- Before the 1977 season Jim Wohlford was traded (with Jamie Quirk and Bob McClure) to the Milwaukee Brewers for Jim Colburn and Darrell Porter. Jim started in left field most of the time for the Brewers. Wohlford managed only a .285 on base percentage and a .320 slugging percentage. It was Jim's last season as a starting player. He was more effective coming off of the bench in future years.
- 1977 Stats: .248, 2 HR, 36 RBI in 129 games.
- 1977 Highlights:
- Other card blogs: 1974, 1975, 1976, 1979, 1980, 1982, 1983, 1985, 1986, Cardboard Gods
- The Detroit Tigers were better than they were the last couple of years, but Mark Fidrych's injury problems helped to derail a potentially good season. They brought up Jason Thompson and Steve Kemp to start the 1977 season, and future stars Lou Whitaker, Alan Trammel, Jack Morris, and Lance Parrish all came up late in the season.
- Ralph Houk was signed by the New York Yankees in 1939. Ralph was a catcher in the minors for a couple of years and then his career was interrupted by World War II. Houk entered the war as a private, was decorated for his bravery during the Battle of the Bulge, and was discharged as a major (hence his nickname "The Major"). Ralph returned to baseball in 1946 and was brought up to the Yankees in 1947. Ralph wasn't going to get much playing time with Yogi Berra as the starting catcher. He was mostly in the minors in 1948 and 1949 and then spent a lot of time on the bench for the Yankees from 1950-1954. In eight years with the Yankees Houk played in only 91 games, but he did bat .272 during that span.
- In 1955 Houk became a player-manager for AAA Denver. He did the same thing in 1956 and then was exclsively the manager in 1957.
- Ralph was very successful as a manager and in 1958 he was promoted to the majors to be Casey Stengel's first base coach. He coached for the Yankees from 1958-1960.
- By the end of the 1960 season Houk was a very hot commodity as a possible manager. The Yankees didn't want to see him leave, so they discharged Stengel and made Ralph the manager of the club. The Yankees won three pennants and two world championships from 1961-1963 under Houk.
- Ralph moved into the General Manager's role in 1964 and hired Yogi Berra to manage the Yankees. Houk was disenchanted with Yogi's work as manager and after the Yankees lost the 1964 World Series he fired the popular Berra. Houk hired Johnny Keane to manage the Yankees in 1965, but he was more suited to managing younger players than the aging veterans that made up the Yankees team. After the team struggled in 1965 and in 1966, Houk came back to the dugout in May 1966.
- Houk managed the Yankees from 1966-1973. The Yankees never made it back to the post season during Ralph's second tenure as manager. Ralph resigned as the Yankee manager after the 1973 season and was promptly hired by the rebuilding Detroit Tigers.
- The Tigers struggled in Houk's first two seasons, but by the end of the 1977 season the team was on its way to start contending again. Houk retired after the 1977 season.
- Ralph stayed retired for three years and then came out of retirement to manage the Boston Red Sox. Houk managed the Red Sox from 1981-1984. Houk was a special assistant for the Minnesota Twins from 1987-1989.
- Ralph passed away at the age of 90 in 2010.
- Record: 74-88, .457, 4th in AL East, 26 games behind New York Yankees
- Attendance:
- Team Batting: .264 (8th in AL)
- Team HR: 166 (4th in AL)
- Team Stolen Bases: 60 (13th in AL)
- Team ERA: 4.13 (9th in AL)
- Team Fielding: .978 (5th in AL)
- All Stars: Mark Fidrych (P), Jason Thompson (1B)
- Awards: none
- AL Leaders: none
- Batting Leader: Ron LeFlore (.325)
- Home Run Leader: Jason Thompson (31)
- RBI Leader: Jason Thompson (105)
- Stolen Base Leader: Ron LeFlore (39)
- Victories Leader: Dave Rozema (15)
- Losses Leader: Fernando Arroyo (18)
- Strikeout Leader: John Hiller (115)
- Saves Leader: Steve Foucault (13)
- ERA Leader (starters): Mark Fidrych (2.89)
- ERA Leader (relievers): Steve Foucault (3.15)
- Players who could have had Tigers cards in 1977 (batters with over 100 AB, pitchers with over 40 innings) :
- Jack Morris (1-1, 3.74 ERA in 7 games / 6 starts)
- Steve Foucault (7-7, 13 saves, 3.15 ERA in 44 games)
- Milt Wilcox (6-2, 3.64 ERA in 20 games / 13 starts)
- Tim Corcoran (UT) (.282, 3 HR, 15 RBI in 55 games)
- John Wockenfuss (C) (.274, 9 HR, 25 RBI in 53 games)
- Don Sutton's win total was down a bit in 1977, but he had a good year for the Dodgers. Don started the All Star Game (he was the winning pitcher) and had a win in the NL Championship Series and the World Series.
