1976 Topps Rookie Infielders: Craig Reynolds, Lamar Johnson, Johnnie LeMaster, Jerry Manuel

The random number generator picked the first 1976 rookie card for this blog. This one included an interesting cast of characters.

**********

First we have Craig Reynolds in a Pirates uniform. He would appear again on a 1977 Topps rookie card as a Pirate even though he was traded to the expansion Seattle Mariners in December of 1976. He was selected to represent the Mariners in the 1978 All Star game. After the 1978 All Star game. After the 1978 season the Mariners would trade him to the Astros for pitcher Floyd Bannister. Reynolds would once again be selected to the All Star team and would spend the next 11 seasons in Houston. 

Although he already had a card in the 1977 Topps set, he was on a rookie card again and in the wrong uniform. So for his Card That Never Was, I gave him a do-over. This time he has his own card on the Mariners.

**********

Lamar Johnson was drafted by the White Sox right out of high school in 1968. He wouldn't make his MLB debut until 1974. He played for the Sox most of his career splitting time between 1st base and DH. After the his production dipped in the 1981 season he was signed the Rangers. He was cut during 1983 spring training.

Johnson is best know for singing the National Anthem before game one of a double-header on June 19, 1977. He then went on to have 2 solo home runs and a double. These were the only hits the Sox had all game. It gave Wilbur Wood his first win since having his knee shattered by a Ron LeFlore line drive over a year earlier. The Sox beat the A's 2-1 in game 1 and beat them again 5-1 in game 2.

For his Card That Never Was, I went for a pre-rookie variation. He had actually played in parts of the 1974 and 1975 season for the White Sox, so I decided to put him on a 1975 Topps card.

**********

Johnnie LeMaster was the Giants #1 pick in the 1973 draft. In 1975 he got his first big league at bat. After missing first 2 offerings by Hall of Famer Don Sutton, LeMaster lined the 3rd pitch up the middle. It took a wild bounce over the center fielder's head and LeMaster had a stand-up inside the park homer in his first MLB at bat.

He is best known for going into a game with the word "Boo" on his nameplate. He was getting boo'd a lot so his wife suggested he change his name to "Boo".  It only lasted half an inning before the general manager made him change into his official uniform and fined him $500. But it cemented his place in baseball lore.

For his Card That Never Was, I created this 1971 Topps Greatest Moments style card commemorating Boo's only at bat.

**********

Jerry Manuel had only 2 cards during his playing days. This rookie card and a 1982 Fleer card of him on the Expos. Manuel played in 96 MLB games over 5 seasons with the Tigers, Expos and Padres. He is better known as the Manager of the White Sox from 1999-2003 and the Mets from 2008-2010. He was voted Manager of the Year in 2000 as he led the Sox to a 1st place finish in the Central division.

For his Card That Never Was, I made him a card commemorating his most productive MLB season. He had a career high 63 plate appearances and rode that "Mendoza Line" batting .200 exactly, also a career high. Here is a 1981 Topps card of Jerry Manuel.

**********

I'm feeling a bit generous giving this a 4. Only Reynolds was ever in an All Star game, but Manuel became Manager of the Year. Johnson and LeMaster both had memorable games that make for good bar-stories. What can I say? I'm a sucker for a good story.

1971 Topps Angels Rookie Stars: Lloyd Allen, Winston Llenas

Lloyd Allen pitched in 12 games over the 1969 and 1970 season for the Angels. In 1971 he appeared to settle into his Major League role as the Angels closer. He saved 15 games and had a 2.49 ERA. Hampered by a hamstring injury in 1972, his ERA crept up to 3.48. When his ERA hit double digits in 1973 following a shoulder injury, he was dealt to the Rangers in a 5 player trade. He was 0-7 with 1 save and a 8.29 ERA before being placed on waivers in 1974. The White Sox gave him a shot in 1974-75 but his ERA was back up in the double digits again and he was sold to the Cardinals. Although he attempted comebacks with the Cardinals, Blue Jays and even the White Sox again, he never made it back to the show. In his final MLB appearance he started the game against the World Champion A's. He lasted only 2/3s of an inning giving up 3 runs including a 2 run Homer to Reggie Jackson. The final batter he faced was another Hall of Famer, Billy Williams who singled to right.

After this rookie card in 1971, Allen appeared on cards for the Angels in 1972 and 1973. In 1974 he was on a Rangers card. For his Card That Never Was, I put him  a 1975 card for the White Sox.

Winston Llenas was primarily a used as a pinch hitter by the Angels. In his MLB debut in 1968 he was 1-3 with a double. However in the first inning he committed a throwing error. Llenas' baseball playing  career stretched from 1961-1983. His MLB career, however, was relatively brief. He appeared in only 300 games stretched over 6 seasons. All were with the Angels. After his final MLB season in 1975 Winston played a season in Japan for the Taiheiyo Lions. In 1977 he played in the Mexican League and in 1978 became player-manager. He continued the dual role through 1983.

After hitting .339 with 20 homers for the Angels AAA team in 1970, I can understand  Lleans' inclusion in Topps' 1971 set. However the Angels saw things differently. The kept him down one more year. He hit .300 with 15 homers and despite his 33 errors at 3rd base, earned a spot on the Angels 1972 roster. Topps remained unconvinced, and Llenas wouldn't appear on another card until 1974. So for his Card That Never Was, I created this 1973 Topps card for him.

