Zoilo Versalles (#400)

So far, I've only posted one card with a number ending in '00'. Sandy Koufax (#100) was the first card posted to this blog. Today I have another of the five "hero cards" in this set.

Zoilo Versalles was the AL MVP in 1965, which explains why Topps assigned a "00" card number to a non-(future)-hall-of-famer. I didn't follow baseball in 1965, but in looking at Zoilo's stats, he led the AL with 122 strikeouts, despite hitting only 19 homers. He DID lead the AL in runs (126), doubles (45), triples (12), plate appearances (728), and at-bats (666), but only hit .273, and fell short of the magic 200 hits barrier with 182. It helped that his Twins were in the World Series that year.

Versalles was signed by the (old) Washington Senators in 1958, and played 3 seasons in the minors, while also playing a dozen or so games with the Senators in '59 and '60.

When the team moved to Minnesota in 1961, Zoilo became the starting shortstop from opening day, and started 126 games there as a rookie, backed up by José Valdivielso with 35 starts. (Hah! You probably thought "Zoilo Versalles" was going to be the most unusual name in this post!) Versalles remained the Twins' regular shortstop through the 1967 season, though he never duplicated his 1965 production.

In November 1967, he was traded to the Dodgers (with starting pitcher Jim Grant) for relievers Ron Perranoski and Bob Miller, and catcher John Roseboro. It looked like a win-win trade. Minnesota needed a catcher to replace the retired Earl Battey, and the Dodgers needed a shortstop to replace Maury Wills, who was traded away a year earlier.

After a poor season in LA (batting .196), Versalles was exposed to the expansion draft, and was selected by the Padres. To add further embarrassment, six weeks later the Padres traded Zoilo to the Indians for minor-league first baseman Bill Davis, he of FIVE Rookie Stars baseball cards in the 1960s.

After only 72 games with the Indians (where he was a part-time 2nd baseman and occasional 3rd baseman), the Tribe sold Versalles to the (new) Washington Senators, thereby making him one of only 8 players to have played for both the old and new Washington Senators. Zoilo finished out the year with the Senators, then was released the following April.

He played ball in Mexico from 1970 to 1974, although also appearing in 66 games for the Braves for the last 4 months of the 1971 season.

Versalles passed away on 6/9/1995 in Bloomington, MN at age 55.

Tony Cloninger (#10)

Looking at the Vintage Year Blogs in the sidebar below, it seems that this is Tony Cloninger week, so...


As with 99% of the lavender-colored cards (Braves, Angels), Tony Cloninger appears capless. Those teams had just changed their names, and being card #10, Tony had no shot at having an updated photo.

Cloninger was signed by the Milwaukee Braves in 1958, and made his big-league debut in June 1961, essentially replacing Bob Buhl in the rotation.

After a few seasons pitching behind aging veterans Warren Spahn and Lou Burdette (and a stint in the bullpen during 1963), Tony was the ace of the Braves' staff from 1964-66. He won 19 games in 1964 and 24 in 1965, but his most famous moment was hitting 2 grand slams in a game against the Giants in 1966. His career began to fade in 1967, just as Phil Niekro established himself as Atlanta's new ace.

Cloninger was traded to the Reds in June 1968 (along with pitcher Clay Carroll and infielder Woody Woodward) for pitchers Milt Pappas and Ted Davidson, and infielder Bob Johnson. In his 3 full seasons with Cincinnati, Cloninger posted records of 11-17, 9-7, and 3-6.

During spring training in 1972, he was traded to the Cardinals for 2nd baseman Julian Javier. Tony was released by St. Louis in late July, and was re-signed by the Braves, although he spent the remainder of the season in triple-A, before retiring.


Also check out Cloninger's 1967 card.

Chico Ruiz (#159)

Here is Cincinnati Reds' backup shortstop Chico Ruiz, not to be confused with Reds' STARTING shortstop Chico Cardenas shown below. (In 1966, Cardenas started all 160 of the Reds' games that season, while Ruiz played 10 innings in late-inning situations.)

Ruiz was with the Reds from 1964-69, and saw most of his playing time as a backup 2nd baseman, although he played some at shortstop in '67 and '69. He is probably best-remembered for stealing home in a September 1964 game against the Phillies, precipitating the Phillies' late-season collapse.

Hiraldo "Chico" Ruiz was signed by the Reds in 1958, and played in their minor leagues as a shortstop (1959-62), then split time between 3B and SS in 1963.

Ruiz made his major-league debut with the Reds in April 1964. He started the first 20 games at 3rd base for the Reds, but was sent back to the minors in mid-May, where he remained until late July. While in triple-A, he played mostly 3rd base, and a little shortstop. Chico returned to the Reds in late July, and soon found himself starting 23 straight games at 2nd base (presumably Pete Rose was injured). When Rose returned, Ruiz started 21 of the Reds' final 23 games at 3rd base.

With rookies Tony Perez (1965) and Tommy Helms (1966) joining the Reds, Ruiz was relegated to utility infielder status for the rest of his time in Cincinnati. He got the most playing time in 1967, when he started many games at 2nd base while various other infielders were on the DL. Ruiz was good-natured about his utilityman status, and after his extended playing time in 1967, he told his manager to "bench me or trade me".

