Category: Hall of Fame

On This Day 73 Years Ago … Lou Boudreau Introduces Ted Williams Shift

Desperate times call for desperate measures.  

Managers, coaches, pitchers, and fielders tried to neutralize Ted Williams over the years, but few succeeded.  Williams was an offensive menace in 1946, hitting .342 while taking American League MVP honors despite missing the three previous seasons to serve in World War II.

On July 14 of that season, Williams slugged three homers and drove in 8 runs to lead the Red Sox to a 11-10 victory over the Cleveland Indians in the first game of a doubleheader at Fenway Park.  In between games, Indians manager/shortstop Lou Boudreau gave his team a crash course in what became known as the “Ted Williams Shift.”  

Boudreau, knowing that Williams was an extreme pull hitter, simply played the percentages by deploying all four infielders between first base and second base.  Left fielder George Case, standing 20 feet behind where a shortstop would typically play, was the only defender of the left side of the field. Boudreau, a seven-time All-Star considered one of the more cerebral players of his time, may have been inspired personally as well as tactically to limit Williams’s success.  His biographer believed Boudreau, a less-recognized player, resented the fame and attention that constantly went Williams’s way. In his first at bat against the shift Williams hit a line drive directly at Boudreau, who was positioned between first base and second base. Williams later doubled and drew two walks. 

In 1959, Fleer entered the baseball card business with a set commemorating the life and times of Hall of Famer Ted Williams.  Each of the 80 cards displays full-color images with a small title along the bottom white border. The back side of each card features a continuing biography of Williams from his childhood through the 1958 season.  Card #28, titled the “Williams Shift,” illustrates where Bourdeau had each player positioned and is one of the few cards from the time period that does not include a player image. The card back explains how the shift created  “a huge vacant area at third base and all the way to the left field fence.” The unique Fleer card also asks, “How would Ted bat against it?”

The answer is found in card #30 titled “1946 — Beating the Shift.” The upright, colorful card design displays Williams crossing home plate after what appears to be one of his 521 career homers.  Fleer asks on the card back, “Will he settle for cheap hits or will he continue to aim for the right field fences?” And answers, “He hit more Home Runs (38) that season than any year before.”

Williams faced shifts in some form for the remainder of his career.  The Splendid Splinter chose not to sacrifice power for a handful of extra base hits to the opposite field, nor did he want to alter the swing that made him baseball’s most feared hitter.  Despite facing special alignments to limit his prowess at the plate, Williams finished second to only Babe Ruth in career slugging percentage and his .482 lifetime on-base percentage still ranks No. 1 all time.

As noted on each card from the 1959 Fleer Ted Williams Set, “all card data by E. Mifflin.”  The source is Edward Mifflin, who covered baseball for The Sporting News in the 1950s and became good friends with Williams.  In 1954, the Saturday Evening Post published an article announcing the retirement of Ted Williams.  According to baseball lore, Mifflin ran into Williams in Baltimore and told him that retirement would jeopardize his baseball legacy and likely cost him Hall of Fame enshrinement, noting that Williams was still shy of 400 home runs, 1,500 RBI, and 2,000 hits.

Williams, perhaps influenced by Mifflin’s advice, would play six more seasons and slug 155 more home runs while adding over 700 hits to his resume.  He retired after the 1960 season, widely considered “the greatest hitter who ever lived” and was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1966.

Ted Williams Beating The Shift

        1952 Topps Mickey Mantle … Why All the Fuss?

        The most recognizable and coveted baseball card ever produced is the 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle card.  A rare version graded Mint-9 by Professional Sports Authenticated (PSA) on a scale of 1-10 recently sold for a whopping $2.88 million.  That’s the second-highest price ever paid for a baseball card, falling short of the $3.12 million a collector paid for the 1909 T206 Honus Wagner card two years ago.

        Why all the fuss?  We’re not talking about just an ordinary ballplayer featured on a run-of-the-mill baseball card.  We’re talking about Mickey Mantle, who became a national sports icon at the same time the ‘52 Topps set was becoming the most prominent sports card set ever produced.

        When the acclaimed ‘52  card was issued, Mantle was already sporting his first of seven World Series rings and by season’s end he would have his second.  Mantle finished the 1952 season batting .311-23-87 and a league-leading .924 OPS while patrolling center field at Yankee Stadium.

        The first ever Topps Mantle baseball card was released in September.  It was the first card of the elusive ‘52 Topps Series Four. By that time, collectors were more interested in football cards.  Store owners had trouble selling the first three series, so many never bothered to order the fourth, leaving much of the product in the Topps warehouse.

        In 1960, Topps vice president Sy Berger was looking for a way to rid himself of the extra ‘52 Topps cards that were cluttering up the company’s warehouse.  He had little success selling them to a carnival at the rate of 10 cards for a penny, so he arranged for a disposal company to drop them in the ocean. Somewhere off the New Jersey coast, thousands of ‘52 Topps cards — including Mantle cards — were released to the bottom of the sea.  Topps never revealed the number of Series 4 cards that were destroyed, but a limited number exists today.