- 1977 Stats:
- Regular Season: 14-8, 3.18 ERA in 33 starts
- NL Championship Series: 1-0, 1.00 ERA in 1 start
- World Series: 1-0, 3.94 ERA in 2 starts
- 1977 Highlights:
- Other card blogs: 1966, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1979, 1980, 1983, 1985, 1985, 1986, 1988
- Pat Dobson experienced a change of fortunes in 1977. After leading the team with 16 wins in 1977, Pat won only three games in 1977. He lost his place in the rotation in July and spent the rest of the year as a long reliever.
- Pat was sent to AAA Portland before the 1978 season. Dobson was released in mid April. Except for a brief comeback attempt in 1979, that was it for Pat's career.
- Pat Dobson's SABR biography
- 1977 Stats: 3-12, 6.14 ERA in 33 games (17 starts)
- 1977 Highlights:
- Other card blogs: 1968, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1976
- The 1977 season was the last one for Bobby Darwin. Bobby started with the Boston Red Sox and was traded to the Chicago Cubs on May 28 for Ramon Hernandez. Darwin spent a little more than a month in Chicago and then was sent to AAA Wichita. Bobby came back up to Chicago in August and spent a couple of weeks there before being released on August 23.
- 1977 Stats:
- Boston Red Sox: .222 (2 for 9) in 4 games
- Wichita Aeros (AAA): .266, 7 HR, 19 RBI in 25 games
- Chicago Cubs: .167 (2 for 12) in 11 games
- Other card blogs: 1969, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976
- Tommy Sandt had a long baseball career even though he played in only 42 major league games. Sandt was drafted by the Oakland A's in 1969. Tommy played in the minors from 1969-1975. Sandt was brought up to the A's briefly in June 1975. He appeared in one game, but he didn't have a plate appearance.
- In 1976 Tommy was with Oakland for the entire season. He didn't get much playing time since the A's had Sal Bando at 3B, Bert Campaneris as SS, and Phil Garner at 2B. Sandt played in 41 games and batted .209 in 67 at bats.
- Sandt was sold to the St. Louis Cardinals during spring training in 1977. Tommy later said that he made a big mistake in hiring an agent before the 1977 season. He was sent to the minors in retribution for being difficult to sign, and he never made it back to the majors. Sandt was sent to AAA New Orleans, where he batted .259 with 10 HR in 80 games.
- In 1978 Tommy was in the Toronto organization. He batted .245 for AAA Syracuse.
- Sandt moved on to the Pittsburgh Pirates organization in 1979. He played for AAA Portland from 1979-1981.
- In 1982 Sandt went into managing. He managed (and occasionally played) in the Pirates organization from 1982-1986.
- Tommy coached in Pittsburgh (1987-1996), Florida (1997-1998), and Colorado (1999). Sandt then coached for the Pirates from 2000-2002.
- 1977 Stats:
- New Orleans Pelicans (AAA): .259, 10 HR, 44 RBI in 80 games
- Other card blogs: none
- Phil Niekro had a hard time winning games for the awful Atlanta Braves teams of the late 70s. Niekro led the NL in losses (20), complete games (20), innings pitched (330), hits allowed (315), earned runs allowed (148), wild pitches (17), walks (164), and strikeouts (262). It was the first of four straight years (1977-1980) that Niekro would lead the NL in losses. Phil had a decision in 36 of his 43 starts.
- When the 1977 season started Phil was just turning 38 and he had 162 career wins. Niekro finished with 318 career wins, which means that he had 156 wins after his 38th birthday. Remarkable.
- After the 1977 season Braves' manager Dave Bristol was fired. Phil expressed his interest in the job, but the Braves hired Bobby Cox instead.
- 1977 Stats: 16-20, 4.03 ERA in 44 games (43 starts)
- 1977 Highlights:
- Other card blogs: 1964, 1965, 1966, 1967, 1968, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1979, 1980, 1980, 1983, 1985, 1986, 1988
- Greg Gross was traded to the Chicago Cubs for Julio Gonzalez during the winter meetings in December 1976. Gross was a backup outfielder and pinch hitter for the Cubs in 1977.
