Mickey Mantle (#50)

It's always a good day for a Mickey Mantle card! (Even a reprint.)

I got this card (and the 1965 Mantle reprint) on the same day I snagged a 1967 Brooks Robinson high-number in 2016.

Bill Mazeroski (#210)

I led off last week’s 1968 Bob Gibson post with some comments on various superstars that I managed to overlook so far on my blogs. Since then, I was checking each blog for the number of posts per team. 

It looks like time for some team-balancing. On this blog alone, there are only 3 posts each for the Cardinals, Pirates, and Twins, while the Angels (!?!) have 10 posts. The 1968 blog: 10 Red Sox, but only 2 Braves and 3 Dodgers. On the 1969 blog, five teams don’t have any posts, while the Braves and White Sox only have 1 each. 

So, across my 1966-69 blogs, in addition to working in the stars like Hank Aaron and Johnny Bench, I’m going to catch up on the forgotten teams, and place an embargo on Phillies :(, Mets, Red Sox, Astros, and some other teams for a while. (I've also added who's "on deck" to my sidebars.) 


Bill Mazeroski was signed by the Pirates in 1954, and made his major-league debut on 7/7/1956 at age 19. He was handed the starting 2nd base job that day, and started 81 of the final 86 games that season.

Bill was a defensive wizard, winning 8 Gold Gloves between 1958 and 1967, and making 7 all-star appearances during those same 10 years. “Maz” started 138 or more games every season from 1957 to 1968 (except for 1959 (129) and 1965 (125) ), and topped 160 starts three times.

During the ’68 and ’69 seasons, the Pirates were working Freddie Patek in at shortstop, so incumbent shortstop Gene Alley made several dozen starts at 2nd base in those seasons. In September 1969, rookie Dave Cash was called up and started most of the remaining games at 2nd.

Mazeroski and Cash shared the 2nd base job 70/30 during the 1970 season, and the following season Cash took over the starting job, leaving only 3 dozen starts each for Maz and rookie Rennie Stennett.

In Bill’s final season (1972), he was relegated to a bench role, playing in only 34 games (12 starts at 2nd base).

Maz is best known for his exploits in the 1960 World Series vs. the Yankees. He hit .320 with 2 homers and 5 RBI, including a walk-off home run off of Ralph Terry with no out and nobody on in the bottom of the 9th inning of game 7. He was also a limited participant in the ’70, ’71, and ‘72 post-seasons.

Mazeroski was inducted into the Hall of Fame by the Veterans Committee in 2001.

Joe Morgan (#195)

General blog note: Yesterday, I found a 1952 Topps baseball card blog. Check it out by scrolling down to my vintage year blogroll!

Joe Morgan was the Topps all-rookie 2nd baseman in 1965. A year later, the Astros would beef up the other side of their double-play combo.

Morgan was signed by the expansion Houston Colt .45s in November 1962 (wow, that's really late in the season!). He played 2 seasons in the minors (getting brief call-ups each season).

In 1965, Joe was installed as the regular 2nd baseman at the start of the season. He started 155 games there as a rookie, led the NL with 97 walks, and finished 2nd in NL Rookie of the Year voting to Dodgers' 2nd baseman Jim Lefebvre. (I wonder why Topps didn't choose Lefebvre?)

Except for missing most of the 1968 season with injuries, Morgan was a fixture at 2nd base for the Astros from 1965 to 1971, making the all-star team in '66 and '70.

After the 1971 season, Joe was traded to the Cincinnati Reds (with pitcher Jack Billingham, infielder Denis Menke, and outfielders Cesar Geronimo and Ed Armbrister) for 1st baseman Lee May, 2nd baseman Tommy Helms, and utility infielder Jimmy Stewart. The rest is Big Red Machine history.

Morgan and the Reds went to the post-season 4 times in his first 5 years with the Reds, winning the World Series in '75 and '76. Joe was an all-star every season from 1972-79, and won the NL MVP award in '75 and '76.

Joe left the Reds via free agency after the 1979 season, and played 5 more seasons, with the Astros, Giants, Phillies, and Athletics. In 1982, he won his only silver slugger award (at age 38).