        In the late ‘60s and  early ‘70s, when card collecting was starting to become a business for many people, the ‘52 Mantle became the hobby’s most sought-after card.  And why not? Mantle was one of the most prolific sluggers of the modern era. He was hitting long-distance home runs and appearing coast to coast on television and in magazines.  Mantle quickly became the most recognizable sports figure since Babe Ruth.

        As the legend of Mickey Mantle grew, so did the demand and value for his baseball cards.  The young, naive ballplayer from Commerce Oklahoma grew up to become one of the most accomplished players in baseball history, earning American League MVP honors three times, winning the Triple Crown in 1956 and dueling teammate Roger Maris for Babe Ruth’s single-season home run crown during the summer of 1961.

        There was a curious flurry of activity surrounding the ‘52 Mantle card in 1986 stemming from a find that traces back to Massachusetts.  Nationally known baseball card dealer Alan “Mr. Mint” Rosen was invited to a man’s home in Lowell to examine an old baseball card collection.  Rosen was shocked to find a silver tray containing hundreds of ‘52 Topps cards, including a stack of three dozen Mantle cards. During the ‘50s, the homeowner’s father had worked at a toy company that used the cards as prizes.  The leftovers were saved for the family in its original case, preserving the near-mint condition. Rosen reportedly paid $900,000 for the entire trove before selling the highly graded cards individually.

        The rise of the Mantle card has been amazing.  In 1988, a similarly priced card could be had for $3,300.  By 2007, PSA Mint-9 version sold for $240,000. The previous record for the card was for a PSA Mint-8.5, which sold for $1.13 million in 2016.

        For those of us with a more limited baseball card allowance, Topps 1996 Series I features reprints of the 19 Topps and Bowman Mantle cards produced from 1951-1969.  Later that year, Topps retired #7 (Mantle’s uniform number), never using it again for its annual Topps baseball sets.

        Looking at 1975 World Series Through Red Sox and Reds 1975 Topps Set

        The 1975 Boston Red Sox and Cincinnati Reds team sets are absolute musts for 1970s baseball card collectors.  Not only did the two teams engage in one of the most memorable World Series to date, but the sets include some of the top players from the ‘70s — including Hall of Famers, the all-time hits leader, and two of the top rookies in Red Sox history.

        After raising the price of baseball card packs from 10 cents to 15 cents, Topps was looking for a way to turn heads.  Collectors had been complaining for years that Topps baseball cards were becoming boring and monotonous. After featuring plain white borders in consecutive years, Topps broke out the rainbow for the 1975 series. Bright two-color borders with bold lettering turned out to be a one-year wonder. But the unique series stood the test of time, remaining one of the most memorable sets ever produced with some help from the  Red Sox and Reds.

        Thirty-four-year-old Luis Tiant twisted and turned his way to a 6-0 victory in Game 1 of the 1975 World Series.  With his best days believed to be in the past, Tiant transformed from a power pitcher to a craftsman, offering an assortment of breaking balls and off-speed pitches that kept hitters off balance. With the DH shelved for the series, Tiant also picked up his first hit since 1972. His 1975 Topps card (#430) is a quick sell locally for $3.

        Sparky Anderson’s Reds took three of the next four games to set the stage for Game 6, arguably the most dramatic game in World Series history.  The Red Sox took a 3-0 lead in the first inning when Fred Lynn homered into the Fenway bleachers following two-out singles to Hall of Famers Carl Yastrzemski and Carlton Fisk.  Graded versions of the ‘75 Topps Yaz (#280) and Fisk (#80) cards sell in the $25-30 range.

        After batting .331-21-105, Lynn became the first Major League player to capture MVP and Rookie of the Year honors in the same season.  His ‘75 Topps rookie (#662) now sells for $6 in mint condition. Teammate and fellow rookie Jim Rice slugged .309-22-102 before taking an errant Vern Ruhle fastball off the wrist, ending the left fielder’s season in early August.  Elected to the Hall of Fame in his last year of eligibility in 2009, Rice continues to be a local favorite. His ‘75 Topps rookie (#616) sells for $9.

        Ken Griffey Sr.’s two-run triple and HOF catcher Johnny Bench’s RBI single in the  fifth inning tied Game 6. Griffey’s ‘75 Topps card (#284) — often packaged on eBay  with Ken Griffey Jr.’s cards — sells for $3 as a stand alone. The Bench card sells for $25 in mint condition. The Reds took a 6-3 lead in the eighth following a home run  by Cesar Geronimo whose ‘75 Topps card can be found in the commons bin.  With two outs in the bottom of the eighth, Bernie Carbo drilled a Rawly Eastwick pitch into the centerfield bleachers to tie the game at six. Carbo has a bit of a cult-like following locally, inflating his ‘75 Topps card (#379) slightly above common status.

        In the 11th inning with one out and fleet-footed Griffey on first, Cincinnati All-Star second baseman Joe Morgan slashed a sinking liner toward the right field ple. The  ball seemed destined to drop into the corner for an extra base hit that would have scored Griffey. With an instinctive over-the-head stab of the glove, Dwight Evans plucked the ball out of the Boston night.  He stumbled backward, regained his balance and threw to the infield to double up Griffey at first base.

