At the All Star break Ryan had 13 wins but was bypassed for the All Star team in favor of teammate Frank Tanana. Tanana was unable to play due to injury and manager Billy Martin tried to add Ryan to the team. Ryan refused to go and Martin wasn't happy about it.
1977 Stats: 19-16, 2.77 ERA, 341 strikeouts in 37 starts
June 8 - Struck out 19 batters in 10 innings and got a no decision. The Angels beat the Toronto Blue Jays 2-1 in 13 innings.
July 12 - Won his 12th game of the year by pitching a 4-hit shutout against the Minnesota Twins. During the game Ryan passed Juan Marichal for #19 on the all-time strikeout list.
Mario Guerrero split time with Rance Mulliniks at shortstop in 1977. He had a pretty good batting average (.283), but he walked only four times and had a .292 on base percentage. Guerrero didn't play his first game with the Angels until May 22. I was unable to find anything about that -- does anyone know why he didn't play until May?
When the Angels acquired Rick Burleson, Mario became expendable. He was allowed to leave as a free agent and signed with the San Francisco Giants. Mario was traded to the Oakland A's as part of the big Vida Blue deal before the 1978 season and had more chances to play on that rebuilding ballclub.
Dan Briggs started the 1977 season with the Angels. Dan struggled at the plate and was sent to AAA Salt Lake City in mid-May. In mid-June Briggs was loaned to AAA Indianapolis. Dan was brought back to the Angels in mid-July and he stayed with the club for the rest of the season. Briggs was mostly a defensive replacement at first base in August and September.
Briggs coached at Denison University from 1989-1999.
Bobby Bonds had a big year for the California Angels in 1977. His batting average was down a bit, but he had good power numbers and was a productive bat in the Angels' attack.
After the 1977 season Bonds was traded to the Chicago White Sox. Bonds would play for a different team in each of his final four seasons from 1978 to 1981.
1977 Stats: .264, 37 HR, 114 RBI, 41 stolen bases in 158 games
This was the last season for Gary Ross. Ross was a member of the California starting rotation to start the season. He missed two weeks in April and two more weeks in June due to injury. Gary tried to pitch in spite of the arm woes, but he finally had surgery to remove bone chips in his elbow in July.
Ross tried to come back from his arm injury in 1978, but he was sent home in early March after he was unable to throw batting practice. That was it for Gary's pitching career.
Although his card says second base, Grich played shortstop during the 1977 season.
It took a while for Grich to pay dividends for the Angels. In 1977 Bobby didn't play after June 8. He had surgery for a herniated lumbar disc in his back in July and missed the rest of the season.
Don Kirkwood was a reliever in 1977. He got roughed up in his first two appearances (5 runs in 2 innings) and had a 22.50 ERA after the two games. On June 15 Don was traded to the Chicago White Sox. He didn't do any better with the White Sox in 1977.
1977 Stats:
California Angels: 1-0, 1 save, 5.09 ERA in 13 games
Chicago White Sox: 1-1, 5.16 ERA in 16 games
TOTAL: 2-1, 1 save, 5.15 ERA in 29 games
1977 Highlights:
May 12: Earned his first win of the year by pitching three innings of relief in California's 7-5 win over the Baltimore Orioles.
July 8: Pitched 6 2/3 innings and got his second win. The White Sox beat the Detroit Tigers 10-7.
Len Barker was drafted by the Texas Rangers in 1973 at the age of 17. He pitched in the minors exclusively from 1973-1975 and then got a September call-up in 1976 (1-0, 2.40 ERA in 2 starts).
Barker started the 1977 season in the minors, was called up in July, sent back down in August, and then finished the season with the Rangers in September. Len was 4-1 with 1 save and had a 2.66 ERA in 15 games (2 starts).
In 1978 Barker was used as a reliever by the Rangers. He started the season with Texas and then was sent down for about five weeks in May/June. Len then came back to the Rangers and finished hte season with them. Barker was 1-5 with 4 saves and had an ERA of 4.82 in 29 games.
After the 1978 season Len was traded with Bobby Bonds to the Cleveland Indians for Jim Kern and Larvell Blanks. In 1979 Barker was a reliever until June and then went into the Cleveland starting rotation. Len was a starter (except for a few spot relief appearances) for the rest of his career. Barker went 6-6 and had a 4.92 ERA in 29 games (19 starts).
Barker had his best year in 1980. He led the AL with 187 strikeouts and was 19-7 with a 4.17 ERA in 36 starts.
