole lot to get excited about until Dale Murphy and Bob Horner came along. 
  • The Braves suffered through a 17-game losing streak on their way to a 100-loss season. On May 11, after the Braves had lost 16 games in a row, owner Ted Turner gave manager Dave Bristol a rest and "managed" the game. Commissioner Bowie Kuhn informed Turner that he couldn't manage anymore so Bristol was back in the dugout on May 14. 
  • This article sums up the strange things that happened to the Braves in 1977. 
  • After the 1977 season Bristol was (perhaps mercifully) fired by the team's board of directors.
  • Dave Bristol never played in the major leagues. He started playing in the low minors in 1951 at the age of 18. Dave played through the 1953 season and then was in military service in 1954. Bristol then played through the 1956 season before becoming a player-manager at the age of 24 in 1957. He continued to be a player-manager through the 1961 season, never getting above class B level.
  • Bristol became a full-time manager in 1962. He worked his way up the chain in the Cincinnati Reds organization and was named the Reds' manager when he was 33 years old in July 1966.
  • Dave managed the Reds through the 1969 season. The Reds showed steady improvement, but they never finished above third place under Bristol. After the 1969 season Bristol was fired by the Reds.
  • In November 1969 Bristol was hired to manage the Seattle Pilots. The club moved to Milwaukee before the 1970 season. The team was going through the usual expansion team struggles. Bristol was suspended for four games in 1971 for several confrontations with umpires. Dave managed the team until late May 1972. The younger players were feeling a lot of pressure and Bristol was let go in order to help ease the tension.
  • Dave coached with the Montreal Expos and then was hired to manage the Braves after the 1975 season. He managed the team in 1976 and in 1977.
  • Bristol coached with the San Francisco Giants in 1978 and most of 1979. He was suspended for an altercation with an umpire in September 1978. After the Giants fought amongst themselves and struggled through most of the 1979 season, Bristol was hired to restore order in September. Dave managed the team through the 1980 season and had several run ins with players, most notably a fistfight with pitcher John Montefusco. Bristol was abruplty fired during the winter meetings in 1980 due to differences in philosophy with Giant ownership.
  • Dave coached with the Philadelphia Phillies (1982-1985, 1988) and with the Reds (1989 and 1993), but didn't manage again after the 1980 season.
  • Here is a 2010 blog entry by pitcher Collin McHugh about an encounter he had with Bristol while watching a minor league game.
  • Record: 61-101, 6th in NL West, 37 games behind Los Angeles
  • Attendance:  872,464 (11th of 12 in NL)
  • Team Batting: .254 (8th in NL)
  • Team HR: 139 (4th in NL)
  • Team Stolen Bases: 82 (11th in NL)
  • Team ERA: 4.85 (12th in NL)
  • Team Fielding: .972 (10th in NL)
  • All Stars: Willie Montanez (1B)
  • Awards: none
  • NL Leaders: Phil Niekro (innings pitched - 330.1; starts - 43; complete games - 20; strikeouts - 262; losses - 20; wild pitches - 17)
  • Batting Leader: Barry Bonnell (.300)
  • Home Run Leader: Jeff Burroughs (41)
  • RBI Leader: Jeff Burroughs (114)
  • Stolen Base Leader: Jerry Royster (28)
  • Victories Leader: Phil Niekro (16)
  • Losses Leader: Phil Niekro (20)
  • Strikeout Leader: Phil Niekro (262)
  • Saves Leader: Dave Campbell (13)
  • ERA Leader (starters): Phil Niekro (4.03)
  • ERA Leader (relievers): Dave Campbell (3.05)
  • Players who could have had White Sox cards in 1977 (batters with over 100 AB, pitchers with over 40 innings) :
    • Jamie Easterly - 2-4, 1 save, 6.14 ERA in 22 games (1 start)
    • Preston Hanna - 2-6, 1 save, 4.95 ERA in 17 games (9 starts)
    • Don Collins - 3-9, 2 saves, 5.09 ERA in 40 games (6 starts)
    • Eddie Solomon - 6-6, 4.57 ERA in 18 games (16 starts)
    • Dave Campbell - 0-6, 13 saves, 3.05 ERA in 65 games
    • Pat Rockett (SS) - .254, 1 HR, 24 RBI in 93 games
    • Barry Bonnell (UT) - .300, 1 HR, 45 RBI in 100 games
    • Junior Moore (3B) - .260, 5 HR, 34 RBI in 112 games