After the 1969 season, Ruiz was traded to the Angels (with outfielder Alex Johnson) for pitchers Pedro Borbon, Jim McGlothlin, and Vern Geishert. Chico played 2 seasons with the Angels as a utility infielder, but was released after the 1971 season.

Shortly after he was signed by the Kansas City Royals, he was killed in a car crash in February 1972 in San Diego.

Milt Pappas (#105)

This is Milt Pappas' last card as a member of the Orioles. Milt was traded to the Reds for Frank Robinson in December 1965, too late for his 1st-series card to be corrected. Both Robinson and Pappas are pictured as Orioles.

I think Milt looks like Queen front-man Freddie Mercury:

Pappas was signed by Baltimore in 1957, and after only THREE games in the minors, he made his Orioles debut on 8/10/57, at age 18. After 4 relief appearances in '57, Pappas joined the starting rotation in 1958, and was a key starter from 1958-65.

Milt's 1st card with the Cincinnati Reds was the only 1967 card without a facsimile autograph. After 2 1/2 seasons with the Reds, Pappas was traded to the Braves in a 6-player deal.

He had 2 off-years in Atlanta, then was sold to the Cubs in June 1970, where he rebounded with several good seasons, winning 17 games in both 1971 and 1972.

Pappas retired after slumping to 7-12 in 1973.


NOTE: A new blogger has joined the ranks of the vintage year sets - The 1972 Topps Baseball Set (also found on my sidebar)

Ron Swoboda (#35)

Wrapping up the 10-man squad of Topps 1965 All-Star Rookies is outfielder Ron Swoboda.

Ron was signed by the Mets in September 1963, and after one season (1964) in the minors, he debuted with the Mets in April 1965, at age 20. During his first 2 seasons, he was the primary left fielder, playing 135 games as a rookie while sharing the starting job with Joe Christopher. In 1966 he appeared in 112 games, starting 80 games in left.

With the Mets' acquisition of Tommy Davis from the Dodgers, Ron moved over to right field in 1967, and was the regular for the next 4 seasons, including his famous defensive exploits in the 1969 World Series.

During spring training 1971, Swoboda was traded to the Expos for outfielder Don Hahn. By mid-season, he went to the Yankees in exchange for outfielder Ron Woods. Ron played 2 more seasons ('72-'73) as an outfield sub with the Yankees, and spent part of 1973 with triple-A Syracuse.

The Yankees released him in December 1973, but he was picked up by the Braves a few weeks later, only to be released in spring training.

Jose Cardenal (#505)

Jose Cardenal was the centerfielder for the Topps 1965 All-Rookie team. He is one of 3 Angels' rookies (along with Marcelino Lopez and Paul Schaal) to make the squad.

Never an all-star or a league leader, Jose was a steady regular outfielder for several teams from 1965-1976, and played through the end of the 1980 season.

Jose started 125 games as a rookie in center for the Halos, including 116 of the first 131 games. He only started 2 games after September 12th, while the Angels gave a look-see to September call-ups Rick Reichardt and Dick Simpson.


Born in Cuba in 1943, Cardenal was signed by the Giants late in 1960, and played in their farm system from 1961-64, while also playing a few games with San Francisco in April and September 1963, and in September 1964.

After the 1964 season, he was traded to the Angels for C/1B Jack Hiatt. He assumed the starting center fielder's job from opening day 1965, and held it for 2 full seasons. In 1967, he shared the post with Jay Johnstone for the first half, and with Roger Repoz for the second half. Jose also made some starts at both corner fields.

Jose was traded to the Indians in November 1967 for outfielder Chuck Hinton. Cardenal was Cleveland's regular center fielder for 2 seasons, pushing incumbent Vic Davalillo over to a right field mix with several others. Jose started a career-high 142 games in center in 1968.

Cardenal was traded to the Cardinals after the '69 season for outfielder Vada Pinson, then moved on to Milwaukee in July 1971.

His longest stint with any one team was 1972-77 with the Chicago Cubs. After 3 seasons as the right fielder and 2 in left field, Jose became a role player in his last season in Chicago.

He moved on to the Phillies in 1978, backing up 1st baseman Richie Hebner, while occasionally playing in the outfield. In August 1979, he was dealt to the Mets (his EIGHTH team). By this time, Cardenal was mainly a pinch-hitter.

Released by the Mets the following August, he caught on with the Royals a week later, and played in 4 games in the 1980 World Series before retiring after the season.

Curt Blefary (#460)

Curt Blefary was one of the three outfielders on the Topps 1965 All-Rookie team.

He made more starts (131) in the O's outfield than any other player, as he split his time between left and right. Curt also hit 22 home runs, and was named AL Rookie of the Year in 1965.

The following season the Orioles acquired Frank Robinson to play right field, and Boog Powell became the regular first baseman, so Blefary moved to left field full-time. (He also started 11 games at 1st base.)