Len made the AL All Star team in 1981 (he pitched two scoreless innings). His stats didn't exactly reflect this All Star status - Len was 8-7 with a 3.91 ERA in 22 starts and led the AL with 127 strikeouts. On May 15, 1981 Barker pitched a perfect game against the Toronto Blue Jays.
A video of the last part of Len's 1981 perfect game is above. For some reason blogger kept putting the video up there instead of down here where I wanted it.
Despite a high (3.90) ERA, Len had a solid year in 1982, going 15-11 in 33 starts.
In 1983 Barker was with Cleveland for the first part of the season (8-13, 5.11 ERA). He was traded to the Atlanta Braves on August 28 for $150,000 and players to be named later. The players were Rick Behenna, Brett Butler, and Brook Jacoby. The Braves wanted Len for the stretch run. Barker started six games for the Braves and was 1-3 with a 3.82 ERA.
After the 1983 season Barker signed a big 5-year, $4.5 million contract with the Braves.
Len started to have arm problems in 1984. He only pitched until late July in 1984 (7-8, 3.85 ERA in 21 games/20 starts) and then had elbow surgery. The 1985 season was Barker's last full season in the majors. He was 2-9 with a 6.35 ERA in 20 games (18 starts) and had a stint on the disabled list.
Barker struggled in spring training in 1986. Len was released at the end of spring training and the Braves ate the rest of his contract. Barker signed with the Montreal Expos. He pitched in the minors in 1986 but he didn't make the club in 198s and was cut at the end of spring training.
Len signed with the Milwaukee Brewers and started 11 games for them in 1987 (2-1, 5.36 ERA).
After his playing career Barker had a construction business. He is now the coach of the Division II Notre Dame College baseball team.
July 12 - Finally won his sixth game after 10 no-decisions in a row. Manager Danny Ozark stayed with Lerch during a tie game in the 8th inning and the Phillies rallied in the 9th to beat the St. Louis Cardinals 5-4. Randy went the distance for the win.
Randy Lerch had his rookie season in 1977 after brief trials in 1975 and in 1976. The 22-year-old rookie was the third starter for the NL East Champion Phillies, but he wasn't used in the postseason.
Greg Minton
Debut: September 7, 1975
1977 Stats:
Phoenix Giants (AAA): 14-6, 4 saves, 4.86 ERA in 26 games (20 starts)
Greg Minton was originally drafted by the Kansas City Royals in 1970. He pitched in the Royals' system from 1970-1973 before being traded to the San Francisco Giants for Fran Healy.
Minton pitched in the Giants' system for the next few seasons. Greg had short stints with the Giants in 1975 (1-1, 6.88 ERA in 4 games/2 starts), 1976 (0-1, 4.93 ERA in 10 games/2 starts), and in 1977 (1-1, 4.50 ERA in 2 starts).
Greg's career seemed to be topping out in 1978. He went back and forth between AAA Phoenix and the Giants. Greg had a few rough outings in August and September which caused his ERA to balloon. Minton ended up with an 0-1 record and an 8.04 ERA in 11 games.
In 1979 Greg had an injury and decided to alter his pitching motion. The change resulted in a much improved sinkerball and Minton started to find success. From 1979-1981 Minton didn't allow a single home run. Greg teamed with lefty Gary Lavelle to form a great lefty/righty closer combination for the Giants.
1979 - 4-3, 4 saves, 1.81 ERA in 46 games
1980 - 4-6, 19 saves, 2.46 ERA in 68 games
1981 - 4-5, 21 saves, 2.88 ERA in 55 games
1982 - 10-4, 30 saves, 1.83 ERA in 78 games.
Minton made his only All Star team in 1982 (he walked one batter in 2/3 of an inning). He also finished 6th in NL Cy Young Award balloting and 8th in NL MVP voting.
Starting in 1983 Greg wasn't as effective. He started to hear some boos at Candlestick Park from the few people who still attended games.
1983 - 7-11, 22 saves, 3.54 ERA in 73 games
1984 - 4-9, 19 saves, 3.76 ERA in 74 games (1 start)
1985 - 5-4, 4 saves, 3.54 ERA in 68 games
1986 - 4-4, 5 saves, 3.93 ERA in 48 games
Minton started the 1987 season with the Giants (1-0, 1 save, 3.47 ERA in 15 games). The Giants released Greg on May 28. Minton signed with the California Angels and had a few good seasons with them, especially in 1989.
1987 - 5-4, 10 saves, 3.08 ERA in 41 games
1988 - 4-5, 7 saves, 2.85 ERA in 44 games
1989 - 4-3, 8 saves, 2.20 ERA in 62 games
In 1990 Minton had some injuries. He was still an effective pitcher but the injuries limited him to 11 games (1-1, 2.35 ERA). Greg retired after the 1990 season.