Sunday, January 27, 2013

1977 Topps Baseball #441 - Larvell Blanks




Saturday, January 26, 2013

1977 Topps Baseball #440 - Jon Matlack




Friday, January 25, 2013

1977 Topps Baseball #439 - Gorman Thomas


  • When I was a kid I had no idea why Gorman Thomas kept getting cards. His batting averages were usually below the Mendoza Line and it seemed like I got about 10-15 of his cards every year.
  • Thomas spent the 1977 season in the minors, but after he returned to the majors in 1978 he had several good power years for the Brewers.
  • Gorman was traded to the Texas Rangers after the 1977 season, but the Brewers bought him  back in February 1978.
  • 1977 Stats:
    • Spokane Indians (AAA) - .322, 36 HR, 114 RBI
  • 1977 Highlights:
  • Other card blogs: 1974, 1975, 1976, 1979, 1980, 1983, 1985, 1986


Thursday, January 24, 2013

1977 Topps Baseball #438 - Marty Perez




Wednesday, January 23, 2013

1977 Topps Baseball #437 - Turn Back The Clock Ralph Kiner


  • Leading the league in anything for seven straight years is quite an accomplishment. 
  • The closest streaks I could find were:
    • Walter Johnson - AL strikeout leader for 8 straight years (1912-1919)
    • Dazzy Vance - NL strikeout leader for 7 straight seasons (1922-1928)
    • Lefty Grove - AL strikeout leader for 7 straight years (1925-1931)
    • Rogers Hornsby - NL Batting Average leader for 6 years in a row (1920-1925)
    • Ty Cobb led the AL in batting average every year from 1907-1919 except for 1910 (Nap Lajoie led) and 1916 (Tris Speaker was the BA champion). 
    • Sandy Koufax - NL ERA leader for 5 straight years (1962-1966)


1977 Topps Baseball #436 - Turn Back The Clock - Bob Keegan


  • I had no idea who Bob Keegan was when this card came out. I still didn't know much about him before making this entry
  • Keegan spent six seasons (1953-1958) pitching for the Chicago White Sox. Bob didn't make it to the majors until he was 33 years old. Keegan was stuck in the New York Yankees organization from 1945-1952. The Chicago White Sox purchased him from AAA Syracuse after the 1952 season.
  • Bob's best season was in 1954 when he was 16-9 with a 3.09 ERA in 27 starts
  • Bob pitched in his last major league game on July 24, 1958. He pitched in the minors through the 1960 season.
  • Here is the boxscore of the no-hitter.


Monday, January 21, 2013

1977 Topps Baseball #435 - Turn Back The Clock Mau


  • Stealing 104 bases in a season, especially in that era, was a great accomplishment. The running game had been virtually nonexistent for over 40 years when this mark was set.
  • I'm pretty sure this picture is from the October 3 game against the San Francisco Giants. In the bottom of the 7th inning Wills singled, stole second, and then stole third base. That's Jim Davenport at third base catching the throw.

Sunday, January 20, 2013

1977 Topps Baseball #434 - Turn Back The Clock Carl Yastrzemski

  • At the time, Carl Yastrzemski's Triple Crown wasn't as big of a deal. Frank Robinson had accomplished the feat the previous year. But it took 45 years for another player (Miguel Cabrera of the Detroit Tigers) to win another Triple Crown.
  • Yaz deserved his unanimous selection as the 1967 AL MVP. I can't imagine the Red Sox finishing in the first division without him.



Saturday, January 19, 2013

1977 Topps Baseball #433 - Turn Back The Clock Nate Colbert


  • These historical types of cards were great. Topps was really good about doing these subsets for a while.
    • 1973 - All Time Leaders
    • 1974 - Hank Aaron Specials
    • 1975 - 25 Years of Topps MVPs
    • 1976 - Sporting News All Time All Stars
    • 1977 - Turn Back The Clock
  • Five home runs and 13 RBI would have been a good month for a lot of players in 1972.


