And so, the last of my seven set blogs shuts down today. I have had a lot of fun doing this since I started in September 2009, but I must admit the last year or two has felt more like work than fun.  I still plan to check in 2 or 3 times a week to read the handful of blogs I never miss, and to enable any comments that readers may have left on my blogs. (I have comment moderation turned on (for posts older than 30 days) to avoid my blogs becoming a haven for gambling tips, porn links, fortune tellers, medical miracle workers, and other spammers. I've seen too many blogs overrun by that no ..read more

Here are the AL ERA, Wins, and Strikeout leaders for the 1969 season. ELEVEN starting pitchers had an ERA under 3.00! What gets ignored on the card front are the relievers, but the back shows that Angels' reliever Ken Tatum had an ERA of 1.36, and two others were lower than Dick Bosman's "league leading" mark. All six 20-game winners are shown on the middle card, with Denny McLain in his final year of glory. Sam McDowell leads the league for the last time (and 4th time in the past 5 years!) Mickey Lolich is right behind him, but Andy Messersmith finished a distant third, 60 strikeouts behind L ..read more

Here are the AL Batting Average, RBI, and Home Run leaders for the 1969 season. On their way to the inaugural AL West title, the Twins also snared the Triple Crown, though it took two players to do it. For good measure, teammate Tony Oliva finished 3rd in the batting race. Boog Powell and Frank Howard made frequent appearances on these cards in the late-60s/early-70s.  In his 2nd full season, Reggie Jackson finished 3rd in RBI and home runs. The other Reggie (Smith) was not one of the usual players you would think of for the batting title ..read more

I was so pleased with the 16 cards from a recent purchase, that I jumped right back into the pool and bought 10 more cards. I now need only 12 to complete the set.    I have my suspicions that the Norm Cash card may be a counterfeit or reprint.  The card stock feels the same as the others, but the front is a darker gray, the back is a brighter white, and it was unexpectedly inexpensive for a 50-year-old Norm Cash card. (Felix Millan and Ted Kubiak are still on their way)  611 – Norm Cash683 – Reds Rookies688 – Ted Kubiak689 – Frank Tepedino705 – Tony Cloninger708 – Jose Sa ..read more

Last week I emerged from my pandemic hibernation and bought some baseball cards for the first time in almost 2 years. I snared 16 vintage 1970 cards on my want list, which leaves me with only 22 cards to complete the set. Almost all the remaining cards I needed were high numbers. Joining my binder are #590 Mike Cuellar, and these 15 high numbers:  647 – Tom Matchick664 – Bob Robertson667 – Bob Meyer669 – White Sox Rookies675 – Jose Cardenal678 – Dave Duncan679 – Ray Sadecki685 – Tom Haller691 – Joe Grzenda695 – Bobby Knoop697 – Jim Hannan704 – Frank Baker717 – Tom Phoebus719 – Jim Rola ..read more

Jerry Kenney was to be part of the "new wave" of Yankee stars to replace Mantle & Co (led by Bobby Murcer, and also including 1968 ROY Stan Bahnsen). But things didn’t quite turn out for Kenney like they did for Murcer.    Kenney was signed by the Yankees in 1964. He was a shortstop in the minors, spending '64 and '65 with 2 different class-A teams, then advancing to AA and AAA over the next 2 seasons. He made his major-league debut with the Yankees in September 1967. After missing the entire 1968 season for military service (like Murcer), he made the Yankees at the start of th ..read more

Today we look at Steve Renko's rookie card.    Renko was signed by the Mets in July 1965, but did not play that summer. He also only played one game in 1966.    After 2 full seasons on the Mets' farm, he began the 1969 season with the Mets' AAA team, but was sent to the Expos in the June 15th trade that brought Donn Clendenon to New York. (The Expos also received 3rd baseman Kevin Collins and 2 minor-leaguers.) Steve made his major-league debut 12 days later. From that point until the end of the 1975 season he was a regular in the Expos’ starting rotation, twice winning 1 ..read more

Roger Nelson had a 9 (essentially 6) year career from 1967-76, mostly with the Kansas City Royals.   Nelson was signed by the White Sox in 1963, and played 5 seasons in their farm system, culminating with a cup of coffee for the Sox in September 1967, where he pitched 7 innings over 5 games.    After the season Roger was included in the deal that sent Don Buford and Bruce Howard to the Orioles in exchange for Luis Aparicio, Russ Snyder, and John Matias. Nelson was with the Orioles for the entire 1968 season, but only pitched 19 games.    He and Wally Bunker were not ..read more

Another installment in my "Born on the Same Day" series, featuring players who were born on the same day (!) and year.    This is post #28 in the series: Jim Rooker and Woody Woodward - both born on 9/23/1942.   Jim Rooker made his debut with the Tigers in 1968, and was a starting pitcher for the Royals in their first 4 seasons (1969-72). He was traded to the Pirates, and was in their rotation from 1973-79. Rooker missed most of the 1980 season, then was released.     Woody Woodward was a middle infielder for the Braves and Reds from 1963-71. He was an everyday player ..read more

Pedro Borbon was a mainstay in the Big Red Machine’s bullpen from 1972-77, and led the team in saves in ’73, ’74, and ’77. Borbon pitched in 593 games in his 12-year career, starting only 4 games. He pitched in more games from 1970-78 than any other NL pitcher. This is his rookie card.  Pedro was signed by the Cardinals in late 1964, but did not start playing until 1966. After 3 seasons with 3 different class-A teams, he was selected by the Angels in the Rule 5 draft in December 1968.  Borbon played one full season (1969) with the Angels, pitching 41 innings over 22 games, then was t ..read more