In 1983, he was reunited in Philadelphia with former Reds' teammates PETE ROSE and Tony Perez, as the Phillies went to the World Series, only to lose to the Orioles.

Morgan played 22 seasons, and was his team's regular 2nd baseman right up to the end of his career.

Tony Perez (#72)

Tony Perez was the Topps All-Rookie 3rd baseman in 1965, just another in a long line of Cincinnati Reds:

1963 - Pete Rose 2B, Tommy Harper OF
1964 - Bill McCool P
1965 - Tony Perez 1B
1966 - Tommy Helms 3B
1967 - Lee May 1B
1968 - Johnny Bench C
(When Lee May came along 2 years later, Perez simply moved over to 3rd base.)

Perez was signed by the Reds in 1960, and played 5 seasons (1960-64) in the minors. He was a 3rd baseman until his final minor-league season, when he divided his time between 1st and 3rd.

Tony made his major-league debut in 1964, playing in 11 games from late-July to late-August, and one final game on Sept. 30th. He made the Reds for good on opening day 1965, and platooned at 1st base with veteran Gordy Coleman. Perez started 66 games, mostly against left-handers.

Tony's playing time decreased slightly in 1966. He played in 99 games, but only 62 starts at 1st base. (Coleman started 63 games, while rookie call-up Lee May started most of the games for the last 3 weeks of the season.)

1967 was the beginning of Perez' prime-time. He played 150+ games in 7 of the next 8 seasons, and became an RBI machine. In the '67 All-Star game, he hit the game-winning home run in the 15th inning.

From 1967-71, he was the regular 3rd baseman, before moving back to 1st base in 1972 after Lee May's trade to Houston. Tony was an all-star for the Reds 7 times between 1967 and 1976, and played in the post-season in '70, '72, '73, '75, and '76, including a 10-for-28 showing against Oakland in the 1972 World Series.

After the 1976 season, he was traded to the Expos. His all-star days were over, but he was the team's regular 1st baseman for 3 seasons.

Free agency landed him in Boston after the 1979 season, where he was the regular 1st-sacker for a year, then slipped into a part-time role in 1981-82.

In 1983, he joined ex-Reds' teammates Pete Rose and Joe Morgan in Philadelphia, as the "Wheeze Kids" made a run to the World Series.

After the season, he was sold to the Reds, and spent his final 3 seasons as the backup 1st baseman behind Dan Driessen, then Pete Rose.

After his playing career, Tony coached for the Reds, then managed the team during the first 2 months of 1993. He was also the interim manager for the Florida Marlins for the last 144 games in 2001.

Perez was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2000.

Also check out his 1967 card.

Al Kaline (#410)

This is the last of 5 cards donated to this blog by Deans Cards a few months ago. (Dean has also contributed some 1963 and 1970 cards to the cause.)

I first became aware of Al Kaline back in 1967, although at that time I thought his name was pronounced Al Ka-LINE (like the battery). I also knew back then that he never played in the minor leagues. Since I've started blogging here, I've learned that Sandy Koufax, Dick Groat, and Billy O'Dell also never played in the minors. (Has anyone EVER included Sandy Koufax and Billy O'Dell in the same sentence?)

One thing I DID learn recently about Kaline (while researching teammate Charlie Maxwell) is that Al spent several seasons as the Tigers' center fielder.



Kaline was signed as a bonus baby by the Tigers in 1953, and spent his entire 22-year career (1953-74) with Detroit. He appeared in 30 games as a rookie, making his debut on June 23rd. Al only started 4 games that season, and none until September 16th.

Starting in 1954, Kaline became a fixture in the Tigers' outfield, and finished 3rd in the Rookie of the Year voting that season. He also won a gold glove 10 times between 1957 and 1967, and was an all star every season from 1955 to 1967, and again in 1971 and 1974.

As I mentioned above, I always thought Kaline played only right field during his prime. He was the team's regular in right field from 1954-58, 61-64, and 67. In 1959 and 1960, he started most of the games as the center fielder. From 1965-66, he split his time almost evenly between center and right. From 1968-70, Al played mostly right field but also started many games at 1st base. He wrapped up his career in 1974 as the Tigers' full-time designated hitter, playing 144 games there and none in the field.