Minton was nicknamed "Moon Man." He was known for his practical jokes and his enjoyment of hobbies such as deep sea fishing that weren't typical hobbies for atheletes.
After his playing career Greg did some coaching and then was the General Manager at Extra Innings East Valley, a batting cage and sports instruction center in Arizona.
Mike Overy
Debut: August 14, 1976
1977 Stats:
Salt Lake City Gulls (AAA): 7-5, 8 saves, 4.33 ERA in 39 games (12 starts)
Other card blogs: none
Mike Overy was drafted by the California Angels in 1973. Overy was used almost exclusively as a reliever as he moved up the Angels system from 1973-1976. Mike was called up in early August 1976 to replace the injured Bobby Bonds. Overy appeared in five games for the Angels and was 0-2 with a 6.14 ERA.
That was Mike's only experience in the major leagues. Overy was a fixture for the AAA Salt Lake City Gulls, pitching there from 1976-1980. Mike retired after the 1980 season.
Tony Solaita played in over 100 games for the only time in his career in 1977. He started 82 games at first base and also did some DH-ing and pinch hitting.
In 1977 Don Baylor split time almost evenly between the outfield and designated hitter. Don also played in a few games at first base. Baylor was one of the big free agent signings by the California Angels after the 1976 season. Joe Rudi and Bobby Grich had injuries and didn't really pay immediate dividends. Baylor was ok in 1977 (but not all that great), but he had a good year in 1978 and an MVP year in 1979. Don was disappointed with himself and was the target of a few boos in Anaheim Stadium toward the end of the 1977 season.
This was Andy Etchebarren's last full season as a player. Andy backed up starter Terry Humphrey. Etchebarren appeared in 80 games but had only 131 plate appearances.\
After his playing career, Etchebarren had a long career as a coach and a manager in the minors. He recently announced his retirement (effective after the 2012 season).
Terry Humphrey was the starting catcher for the Angels in 1977. It was the only season in his 9-year career in which Terry would play in over 71 games. In 1978 Brian Downing became the starting catcher.
The 1977 season was Jerry Remy's last one as a California Angel. After the season he was Traded to the Boston Red Sox for Don Aase and Rick Miller. The Angels had signed Bobby Grich so Jerry was expendable.
Dave Chalk was the starting 3B for the California Angels for a few years in the mid 1970s, but his lack of power was a liability. The Angels were ready to contend in the late 1970s and Dave was phased out.
1977 was probably Chalk's best season. He had career highs in games, doubles, batting average, hits, and stolen bases.
1977 Stats: .277, 3 HR, 45 RBI, 27 doubles in 149 games
Sept 3 - In the top of the 9th inning Chalk doubled, was sacrificed to third, and scored on Andy Etchebarren's sacrifice fly. The run was the eventual winning run -- the Angels beat the Cleveland Indians 3-2.
Miley was a backup quarterback to Bert Jones at Louisiana State University before he became a starter in 1973. LSU went 9-2 on the season and Mike played in the Orange Bowl in 1974 (LSU lost to Penn State 16-9)
Miley was originally drafted by the Cincinnati Reds in 1971 but he didn't sign. In 1974 Miley was drafted by the California Angels and decided to play baseball instead of football.
Mike played in AA in 1974 and batted .288 with 13 home runs in 84 games.
Miley started the 1975 season with AAA Salt Lake City and batted .209 in 81 games.
Mike made his major league debut on July 6, 1975 and was the starting shortstop for the Angels for the rest of the season. Miley batted only .174 in 78 games so in 1976 he went back to Salt Lake City.
In 1976 Miley spent most of the season in Salt Lake City. Mike improved his offense, batting .274 in 119 games.
Mike came back to the Angels as a September call-up and batted .184 in 14 games.
Nolan Ryan extended this record to six seasons of 300 or more strikeouts. He struck out 341 batters in 1977 and 301 batters in 1989 at the age of 42.
Randy Johnson tied this record in 2002. Johnson struck out 300 or more batters four times with the NL Arizona Diamondbacks, once for the Seattle Mariners, and another time for Seattle and the Houston Astros. Ryan accomplished the feat five times for the California Angels and once for the Texas Rangers (all in the AL).
Most of Rusty Torres' appearances in 1977 were as an outfield defensive replacement. He started 13 games in the outfield in June. Rusty started the season on the disabled list and wasn't activated until May 18.