- 1977 Stats: .322, 5 HR, 32 RBI in 115 games
- 1977 Highlights:
- Other card blogs: 1975, 1976, 1976 Kellogg's, 1979, 1980, 1983, 1985, 1986, 1988
- Reggie Cleveland had a pretty solid year for the Boston Red Sox. He was mostly a starter, but he spent some time in the bullpen when the club needed help there.
- Reggie Cleveland's SABR biography
- 1977 Stats: 11-8, 2 saves, 4.26 ERA in 36 games (27 starts)
- 1977 Highlights:
- Other card blogs: 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1979, 1980
- Barry Foote lost to Gary Carter in the competition for the starting Montreal catching job. On June 15 Barry was traded (with Dan Warthen) to the Philadelphia Phillies for Tim Blackwell and Wayne Twitchell. On both teams Foote was a backup behind a very durable catcher (Carter in Montreal, Bob Boone in Philadelphia). He played in only 30 games during the entire 1977 season.
- 1977 Stats:
- Montreal Expos: .245, 2 HR, 8 RBI in 15 games
- Philadelphia Phillies: .219, 1 HR, 3 RBI in 15 games
- TOTAL: .235, 3 HR, 11 RBI in 30 games
- 1977 Highlights:
- Other card blogs: 1974, 1975, 1976, 1979, 1980, 1983, Cardboard Gods
- Dave Lemanczyk was chosen by the Toronto Blue Jays off of the Detroit Tigers roster in the 1976 expansion draft. Dave went into the starting rotation and had a pretty solid season, especially considering he was pitching for an expansion team.
- 1977 Stats: 13-16, 4.25 ERA in 34 starts
- 1977 Highlights:
- July 31: Retired the first 17 hitters he faced and was the winning pitcher in Toronto's 4-1 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers. Dave pitched 6 1/3 innings in the win.
- Sept 7: Pitched a six-hitter and earned the win as the Blue Jays beat the Boston Red Sox 3-2.
- Other card blogs: 1975, 1976, 1978, 1979, 1980
- Jose Cardenal's days as a full time player were over at this point in his career. Jose had injury problems and was used mainly as a pinch hitter and a backup outfielder in 1977. After the 1977 season Cardenal was traded to the Philadelphia Phillies.
- I wonder how many times Topps did the Cal McLish cartoon. It seems like it came up every year.
- 1977 Stats: .239, 3 HR, 18 RBI in 100 games
- 1977 Highlights:
- Other card blogs: 1966, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1979, 1980
- Jim Barr led the SF Giants in starts in the 1977 season. After several solid seasons with the Giants, Barr's stats were starting to decline. His ERA rose from 2.89 in 1976 to 4.76 in 1977.
- 1977 Stats: 12-16, 4.76 ERA in 38 starts
- 1977 Highlights:
- May 4 - Allowed six hits and one run and pitched a complete game as the Giants beat the Montreal Expos 5-1. Barr knocked in one run as well.
- Aug 31 - Allowed three runs in a complete game 6-3 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates. The win evened his record at 12-12. Unfortunately it would be his last win of the season.
- Other card blogs: 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1979, 1980, 1983
- Roy Howell had a rough start to the 1977 season. Roy wasn't happy about the decision to make Tom Grieve the starting left fielder. Howell was 0 for 17 in 7 games on May 7 when he was traded to the Toronto Blue Jays for Steve Hargan, Jim Mason, and $200,000.
- Howell responded well to the trade -- he had a 15 game hitting streak after joining the Blue Jays. Roy missed a month of the season (late June to late July).
- 1977 Stats:
- Texas Rangers - .000 (0 for 17) in 7 games
- Toronto Blue Jays - .316, 10 HR, 44 RBI in 96 games
- TOTAL: .302, 10 HR, 44 RBI in 103 games
- 1977 Highlights:
- Other card blogs: 1976, 1979, 1980, 1982, 1983, 1985
- Larry Demery pitched in his final major league season in 1977. The Pirates mostly used him as a middle reliever, but he was a starter in the month of May. Demery spent three more seasons (1978-1980) in the minors, but he never got back to the majors.
- 1977 Stats: 6-5, 1 save, 5.08 ERA in 39 games (8 starts)
- 1977 Highlights:
- Aug 10 - Entered the game in the 18th inning and got the win as the Pirates beat the Chicago Cubs 4-3 in 18 innings.