**********

Neither of these players made much of an impact, but I wouldn't qualify either as a bust. Allen's career was hampered by injuries. Llenas was a solid hitting minor leaguer who was questionable at defense but had a long career in baseball none the less. Overall the card isn't good for much more than flipping. I give it a 2.

1967 Topps White Sox Rookie Stars: Lee Elia, Dennis Higgins, Bill Voss

Lee Elia played a total of 95 big league games. 80 on the South side of Chicago in 1966 and 15 on the North side in 1968. He hit a meager .203 lifetime, yet he appeared on Topps cards in 1966, 67, 68 and 69. 

He likewise had a couple of short stints as a manager. He was the Cubs skipper in 1982 and the first part of the 1983 season. In 1987 he replaced John Felske as the Phillies manager 61 games into the season. In 1988 he was similarly dismissed just before the end of the season. Although his managerial career was just as dismal as his playing career, he still appeared on 3 more Topps. Oddly the only season he managed all 162 games was 1982 a year in which Topps didn't make manager's cards.

For Lee Elia's Card That Never Was I chose a 1982 Donruss design. Donruss was the only one of the big three that included manager cards at all in 1982, but they did not include one for the Cubs.

He had a record of 238-300 in parts of 4 seasons and never finished higher than 4th place in the division. He was best known for one of the greatest, profanity-laden rants ever recorded. A local DJ used to open his show every morning with the bleeped-version of this tirade. And every time I heard it, I couldn't help but laugh. Below I posted a YouTube video of his infamous rant. The publisher of this video even included his baseball cards, so I felt it was perfect for this site. Just a heads-up, this is not the bleeped version, it is loaded with F-bombs. Very NSFW.

In 1966 the White Sox pitching staff led the American League in ERA with a team ERA of 2.68. The next best were the Twins with 3.13. As a rookie on that staff, Dennis Higgins had a 2.52 ERA and struck out 86 batters over 93 innings, mostly in relief. After a 1967 season plagued with eye injuries he was dealt to the Senators in a six-player trade. During the 1969 season for the Senators, Higgins won a career high 10 games and had 19 saves. It was his 13th saves in 1968 that landed him on this Card That Never Was. I created this one for my other blog and have included it here:

Bill Voss was a September call-up in 1965. Although the outfielder had only 6 hits in 33 at bats one of them was a homer off Denny McLain. Voss spent most of 1966 and 1967 in the White Sox farm system. When he returned in 1968 he didn't even hit his weight but was given a second rookie card.

After the season he was dealt to the Angels. He fared better in California, hitting .255 over the next 2 seasons.  After being traded to the Brewers for the 1971 season he played on 3 different teams in 1972, the Milwaukee, Oakland and St. Louis. For his Card That Never Was I created a 1972 Topps Traded card of him with on the A's.

Although his career ended in a Cardinals uniform in 1972, he did appear on a 1973 card. It was the infamous Joe Rudi card that features 3 Oakland A's players, none of them Rudi. It shows Gene Tenace crossing the plate and being greeted by Voss and Marty Martinez  

**********

Once again this card appeals to me for no good reason. It could be Voss's inclusion on an infamous card of my childhood. It could be the inexplicable fact that Topps put 3 players on this rookie card while the others from 1966 only had 2.  It could be because the Sox are my team. Who am I kidding? It is Elia's rant. To this day, it makes me smile. I give it a 6 for "Guilty Pleasure".

1969 Topps Royals Rookie Stars: Steve Jones, Ellie Rodriguez

The 1969 Royals Rookie Stars card came with Ellie Rodriguez's name spelled 2 different ways. If you believe the price guides, the misspelled "Rodriquez" is worth 20 times the corrected version. The truth is the both cards seem to be priced similarly on eBay and COMC.

Steve Jones was a minor league veteran when the Royals selected him with the 10th pick in the 1968 expansion draft. He played minor league ball in the Twins, White Sox ans Senators organizations. He was called up by the Sox in late 1967. He played 11 games in 1967 for a record of 2-2. In February of 1968 he was dealt to the Senators in a 6 player trade. He pitched for the big league club in only 7 games but was 12-8 with their AAA team in Bufalo. He saw slightly more action for the expansion Royals but still split time with the farm team. 1969 would be his final MLB season and the only year in which Topps made a card for him. For his Card That Never Was, I put him on his own 1968 card. 

Ellie Rodriguez was the Yankees 3rd string catcher when he was taken with the Royals 13th pick in the expansion draft. He became the Royals opening day catcher and their sole representative at the 1969 All Star Game. He never got into the game. In 1970 he became back-up to Ed Kirkpatrick and after the season the Royals would trade him to the Brewers for another back-up catcher, Carl Taylor. Rodriguez would work his way back into the starting line up. He would again be the team's sole representative at the All Star Game. This time it would be for the Brewers in 1972, but once again he would never leave the bench. I had already made a Card That Never Was of Ellie Rodriguez for my other blog, click here. It seems appropriate to include it here as well.

And now for my grade. Steve Jones was a bust, while Ellie was a two-time All Star (well, sort of). Despite who was a bust or who was kinda good for a while, the card itself is unique because it is a rookie card from an expansion team and it has 2 versions. The error card with Rodriguez's name misspelled and the corrected card. Some sucker is gonna want it. I give it a 5 for "trade bait".