Friday, January 18, 2013

1977 Topps Baseball #432 - Buzz Capra

  • This was Buzz Capra's last season in the majors, and it was a tough one. He had a shoulder injury in 1975 and was never the same pitcher after that.
  • Capra started the season as a reliever and moved into the Braves rotation in May. Buzz lost his first four starts and went back to the bullpen until mid July. He was a starter for most of the remainder of the season. 
  • Buzz didn't make the Braves team in 1978 and was placed on waivers.
  • Capra tried to make the Braves ballclub in 1979 but was released  during spring training.
  • 1977 Stats: 6-11, 5.36 ERA in 45 games (16 starts)
  • 1977 Highlights:
  • Other card blogs: 1972, 1975, 1975, 1976



Thursday, January 17, 2013

1977 Topps Baseball #431 - Dave Collins

  • This is an uncorrected error card. The photo is actually Bobby Jones.
  • Dave Collins was drafted by the Seattle Mariners in the 1976 expansion draft.
  • For the first three months of the 1977 season Collins was mostly a DH and a pinch runner. In July Dave became the starting left fielder.
  • After the 1977 season Collins was traded to the Cincinnati Reds for pitcher Shane Rawley.
  • 1977 Stats: .239, 4 HR, 28 RBI, 25 stolen bases in 120 games
  • 1977 Highlights:
  • Other card blogs: 1976, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1983, 1985, 1986



Wednesday, January 16, 2013

1977 Topps Baseball #430 - Fergie Jenkins




Tuesday, January 15, 2013

1977 Topps Baseball #429 - Ken Boswell


  • This was Ken Boswell's last season in the majors. Boswell was mostly a left-handed pinch hitter (14 for 53, .264) and an occasional replacement for Art Howe at second base during the 1977 season. Ken played out his option in 1977 but wasn't selected in the free agent draft.
  • Ken Boswell's SABR biography
  • 1977 Stats: .216 in 72 games (97 at bats)
  • 1977 Highlights:
  • Other card blogs: 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976


Monday, January 14, 2013

1977 Topps Baseball #428 - Texas Rangers / Frank Lucchesi

  • A good season by the Texas Rangers was overshadowed by a lot of managerial drama. The team went through four managers in eight days after Frank Lucchesi was fired in June. Eddie Stanky was hired, but quit after one game because he missed his home in Alabama. Third base coach Connie Ryan then managed the team on an interim basis until Billy Hunter was hired to manage the club on June 27. The Rangers were 33-35 at the time of Hunter's hiring, but played much better after that.
  • March 28 - Lenny Randle punched manager Frank Lucchesi before a spring training game. Randle was upset because rookie Bump Wills was going to be the starting second baseman instead of him. Lucchesi was quoted as saying that he wouldn't let a "punk" who was making $80,000 a year make demands. Three days before (March 25), Randle was going to walk out of camp but was talked out of it by Bert Blyleven, Mike Hargrove, and Gaylord Perry. Randle was suspended after the incident and later traded to the New York Mets.
  • Frank Lucchesi managed at the major and minor league levels for a total of 30 years. He started as an 18-year-old minor league outfielder in 1945. After spending one year in AA, Frank never again rose above Class B level.
  • Lucchesi became a player-manager at the age of 24 in 1951. He continued to play and manage for various Class C and D teams through the 1957 season.
  • Frank came to the Philadelphia Phillies organization in 1956. He managed in the organization and slowly worked his way up the ladder from 1956-1969.
  • After having a successful season with AAA Eugene in 1969 (88-58, .603, 1st place), Lucchesi was hired to manage the Philadelphia Phillies for the 1970 season.
  • The Phillies were still a building ballclub during Frank's tenure. Lucchesi managed the team through the 1970 and 1971 seasons and for part of the 1972 season. Frank was relieved of his managerial duties on July 10, 1972. Lucchesi continued with the organization for the rest of the season as a special assignments man.
  • Lucchesi managed Cleveland's AAA team (Oklahoma City) in 1973.
  • Frank was hired to replace Billy Martin as manager of the Rangers on July 22, 1975. Lucchesi was only guaranteed to manage the team for the rest of the year, but he was later given an extension.
  • After the Randle incident in 1977, Frank had to recuperate for a time before taking over the ballclub. The Rangers didn't play as well as they should have, and Frank was let go in June. In September 1977 Lucchesi filed a civil suit against Randle.
  • Frank was the "eye in the sky" coach for the Chicago Cubs in 1987 when on September 9 he was tapped as the interim manager after Gene Michael resigned.
  • Lucchesi managed AAA Nashville in the Cincinnati Reds organization in 1988 and in 1989.
  • Record: 94-68, .580 , 2nd in AL West (8 games behind Kansas City)
  • Attendance:  1,250,722 (9th in AL)
  • Team Batting: .270 (6th in AL)
  • Team HR: 135 (7th in AL)
  • Team Stolen Bases: 154 (4th in AL)
  • Team ERA: 3.56 (2nd in AL)
  • Team Fielding: .982 (2nd in AL)
  • All Stars: Bert Campaneris (SS)
  • Awards: Jim Sundberg (Gold Glove catcher); Juan Beniquez (Gold Glove OF)
  • AL Leaders: Toby Harrah (Bases on Balls, 109); Bert Campaneris (Sacrifice Hits, 40; Caught Stealing, 20)
  • Batting Leader: Mike Hargrove (.305)
  • Home Run Leader: Toby Harrah (27)
  • RBI Leader: Toby Harrah (87)
  • Stolen Base Leader: Bump Wills (28)
  • Victories Leader: Doyle Alexander (17)
  • Losses Leader: Bert Blyleven, Gaylord Perry (12)
  • Strikeout Leader: Bert Blyleven (182)
  • Saves Leader: Adrian Devine (15)
  • ERA Leader (starters): Bert Blyleven (2.72)
  • ERA Leader (relievers): Darold Knowles (3.22)
  • Players who could have had Rangers cards in 1977 (batters with over 100 AB, pitchers with over 40 innings) :
    • Roger Moret (pictured with Atlanta Braves) - 3-3, 4 saves, 3.73 ERA in 18 games (8 starts)
    • Darold Knowles (pictured with Chicago Cubs) - 5-2, 4 saves, 3.22 ERA in 42 games
    • Paul Lindblad (pictured with Oakland A's) - 4-5, 4 saves, 4.20 ERA in 42 games (1 start)
    • Adrian Devine (pictured with Atlanta Braves) - 11-6, 15 saves, 3.58 ERA in 56 games (2 starts)
    • Dock Ellis (pictured with New York Yankees) - 10-6, 1 save, 2.90 ERA in 23 games (22 starts)
    • Ken Henderson (OF-Pictured with Atlanta Braves) - .258, 5 HR, 23 RBI in 75 games
    • Dave May (RF-no card) - .241, 7 HR, 42 RBI in 120 games
    • Willie Horton (DH-pictured with Detroit Tigers) - .289, 15 HR, 75 RBI in 139 games
    • Claudell Washington (LF-pictured with Oakland A's) - .284, 12 HR, 68 RBI in 129 games