        With the tie preserved and the tension building, America was introduced to one of baseball’s greatest right fielders.  His ‘75 Topps card (#255) is a great buy for $2. Hall of Fame second baseman Joe Morgan accumulated two World Series rings and two MVP awards during a 22-year career. His ‘75 Topps sells for $4.

        In the bottom of the 12th, Fisk sent a blast to left field.  The question: fair or foul? The ball ricocheted off the foul pole for the perhaps the most dramatic moment in Red Sox history.  The Reds would go on to win Game 7 to win the World Series, but the series — Game 6 in particular — will long be recounted by generations of Red Sox fans.  The Red Sox 1975 Topps team set sells for $50 in decent condition, while the Reds team set, which includes Pete Rose (#320), goes for $75.

        Celebrating Red Sox Great Bobby Doerr

        Bobby Doerr graced the field with all-around excellence and carried himself with supreme dignity on and off the field.  The Red Sox great and long-time fan favorite died at the age of 99 last November. At the time of hs death, Doerr was the oldest living Hall of Famer.

        Doerr played his entire 14-year Major League career with the Red Sox from 1937-1951, missing the 1945 season to military service during World War II. Pulitzer Prize winner David Halberstam chronicled the longtime friendship between Doerr and fellow Red Sox legends Ted Williams, Johnny Pesky, and Dominic DiMaggio in his well-received 2003 book Teammates.  The tight bond between Doerr and Williams started in 1936 as teammates for San Diego of the Pacific Coast League, where both were discovered during the same scouting trip by Hall of Famer Eddie Collins. A year later, Doerr began his big league career at the age of 19.

        There is a bit of a mystery surrounding Doerr’s first baseball card.  Most collectors and baseball historians refer to Doerr’s rookie card as the 1936 Goudey Premium, but the sturdy second baseman did not play his first major league game until 1937.  Although there is no specific date on the card back, the 1936 Goudey series, originally distributed in Canada, was most likely issued in 1937, possibly 1938. No matter the year issued, decent graded versions of the Doerr Goudey Premium rookie sells for $750.

        By 1940, Doerr was a key member of a potent Red Sox lineup that included Williams, Jimmie Foxx, and Joe Cronin.  The man Williams called “the silent leader” hit a robust .291 with 22 homers and 105 RBI — impressive numbers for a second baseman of any time period.  Doerr’s 1940 Play Ball baseball card is a favorite among vintage Red Sox collectors, selling in excess of $100 in decent condition. Baseball cards issued more than 75 years ago lack the glitz and glitter of modern day cards, but the Play Ball series is renowned for its picturesque and simplistic settings.

        Back woes forced Doerr from the game following the 1951 season.  A nine-time All-Star, Doerr smacked 223 home runs for his career, the third highest total for a second baseman at the time of his retirement.  He also accumulated 1,247 RBI while producing batting .288 and slugging .461 for his career. He also ranks in the top 10 among Red Sox players all-time in many offensive categories, including game, runs, singles, doubles, triples, home runs, RBI, extra base hits, and total bases.

        Defensively, Doerr was one of the top fielding second baseman of his time, leading American League second baseman in fielding percentage six times and in double plays five times.  He once held the AL record for most consecutive chances at second base without an error.

        In addition to being a great ballplayer, Doerr also an avid baseball memorabilia and autograph collector.  His most prized possessions — Babe Ruth, Ty Cobb, and Williams autographed bats — were gathered as a player.  After his playing days, Doerr accumulated autographed photos, balls, and bats from all-time greats such as Joe DiMaggio, Bob Feller, Moe Berg, and Foxx at baseball functions and Hall of Fame ceremonies in Cooperstown.  

        Doerr was also a gracious autograph signer during and after his baseball career.  He would even respond to autograph requests through old fashioned mail correspondence.  Most Red Sox memorabilia collectors have a Doerr autograph or two tucked away for safekeeping.  For me, the non-glossy, smudge-free 1986 Donruss Highlights card celebrating Doerr’s Hall of Fame enshrinement was the perfect card to send through the mail for an autograph.

        Doerr was voted into the Hall of Fame in 1986 by the HOF Veterans Committee that included Williams.  Two years later, Doerr saw his No.1 jersey retired by the Red Sox, which is now displayed on the Fenway Park right field facade alongside the numbers of Williams, Pesky, and other Red Sox greats.

         

        Dwight Evans Belongs in Hall of Fame Alongside Roberto Clemente

        Baseball’s greatest right fielders have the most powerful and accurate arms.  They play shallow and charge the ball with aggression, preventing runners from taking an extra base.  A great right fielder is an intimidator, able to change the complexion of a game with aggressive play.  Offensively, the great ones typically anchor a lineup with power and production.  The all-time greatest was Hall of Famer Roberto Clemente.  The unquestionable best Red Sox right fielder is Dwight Evans, who should have a plaque in Cooperstown.

        roberto_clemente_rc

        In addition to winning four batting titles, an MVP award and two World Series championships with the Pittsburgh Pirates, Clemente established the modern day standard for right fielders, earning Gold Glove awards every year from 1961-1971 while patrolling Pittsburgh’s spacious Forbes Field.  His 12 career Gold Glove awards ties Willie Mays for the most in baseball history.  