Blefary was signed by the Yankees prior to the 1962 season. In late April 1963 he was drafted by the Orioles, and spent 2 seasons in their farm system. His 31 homers in 1964 earned him a spot with the Orioles in 1965.

Curt spent 4 seasons in Baltimore, hitting 22, 23, 22, and 15 homers per season. He was the O's regular left fielder in the 1966 World Series, although he only got 1 hit in 15 at-bats.

In 1967, Blefary split his playing time between left field (84 starts) and 1st base (48 starts), as the Orioles tried several ways to keep his bat in the lineup, despite his defensive shortcomings. (Frank Robinson dubbed him "Clank".)

During Curt's last season in Baltimore, he started 38 games behind the plate and 40 in right field during the first half of the season. He returned to left field for the 2nd half of the season.

After the '68 season, Blefary was traded to the Astros for pitcher Mike Cuellar and shortstop Enzo Hernandez. Exactly one year later, he went to the Yankees for Joe Pepitone.

Curt split 1971 between the Yankees and Athletics, and 1972 between Oakland and San Diego. After his release by the Padres, he was signed by the Braves in 1973, but played for their triple-A team before retiring.

Blefary passed away in 2001 at age 57, with his ashes scattered over the Memorial Stadium demolition site in Baltimore.

Paul Schaal (#376)

Here is the 2nd of 3 Angels in the All-Rookie subset - 3rd baseman Paul Schaal.

Schaal was signed by the Los Angeles Angels in 1962, and played 3 seasons in their minor-league system, mostly as a 3rd baseman, but played over half his games at 2nd base in 1964. He made his big-league debut in September 1964, playing 17 games for the Angels (starting 7 games at 3rd base).

Paul opened the 1965 season as the Angels' starting 3rd baseman, and started 150 games at the hot corner. He hit 9 homers and collected 45 RBI in his rookie season, but only had a .224 batting average.

Schaal's playing time and production dropped in 1966, as the Halos acquired 11-year veteran third-sacker Frank Malzone from Boston to help out. Schaal started 110 games to Malzone's 32, with C-3B Tom Satriano starting the rest.

With Malzone's retirement, Schaal was back in the driver's seat to start the 1967 season, but by mid-July he was relegated to the bench for the remainder of the season. The team patched together a mix of Woodie Held, John Werhas, and Satriano at 3rd base for the next 6 weeks, then called up rookie Aurelio Rodriguez on September 1st. Rodriguez started 29 of the final 30 games at 3rd.

Paul was back as the starter in April 1968, but was beaned by Boston's Jose Santiago in mid-June [payback for Tony Conigliaro's 1967 beaning?], costing him the rest of the season. Rodriguez was called up to replace him, which marked the end of Schaal's tenure as the Angels' 3rd baseman.

Schaal was selected by the Kansas City Royals in the expansion draft, and spent the next 5 seasons with the Royals. After backing up Joe Foy in 1969, he was the team's primary 3rd baseman for the next 4 years, and started every game there in 1971.

Schaal's last season in KC was 1974. He started 12 of the 19 games in April at 3rd base, then rookie George Brett was called up, and made his first start on May 4th. The rest is either "history", or "bad-news-for-Paul-Schaal", depending on your point of view.

Paul was traded back to the Angels on April 30th for outfielder Richie Scheinblum. He shared the 3rd base duties for the next 2 1/2 months with Bob Oliver and Dave Chalk. Schaal's final major-league game was on July 19th. He finished the season in the minors, and was released in October.

Rico Petrocelli (#298)

Rico Petrocelli was selected as the Topps all-rookie shortstop for 1965.

Petrocelli was signed by the Red Sox in 1961, and played 3 seasons in the minors (1962-64) as a shortstop. His major-league debut was a 1-game cup of coffee in September 1963, but he wouldn't return until the start of the 1965 season. From there, he would play his entire 12-year career with the Red Sox.

Rico began the 1965 season as the starting shortstop, replacing the veteran Ed Bressoud, who had started 158 games at short in 1964. Petrocelli started 93 games as a rookie, to Bressoud's 69 starts.

In 1966, Petrocelli was the fulltime shortstop, although he was sidelined for the 2nd half of August. The next season, Boston was in the World Series for the first time in 20 years, and Rico hit 2 home runs against the Cardinals. He made the AL All-Star team in 1967 and 1969, and uncharacteristically hit 40 homers in 1969. (His previous high was 18 dingers.) His power surge lasted two more seasons, hitting 29 and 28 homers in '70 and '71, before he settled back in the mid-teens.

The Sox acquired Luis Aparicio in 1972, moving Rico over to 3rd base, where he would stay until the end of his career in 1976. Petrocelli wrapped up his last season as a full-time regular by hitting .308 in the 1975 World Series.

Rico began the 1976 as the starting 3rd baseman, but by the end of June, rookie Butch Hobson took over the position, starting 76 of the last 96 games at 3rd.

Petrocelli managed in the White Sox' farm system from 1986-88, and managed the Red Sox' AAA team in 1992. He was inducted into the Red Sox Hall of Fame in 1997.

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.