Sunday, January 13, 2013

1977 Topps Baseball #427 - Dave Rader


  • Dave Rader came over from the Giants after the 1976 season. The trade was early enough for Topps to get an airbrush job done on Dave's picture.
  • Rader backed up Ted Simmons  behind the plate in 1977. Dave started only 23 games at catcher. Simmons had a streak of seven straight seasons (1972-1978) of 150 or more games.
  • Rader was traded to the Chicago Cubs in December 1977.
  • 1977 Stats: .263, 1 HR, 16 RBI in 66 games
  • 1977 Highlights:
  • Other card blogs: 1973, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1976 Hostess, 1979, 1980


Saturday, January 12, 2013

1977 Topps Baseball #426 - Dick Drago





Friday, January 11, 2013

1977 Topps Baseball #425 - Joe Torre




Thursday, January 10, 2013

1977 Topps Baseball #424 - Steve Brye




Wednesday, January 9, 2013

1977 Topps Baseball #422 - Freddie Patek




Tuesday, January 8, 2013

1977 Topps Baseball #421 - Doug Rau


  • Doug Rau had another solid year in 1977. The Dodgers had a great rotation that season --Rau was only 4th on the team with 14 wins. Doug started the season 11-1 before tailing off because of a sore shoulder in August and September.
  • Dodger manager Tommy Lasorda gave the ball to Rau to start the 4th game of the World Series. Rau's shoulder was hurting during the last part of the season, but the Dodgers were accustomed to a 5-man rotation and Don Sutton was unable to start on three days rest. Doug didn't get out of the second inning, as this expletive-laden video attests:

  • 1977 Stats
    • Regular season: 14-8, 3.43 in 32 starts
    • NL Championship Series: 0-0, 0.00 ERA in 1 game
    • World Series: 0-1, 11.57 ERA in 2 games (1 start)
  • 1977 Highlights:
  • Other card blogs: 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1979, 1980


Monday, January 7, 2013

1977 Topps Baseball #420 - Rusty Staub


  • This was Rusty Staub's first season as a full-time designated hitter. Staub had a good year for the Tigers -- he led the team in doubles and was second in home runs and RBI.
  • Man I loved it when one of these "All-Stars" showed up in a pack!
  • 1977 Stats: .278, 22 HR, 101 RBI in 158 games
  • 1977 Highlights:
  • Other card blogs: 1965, 1966, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1976, 1979, 1980, 1983, 1985, 1986