        Clemente led outfielders in assists five times thanks to one of the best arms baseball has ever seen. Just months before perishing in a plane crash while leading humanitarian efforts for earthquake ravage Nicaragua, Clemente became the 11th player to record 3,000 career hits. If not for his tragic death at the young age of 38, the Clemente name would figure even more prominently in the baseball record book.

        You can make a strong case for Evans being considered the best outfielder in Red Sox history. He was the top right fielder of his era, earning eight Gold Gloves.  He played with outstanding instincts, carefully navigating the spacious, tight-cornered, wide-angled Fenway right field while displaying a canon of an arm.  

        Evans made one of the greatest catches in World Series history in Game Six of the 1975 World Series.  In the 11th inning of a 6-6 ball game with one out and fleet-footed Ken Griffey Sr. on first, Cincinnati All-Star second baseman Joe Morgan slashed a sinking liner toward the right  field field pole. The  ball seemed destined to drop into the corner for an extra base hit that would have scored Griffey.  With an instinctive over-the-head stab of the  glove, Evans plucked the ball out of the Boston night.  He stumbled backward, regained his balance and threw to the infield to double up Griffey at first base.  Carlton Fisk secured arguably the most memorable game in Red Sox and World Series history with a dramatic 12th inning home run.

        Somehow, Evans lasted only three years on the Hall of Fame ballot, never getting more than 10.4 percent of the vote.  Perhaps Evans was overshadowed by Hall of Fame teammates Fisk, Carl Yastrzemski, and Jim Rice.  Evans may have been prematurely labeled “a good hitter,” but not a “great hitter ”because his offensive prowess occurred in the latter half of his career,   Perhaps his steady production and contributions were just overlooked.  There was little fanfare to his game — he consistently produced offensively and defensively, but often in the shadows of more popular teammates.

        Defensively, Evans compared favorably to Clemente, winning eight gold gloves while leading the league in assists three times.  The assist totals were kept down over the years as few runners dared to test the Evans’s powerful and accurate arm.  The only outfielders to earn more Gold Gloves are Clemente, Willie Mays, Al Kaline, and Ken Griffey Jr. — all Hall of Famers.

        Offensively, Evans is not as far from elite as non-believers might think.  In fact, looking at his numbers over an extended period of time, Evans is indeed elite.  He was one of the best offensive players of his era.  During the decade of the ‘80s (1980-1989), Evans had more home runs and extra base hits than any other player in the American League.  At one time or another, he led the league in on-base percentage, OPS, runs, runs created, total bases, home runs, extra base hits, base on balls, and times reaching base.  

        Ironically, his best season may be what’s keeping him out of the Hall of Fame.  During the strike-shortened 1981 season, Evans slashed .296/.415.522 while playing every game and leading the league in homers, total bases, walks, and OPS.  This was also one of his Gold Glove seasons.  The Dwight Evans legacy may have been different had Major League Baseball completed the season and Evans continued his MVP ways.  If Evans had hit 15 more homers in the 54 games missed, he would have finished his career with 400 home runs — and unofficial benchmark for HOF enshrinement.

        By definition — at least my definition — the best players of any era are considered baseball’s elite and therefore belong in the Hall of Fame.  Evans was inexplicably kept off the HOF’s Modern Era final list earlier this month.  The committee will convene again over the next few years, hopefully with an open-minded look at forgotten players from the ‘70s and ‘80s such as Evans.

        The Evans rookie card, also featuring Baltimore Orioles and Cleveland Indians fan-favorites Al Bumbry and Charlie Spikes, can be found in the 1973 Topps set.  In 1955, Topps issued the first Clemente baseball card, which features spectacular portrait and action photos across a horizontal design.

         

        Baseball Rights A Wrong: Tim Raines Enters Hall of Fame

        With two outs in the bottom of the ninth and the side of righteousness trailing by a run, the Baseball Writers Association of America undid one of the biggest wrongs in the Hall of Fame by electing Tim Raines in his final year of eligibility.  Today  baseball celebrates the Rock as the  former Expos great becomes just the fourth  player to be elected in his final year of eligibility, joining Red Ruffing (1967), Joe Medwick (1968), Ralph Kiner (1975), and Jim Rice (2009).

        Placed in a historical context, Raines’s resume is more than HOF worthy.  He was one of the game’s great lead off hitters, top base stealers, and — believe it or not — an extra-base-hitting-machine during his 23-year major league career.  Raines was often lost in the shadow cast by Rickey Henderson, arguably the greatest leadoff hitter ever. But digging deeper into the numbers, Raines was every bit the player as Henderson and even rivaled the great Ty Cobb, arguably the best hitter in baseball history.  

        We all know Raines was one of the game’s great base stealers, but his consistency on the base paths was unparalleled.  He ranks fifth on the career stolen base list with 808 and is the career leader in stolen base percentage (84.7) among players with 400 attempts. Raines is the only player in baseball history to steal at least 70 bases in seven consecutive  seasons (1981-1986).  He stole 40 consecutive bases between July 1993 – August 1995, a major league record later broken by Ichiro Suzuki with 45 consecutive swipes.

        Like Cobb, Raines will never be considered a home run hitter, but the former speedy outfielder combined extra base hits with stolen bases at an historic rate.  He was the only player in baseball history with at least 100, triples, 150 homers and 600 stolen bases.  Raines finished his career with 113 triples and 170 homers.  

        Raines also tallied with 2,605 hits over his career — well below the imaginary 3,000-hit Hall of Fame threshold. But looking deeper, only nine of the 27 players with 3,000 hits can match Raines’s .385 career on-base percentage.  Raines reached base more times than three no-doubt HOFers with 3,000 hits: Tony Gwynn, Lou Brock and Roberto Clemente as well as the ageless and  still playing Ichiro Suzuki.

        Need more convincing?  Raines was the only player ever with four seasons of 50-plus extra base hits and 70-plus stolen bases.  Henderson and Cobb combined for four such seasons; every other HOFer combined for an additional four.

        Raines is seldom mentioned with the all-time greats such as Cobb, but he should be and the evidence is in the numbers:  He is the only player in MLB history with five consecutive seasons with at least 30 doubles and 70 stolen bases, which he did from 1982-1986.  Before 1982, the last player to record 30 doubles and 70 stolen bases in a season was Cobb in 1915.  

        For more head-spinning stats, be sure to check out the Ace of MLB Stats Twitter account.  Its creator, Ryan Spaeder, seems to be on a personal crusade to get Raines into the Hall of Fame.  Raines did the work and Spaeder has aligned the numbers in convincing fashion.

        Raines becomes the third player to go into the Hall of Fame as a Montreal Expo, joining Gary Carter and Andre Dawson.  Raines won two World Series rings (1996 and 1998) in New York as a role player with the Yankees.  It’s a great day when one of baseball’s great injustices is rectified.

        The Raines Topps rookie card is one of the top rookies from the 1981 series.  Issued just before the mass-produced sets of the ‘80s, the Expos “Future Prospect” card also includes Roberto Ramos and, two “future stars” that never panned out.  Be careful if you’re buying:  The “Future Prospect” cards are notorious for having gum-stained backs.  

        1981 Donruss: From Hall of Famer Tim Raines to “Dwayne Kuiper”

        Don’t be confused by its drab, almost amateur appearance.  Simplicity, quirkiness, and historic value make 1981 Donruss Baseball one of the most significant and fascinating sports card sets ever produced.

         The 1981 Donruss Baseball Card set was the first complete set since the early 1950s not to bear the name Topps.  For the first time since 1955, more than one company was producing extensive sets representing major league players.  A legal decision in the fall of 1980 gave both Fleer and Donruss the legal right to produce cards. The verdict cleared the path for Upper Deck to enter the fray and revolutionize the hobby with its premiere baseball card set in 1989.

        Fleer and Donruss finalized their deals with the Major League Baseball Players Association in September 1980, leaving just five months to produce and deliver cards to stores by the last week of January 1981 to compete directly with Topps.  Gathering

        photos, matching players with photos, writing informational blurbs, and proofreading statistics, proved to be a daunting task for companies producing baseball cards on a grand scale for the first time.

        There were more than 30 error cards in the 1981 Donruss Set.  Houston Astros pitcher Vern Ruhle’s card actually pictures teammate Frank Lacorte.  Cleveland Indians infielder Duane Kuiper was listed as “Dwayne” Kuiper.  In a strange but true tale, Donruss listed Cardinals’ outfielder Bobby Bonds – father of current “Home Run King” Barry Bonds – with 986 homers, 231 more than Hank Aaron, the all-time home run leader at the time.  

        There has been interest in both the error and corrected versions for nearly three decades because both versions are more limited than the other cards in the set.  The 1981 Donruss series has also kept the growing number of baseball historians and “oddball” card collectors entertained over the years.

        Tim Raines’ induction into the Hall of Fame has given the 1981 Donruss Set a recent spark.  Although Donruss somehow skipped over National League Rookie of the Year Fernando Valenzuela that year, it was the only company to picture Raines by himself on a rookie baseball card. Topps featured Raines with two other rookies on a prospect subset card, while Fleer swung and missed altogether.  The series also includes rookie cards of Jeff Reardon, Mookie Wilson, and Toronto Blue Jays infielder Danny Ainge before he became a three-time championship winning guard and executive with the Boston Celtics.

        Rushing into the production of the 605-card 1981 Donruss Set also caused collation and printing issues.  Factory sets were not produced.  Instead, hobby dealers had to buy wholesale from TCMA, Donruss’ exclusive hobby distributor.  Cards of each player were shipped to dealers in 100-card lots secured by rubber bands. The cards then needed to be hand collated. The collation of wax packs caused further problems for collectors.  Several of the same card were often found in a single wax pack, which was great news if the card featured Hall of Famers Carl Yastrzemski or Johnny Bench.  Not such good news if the Leo Sutherland card was the featured player.  

        The cards bend easily and show tremendous wear over time due to flimsy paper stock.  The lackluster design consists of predominantly blurry portrait or posed photos against mostly empty stadium backdrops.  Time constraints prevented Donruss from airbrushing uniforms or caps. Players changing teams during the offseason appeared in their former uniforms with the name of their current team displayed across the bottom of the card.

        Donruss also had considerable trouble securing player photographs. Ray Burris was traded by the Cubs to the Yankees who later sold him to the Mets during the 1979 season.  Although he hadn’t played for the Cubs in nearly two years, Burris sports a Cubs uniform on his 1981 Donruss card. Many of the pictures were taken in Wrigley Stadium or Comiskey Park by amateur photographers as Donruss scrambled to put together a set.  A handful of photos were taken by political and sports commentator Keith Olbermann, then a 21-year-old photographer with a passion for baseball.

        Although limited in value, the 1981 Donruss Set has its own charm with an array of hard-to-believe mishaps and a unique history.

        Underappreciated Baseball Great Tris Speaker

        Tris Speaker was one of the most prolific and underappreciated players in Red Sox history.  Playing in the shadows of Ty Cobb during baseball’s “Dead Ball Era”, Speaker led the Red Sox to World Series championships in 1912 and 1915 and the Indians in 1920 as a player/manager.  The “Grey Eagle” hit for high average, power, and production while establishing the standard for center field defense.   

        From deep in the batter’s box, the crouching Speaker held the bat at the hip to ensure greater contact.  He struck out just 220 times during his 22-year career that included 3,514 career hits.  Speaker displayed the strength to hit line drives into the gaps and down both lines, accounting for his still-standing major league record of 792 career doubles.  Speaker batted higher than .350 nine times and higher than .380 five times en route to a .345 career batting average.

        Despite the lofty batting statistics, Speaker won just one batting title courtesy of playing in the same era as Cobb, who won 12 batting titles and compiled a .366 career batting average.  Like his career accomplishments, Speaker’s baseball cards pale in comparison to Cobb’s, but are quite impressive in their own right.  Most baseball historians and vintage card collectors consider the 1909-1911 T206 card to be Speaker’s rookie.  The card displays Speaker on the verge of making contact from his unique batting stance.  Decent graded versions sell for as much as $7,500.

        The original T206 baseball cards were issued in cigarette and loose tobacco packs through 16 different brands owned by the American Tobacco Co., including the “Ty Cobb” brand.  The set includes the T206 Honus Wagner card, the most valuable and coveted card ever produced.  One of the largest pre-World War I sets ever produced, the series also includes Hall of Famers Speaker, Cobb, Nap Lajoie, Cy Young, Walter Johnson and Christy Mathewson.

        Speed and defense also contributed to Speaker’s Hall of Fame career.  He stole 436 bases and hit 222 triples (fifth on the all-time list) during his career.  Speaker is considered the best center fielder of his time and one of the best ever.  Playing in an era when long drives were rare, Speaker played extremely shallow — practically positioned as a fifth infielder — to cut down would be singles and bloop hits.  His trademark play was racing to second base behind a confused or unsuspecting runner for a pick off play.  Speaker is still the all-time leader in putouts and double plays for his position.  He also recorded a record-tying 35 assists for the Red Sox in 1909 and 1912.

        The majority of Speaker baseball cards display portrait or batting stance photos.  However, the 1927 Exhibits card is one of the few that feature Speaker in action defensively.  The photo shows Speaker as he awaits a throw, perhaps playing first base.  The 63-card 1927 Exhibit Baseball Set featured a green hue of the black and white images on each card front — a relatively new and unique printing method for the time.  Ungraded versions sell in the $125-$175 range.

        Speaker’s unconventional path to centerfield started at a young age. After suffering two broken arms as a teenager, he taught himself to throw right handed.  Despite throwing with his non-dominant arm, Speaker tried to break into professional baseball as a  pitcher.  After being turned down by New York Giants manager John McGraw for a tryout as a pitcher, Speaker went to the Texas League to learn centerfield with the Cleburne Railroaders in his native Texas.

        A year later, he was purchased by the Boston Americans (later Red Sox) and became the regular centerfielder, playing alongside Hall of Famer Harry Hooper and defensive whiz Duffy Lewis to form the “Golden Outfield,” which was widely considered one of the best outfields in baseball history.

        One of Speaker’s earliest cards with the Red Sox is from the 1910-1911 M116 Sporting Life series.  A four cent investment would get readers of the Sporting Life newspaper a dozen sports cards.  Speaker’s card features a colorized portrait displaying his Red Sox baseball jersey.  Highly graded versions sell in excess of $5,900.

         

         

        Celebrating Babe Ruth

        The discussion of two-way baseball players starts and ends with Babe Ruth.   In the years before the infamous sale that sent Ruth from Boston to New York, the man known as the “Sultan of Swat” was baseball’s premier left-handed pitcher. Ruth would later become the most prolific hitter in baseball history.

        Before his powerful uppercut swing made home runs relevant and transformed baseball into an offensive game, the full-time pitching ace and part-time slugger led the Red Sox to three

        baberuth1914frederickfoto
        Babe Ruth 1914 Frederick Foto baseball card.

        World Series Championships. Ruth put together a 94-46 career record with nearly all of his pitching appearances coming in a Red Sox uniform. His 2.28 ERA is 17th lowest in baseball history.

        The Babe found his place on the pitcher’s mound at the St. Mary’s Industrial School, a boys’ reformatory school.  He developed his craft with the Baltimore Orioles of the International League under owner and manager Jack Dunn, who signed the 19-year-old southpaw to his first professional contract in 1914.  The first Ruth baseball card was included in the 1914 Baltimore News series.  Issued with red or blue fronts and black variation backs, the card displays a gangly teenager yet to make his major league debut.  A red PSA-1 version of the Ruth rookie sold at auction for $450,300 last year.

        Struck with financial hardship due to the emergence of the Baltimore Terrapins of the short-lived Federal League, the Orioles unloaded Ruth, Ernie Shore and Ben Egan to the Red Sox for $16,000 later that year.  Pitching behind established hurlers Smokey Joe Wood and Dutch Leonard among others, Ruth was used sparingly.  But in 1915, he went 18-8 as the team’s third starter and helped the Red Sox to the AL Pennant.

        In 1916, Ruth emerged as a dominant pitcher, winning 21 games while tossing nine shutouts and posting a league-best 1.75 ERA.  Helping the Red Sox to back-to-back World Series championships, Ruth pitched 14 innings for a 2-1 Game 2 victory over the Brooklyn Robins.

        baberuth1914baltnews
        Babe Ruth 1914 Baltimore News baseball card.

        Still considered a top-notch pitcher, Ruth returned in 1917 with a 24-13 record and 2.01 ERA.  He finished 35 of the 38 games he started.  At the same time, Ruth’s offensive prowess was taking shape.  He finished the season batting .325, triggering an eight-year streak of hitting .300 or better.

        Already an established pitching ace, Ruth’s transformation to iconic slugger hit full stride in 1918.  Primarily an outfielder, Ruth led the league in homers with 11, earning his first of 12 home run titles.  Appearing in 20 games as a pitcher, he went 13-7 with a 2.22 ERA.   The Babe pitched a 1-0 shutout in Game 1 of the World Series and won Game 4, as he established a 29 ⅓ scoreless innings streak, eclipsed by Whitey Ford decades later.

        The Babe made 17 appearances on the mound in 1919, going 9-5 with a 2.97 ERA, but by this time pitching was merely a diversion for the future Hall of Fame slugger-to-be.  Ruth led the league in home runs (29), RBI (114) and runs (103).  Following the 1919 season, the Yankees purchased Babe Ruth the slugger, not the ace pitcher from financially-strapped Red Sox owner Harry Frazee for $100,000.

        Ruth’s Red Sox-Yankees overlap is highlighted in his 1914 Frederick Foto card.  The unique card displaying a photo-quality image, pictures the Babe in a red Sox uniform, but reads “Babe Ruth N.Y.” in the upper left-hand corner.

        In his first season with the Yankees Ruth set a new standard with 54 home runs, effectively introducing America to a new brand of baseball emphasizing power and brawn over speed and savvy.  Putting Ruth’s 1920 season in perspective: No other player hit more than 19 home runs and only one team hit more homers than Ruth did individually.

        Laying the groundwork for what would become the Yankee Dynasty, Ruth’s 1921 season may have been the greatest in MLB history. The 26-year-old Ruth batted .376 while bashing 59 homers, driving in 171 runs, scoring 177 runs, and slugging a then-unthinkable .846. Riding Ruth’s prowess as a slugger, the Yankees became baseball’s most recognizable — not to mention most dominant — team, establishing new attendance records almost annually.

        He eventually raised the bar to 60 round-trippers in 1927, a record that would stand for 34 years.  The Babe’s contribution to baseball was almost as significant as his contribution to the New York Yankees.  The new stadium built to house a growing fan base was quickly dubbed “The House That Ruth Built.”

        Prior to Ruth wearing pinstripes, the Yankees never won a title of any sort.  In his 15 years in New York, the Yankees captured seven AL Pennants and four World Series titles.  Most baseball historians consider the 1927 Yankees to be the best team in baseball history.

        Ruth returned to Boston in 1935 to play his final season with the Braves, hitting six homers to bump his career total to 714.  The Bambino held an amazing 56 major league records at the time of his retirement — including most career home runs.  In 1936 the newly formed Baseball Hall of Fame elected Babe Ruth as one of its five original inductees.  More than 75 years after his retirement, Ruth remains one of baseball’s first and America’s greatest icons.