- Aug 25 - Allowed one run in four innings to save the win for starter John Candelaria. The Pirates beat the LA Dodgers 2-1.
- Other card blogs: 1975, 1976, 1978
- Steve Braun was drafted from the Minnesota Twins in the 1976 expansion draft. For the first three months of the season Steve was the regular left fielder for the Mariners. Braun split time between designated hitter and left field for the last three months of the year.
- 1977 Stats: .235, 5 HR, 31 RBI in 139 games
- 1977 Highlights:
- Other card blogs: 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1976 Hostess, 1979, 1980, 1983, 1985, 1986
- Felix Millan was the starting second baseman for the Mets in 1977 until early May when the Mets acquired Lenny Randle. Felix became the starter again in June when Randle was moved to 3B.
- On August 12 the Braves played the Pittsburgh Pirates. Ed Ott slid hard into second base to break up a double play. Felix tagged Ott hard in the face with the ball. Ott then picked Millan up and body slammed him to the turf. Millan sustained a shoulder injury and never played in the majors again.
- Millan played in Japan from 1978-1980 and he also played in the Mexican League in 1981. Felix batted .346 in 1979 and won the batting title.
- Here is a "where are they now" article from 2011.
- 1977 Stats: .248, 2 HR, 21 RBI in 91 games
- 1977 Highlights:
- Other card blogs: 1966, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1976 Kellogg's
- Jim Slaton had his only All Star season in 1977. His record wasn't much to write home about, but the AL was in need of healthy pitchers for the game, so Slaton was selected.
- 1977 Stats: 10-14, 3.58 ERA in 32 games (31 starts)
- 1977 Highlights:
- Other card blogs: 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1979, 1980, 1983, 1985, 1986
- Willie Davis didn't play major league baseball in 1977. Davis was released by the San Diego Padres in January 1977. Davis played in Japan for two seasons and then played for the California Angels in 1979. Willie finished his career as a player in 1980 in the Mexican League. He also managed in the Mexican League in 1980 and in 1981.
- Davis passed away on 9 March 2010
- Other card blogs: 1965, 1966, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976
- Andy Hassler did a competent job in the back end of the Kansas City starting rotation. Andy missed a month of the season with a knee injury. He was hit by a line drive off the bat of the Texas Rangers' Ken Henderson on April 26.
- Hassler took the loss in game 2 of the AL Championship Series. Hassler allowed three runs in 5 2/3 innings as the Royals lost 6-2.
- 1977 Stats:
- Regular Season - 9-6, 4.20 ERA in 29 games (29 starts)
- AL Championship Series - 0-1, 4.76 ERA in 1 start
- 1977 Highlights:
- Other card blogs: 1975, 1976, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1982, 1983
- Mike Lum had his worst offensive season in 1977. Lum was a pinch hitter and occasional outfielder and first baseman for the Reds. Mike didn't get his first start until May 14 and he started only two games through the end of June. Lum started 14 games altogether.
- Mike Lum's SABR biography
- 1977 Stats: .160, 5 HR, 16 RBI in 81 games
- 1977 Highlights:
- Other card blogs: 1968, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1976, 1979, 1980
- Jim Palmer led the AL in victories for the third straight year in 1977. Palmer also led the league in starts, complete games, and innings pitched. Jim finished second to Sparky Lyle in Cy Young Award voting. During his career Palmer won three Cy Young awards and was second in the voting twice.
- Jim Palmer's SABR biography
- 1977 Stats: 20-11, 2.91 ERA in 39 starts
- 1977 Highlights:
- Other card blogs: 1966, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1976, 1976 Hostess, 1978, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1982, 1982, 1983
- Mike Tyson moved to second base in 1977 when Garry Templeton came up to play shortstop. Mike's fielding was slightly above average, but he had only a .299 on base percentage.
- 1977 Stats: .246, 7 HR, 57 RBI in 138 games
- 1977 Highlights:
- Other card blogs: 1974, 1975, 1976, 1979, 1980, 1982, Cardboard Gods
- Sparky Lyle had his best year in 1977. Lyle was the most dominant reliever in the league and won the AL Cy Young Award. Sparky was an AL All Star for the third and final time of his career (he allowed 2 runs in 2 innings pitched).
- 1977 Stats:
- Regular Season: 13-5, 26 saves, 2.17 ERA in 72 games
- AL Championship Series: 2-0, 0.96 ERA in 4 games
- World Series: 1-0, 1.93 ERA in 2 games
- 1977 Highlights:
- Other card blogs: 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1978, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1983