Kaline played in the 1968 World Series against the Cardinals, batting .379. He finished with a .297 lifetime batting average, and led the American League in batting in 1955, finished 2nd in 1959, 1961, and 1963, and finished 3rd in 1966 and 1967.

Al was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1980.

Willie Mays (#1)

Here's the Say Hey Kid, occupying the #1 card in Topps' set. I received this card from DeansCards.com. This is the 2nd Willie Mays card I got from Deans Cards, having purchased a replacement for my lost 1969 card a few years ago. Coincidently, Topps used the same photo on both the 1966 and 1969 Mays' cards. That was no surprise, since Topps had also used the same photo from 1965 on the 1968 card. Willie seems much happier here than on his 65/68 cards.


[I wonder why Topps decided to abbreviate San Francisco on the last stat line on the back of this card, after spelling it out completely the first 7 times?]

I'm not going to rehash Mays' career here, having done it elsewhere. I'll just say that I recently watched various "Prime 9" shows on the MLB network ("Top 9 centerfielders", "Top 9 defensive plays", etc), and Mays was just an awesome player! I saw him play briefly from 1967-73 on TV, but I was too young then to appreciate what I was seeing.

Brooks Robinson (#390)

Recently, I received a surprise package of 1966 and 1970 cards from the folks at DeansCards.com. Thanks, Dean! Over the past few years, I have purchased many vintage cards from them (usually 'Ex', sometimes 'VG'), and have always been satisfied with the quality of their cards. This is the first of several 1966 cards from that recent package.

Back in the late 1960s, I was somewhat of an Orioles fan (one needs to have an AL team!) Even though I'm not a Brooks Robinson fan, I always like getting his cards (and now have his '66, '68, '69, '70, and '72 cards). I think it's because I was never able to get his 1967 card. Oh well, the '69 card photo is similar to the '67.


Brooks Robinson was signed by the Orioles in 1955, and made his major-league debut in September call-up that season. Robby spent all of 1956, and part of 1957 in the minors, but became the O's full-time 3rd baseman in 1958. He committed 21 errors in 1958, the most of any year in his career.

After spending part of 1959 in the minors, he re-established himself in Baltimore in 1960. He won a gold glove at 3rd base every year from 1960 to 1975, and was an all-star selection every year from 1960 to 1974! He also led the league in games played in '61, '62, '63, '64, and '68, and was the American League MVP in 1964.



The Orioles' exploits in 1966 and the early 1970s are well-documented, and Brooks was a big part of those teams. Robinson played 23 seasons in the majors, all with the Orioles.

Final Card: Robin Roberts

Here is the final baseball card for 19-year veteran pitcher Robin Roberts (#530). I just received this card a few days ago, filling a prominent gap near the top of my list of retiring veterans.

Roberts was signed by the Phillies in 1948, and after only 11 games in the minors, he was brought up to the Phillies on June 18th. He ended up being the #4 starter in his rookie season, and by 1950 he was the team's ace, a position he held through the 1960 season.

Roberts led the Phillies to the 1950 World Series, and won 20 or more games every year from 1950 to 1955. This was quite a feat, since most of those Phillies teams had so-so records.



In Robin's final season with the Phillies (1961), he dropped off to a 1-10 record, and was sold to the Yankees after the season. By the following May, the Yankees released him, but he was picked up by the Orioles.

Roberts was in Baltimore's starting rotation during the years when Wally Bunker and Dave McNally were getting their start.

He was released in July 1965, and picked up by the Astros a week later. Robin started 10 games in 1965 and 12 games in 1966 before getting his release on July 4th, 1966. He played the remainder of that season with the Cubs, and in 1967 with the Phillies' double-A team in Reading, PA before retiring.

Final Card: Sandy Koufax

What better way to start off this blog than with the best player from 1966? (Take that, F. Robby!)



Koufax retired at age 30, following the Dodgers' appearance in the 1966 World Series. In his final season, he compiled a 27-9 record, with 27 complete games, while pitching 323 innings!

As a testament to Koufax's final season, I offer exhibits A, B, and C: