Tag: Luis Tiant

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.

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.