        The complete history of the Babe can be found in the 1962 “Babe Ruth Special” subset, which captures significant moments from his life and career, beginning with “Babe as a Boy” (#135) and ending with “Babe’s Farewell Speech”.  The special 10-card subset was issued one year after Roger Maris eclipsed the Babe’s single-season home run record.  Most of the cards can be found in good – very good condition for $8-$15.

        A Place For Edgar Martinez And The DH In The Hall of Fame

        The designated hitter is an actual position that has been debated, discussed, probed, and prodded since the 1890s.  Since the inception of the American League position on this day in 1973, the DH has served it’s purpose ably: enhancing offense, while increasing fan interest.  Each year, the best DH  is honored with the Edgar Martinez Outstanding Designated Hitter Award.  Somehow, the player who established the benchmark for excellence at the position has been kept out of the Hall of Fame  — a slight to one the finest hitters baseball has ever seen and to the position as a whole.  

        Martinez did not become a full-time player until the age of 27, which limited his career hit total to 2,247 and home run total to just 309, well short of top sluggers from his era.  But looking deeper into the numbers, we discover that Martinez was actually one of the top and most consistent sluggers of his time — or any time period — culminating an 18-year career with an eye-popping .418 on-base percentage and .933 OPS.  Jayson Stark of ESPN describes Martinez as one of the “greatest hitters of his generation.”

        Martinez was just one of eight players to have 300 home runs, 500 doubles, a career batting average above .300, a career OBP above .400, and a career slugging percentage above .500.  He is also one of six players to hit at least .320 for six consecutive seasons  alongside Stan Musial, Wade Boggs, Rod Carew, Tony Gwynn, and  Todd Helton.  All but Helton are in the Hall.

        Sports Illustrated’s Jay Jaffe, who spends endless hours crunching numbers to evaluate Hall of Fame candidates, says Martinez is one of the top 30 or 40 hitters of all time.  Martinez outdistanced David Ortiz in career WAR 68.3 too 55.4.  Most consider fellow DH Ortiz a clear cut Hall of Famer, steroid issues aside.  Martinez is one of 25 players with at least eight seasons with OPS+ greater than 150.  All who are eligible and not connected to steroids are in the Hall of Fame except two: Dick Allen and Martinez.  He also has the fourth best career OPS (.933) among right-handed hitters in the modern era … And still not enough Hall of Fame votes.

        The anti-DH faction among baseball writers has weakened over the years, but is still clearly present.  There are several players who have appeared extensively as a DH already in the Hall, including Carl Yastrzemski, Reggie Jackson, Dave Winfield and Jim Rice.  But most of these players played the majority of their games at other positions — usually first base or outfield.

        Elected in 2004, Paul Molitor served as his team’s DH for nearly 44 percent of the games he started.  Two years ago, Frank Thomas became the first HOFer to DH in the majority of his games played.  Martinez played DH for 71% of the games he started.  If Martinez is not elected before his expiration date, Ortiz will likely become the first almost-full-time DH to receive baseball’s highest honor.  Ortiz collected more hits, home runs, and RBI than any other DH.

        The designated hitter first proposed during the 1890s as the designated pinch hitter. Connie Mack took credit for the idea in 1906. NL owners actually approved the DH rule in December 1928, but were ironically overruled by their AL cohorts. In 1940, the Bushrod League, a California winter circuit, adopted the DH. In 1969 the International League experimented with the DH for a year.

        After nearly eight decades of debate between league presidents, owners, and players, the American League finally approved the DH before the 1973 season. On April 6, Ron Blomberg, became major league baseball’s first designated hitter when he drew a first-inning, bases loaded walk from Luis Tiant on a cold, windy Opening Day at Fenway Park.

        A pulled hamstring forced the 24-year-old first baseman to his new position. If Matty Alou, batting third for the Yankees, didn’t stroke a two-out double in the first inning, the Red Sox Orlando Cepeda, the first player signed specifically for DH duty, would have made the history books.  Although the Red Sox won the game 15-5, Cepeda, the prototype DH, went 0-for-6, the only Red Sox starter to go hitless.

        AL owners hoped the DH would increase offense, give aging sluggers the chance to extend their years of productivity, and increase attendance. The three-year experiment worked. AL teams were scoring more runs, league attendance rose from 11.4 million to 13.4 million, and older stars were extending their careers.

        Cepeda was exactly what the AL owners had in mind when they adopted the DH. The 35-year-old former first baseman entered the season with bad knees and 358 career home runs, and had driven in over 100 runs five times in his career.

        In 1973, Cepeda played all of his 142 games at DH for the Red Sox, hitting 20 homers and 86 RBI — excellent power numbers for the time — winning the first Associated Press Designated Hitter Award.

        The DH helped sluggers such as Cepeda, the 1958 NL Rookie of the Year with the Giants and the 1967 MVP with the Cardinals, achieve Hall of Fame status. Cepeda, elected by the Veterans Committee in 1999, finished his career with 379 home runs (21 as a DH) and 1,365 RBI.

        The DH is now widely accepted and used in some form in most leagues from high school to the majors. The final hurdle to its acceptance as an actual position may be a deservedly wider presence in the Hall of Fame.