1962 Topps Lee Stange

In 1962 Topps had the multi-player "Rookie Parade" cards in the  7th and final series. But they still had several individual cards with the designated "1962 Rookie" star emblazoned on the front of the card. Most of these stars were yellow but there were a few that were white, like this one. Another inconsistency of the 1962 set that is shown on this card is the variations on the team name for the Twins. In some cases Minnesota Twins was spelled out in its entirety. in other cases it was abbreviated as Minn. Twins or as in this case Min. Twins. 

Originally signed by the Washington Senators, Lee Stange made his debut in 1961 with the relocated Minnesota Twins. He pitched for the Twins, Indians, and Sox both Red and White. He was used both as a starter and in relief over his 10 big league seasons. He was slightly better in the starting role than in relief. As a starter he was 47-44 with a 3.41 ERA, In relief he was 15-17 with 21 saves and an ERA of 3.87. After he retired he was employed as a pitching coach in the Red Sox, Twins and Athletics organizations.

In September of 1964 Stange became just the 10th Major League pitcher to strike out 4 batters in one inning.  He struck out Senators center fielder Don Lock, who advanced to first on a passed ball. He then struck out Willie Kirkland, Don Zimmer and John Kennedy. The 5th place Indians beat the 9th place Senators 9-0 in front of a crowd of 2,540.                                                                                                       Stange had Topps cards every year from 1962-1971 and even had a couple cards from his coaching career.  He appeared as a coach on the 1973 and 1974 Red Sox managers cards. For his Card That Never Was, I made a 1963 Fleer card for him. In 1963 Stange had a career high 12 victories.

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While never an All-Star, Lee Stange had an overall winning record for his 10 year MLB career. He had 62 wins and 61 losses and an ERA of 3.56. Normally, I would grade this a 4, "Set Filler", but his status as an original Minnesota Twin bumps him (barely) to a 5, "Trade Bait".

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". 

1963 Topps Rookie Stars: Bill Faul, Ron Hunt, Bob Lipski, Al Moran

Here is another randomly selected 4 player rookie card. These always make for nice, long posts. This one is from 1963 and includes 2 players from the Mets.

The first player is Tigers pitcher Bill Faul. Bill  was named to the Baseball Digest All-Flake team in 1985. He was rumored to have bitten the heads off live parakeets and eaten toads to put some "hop" into his pitches. He wore the number 13 for the Tigers and the Cubs and hypnotized himself before games. Don't just take my word for it.  Look at the cartoon from the back of his 1966 Topps card. 

Aside from alleged flakery, Bill was an All-American pitcher in college in 1961. He was drafted by the Tigers in 1962 and made his first appearance on the Big-League club that year. In 1963 he went 5-6, and spent most of 1964 in the minors before being sold to the Cubs. Although he had Topps cards in 1964 and 1966, he was skipped over in 1965. So here is a 1965 Topps Bill Faul Card That Never Was: 

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Ron Hunt was the Rookie of the Year runner up to Pete Rose in 1963. In all fairness, Rose got 85% of the vote to Hunt's 10%. But Hunt put up decent numbers his rookie year and in 1964 was the starting 2nd baseman in the All Star game. Hunt is best known for his willingness to take one for the team. He led the league in Hit-By-Pitches 7 consecutive years. In 1971 he was hit 50 times, just 1 shy of Hughie Jennings all-time record while playing for the Baltimore Orioles in 1896. 

Ron hunt played for the Mets, Dodgers, Giants, Expos and Cardinals from 1963-1974. Topps managed to include him in every set, so I had to stretch things a bit for his Card That Never Was. Hunt was claimed off waivers from the Expos by the Cards in September of 1974. Obviously Topps would not have made 1974 Traded card for a September transaction. But I would. Topps did make a 1975 card of Hunt in a Cardinals uniform, but he retired during spring training when St. Louis wanted to cut his pay.

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Bob Lipski's entire MLB career consisted of 2 innings and 1 at-bat. He struck out. He was signed by the Indians as part of a rule 5 draft in 1963. Since he wasn't used he had to be returned to the Phillies. Even though he was quite literally one and done, I created a second rookie card for him for his Card That Never Was. 

 I teamed him up with a player who made his MLB debut in 1964 and a childhood favorite of mine. Walt "No Neck" Williams. I chose "No Neck" for two reasons. First, that sweet Colt .45's uni and second the great nickname. Harry Caray once refered to the outfield of Walt Williams, Pat Kelly and Carlos May as "No Neck, No Arm and No Thumb." Carlos May had his thumb blown of as an Marine Reserve.

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Another Mets middle-infielder, Al Moran also graces this card. Moran was "the player to be named later" in the 1962 trade that sent the Red Sox's first black player, Pumpsie Green, to the Mets for Felix Mantilla.  In his rookie year, Moran hit .193 for the Mets as their primary shortstop. In 1964 he was replaced by Roy McMillan, a former gold glover who was 9 years older and batted a mere .211. Moran played only 16 games for the Mets in 1964 then spent the next 2 years in the minors.

Al Moran's entire two-year MLB career is fully documented by Topps with cards of him in both the 1963 and 1964 sets. So for his Card That Never Was, I created a 1963 Fleer card of him.

And now to grade the card.  Bob Lipski never even had a full "cup of coffee" in the Majors and Al Moran batted under the Mendoza Line in his only full season. But Bill Faul was a bonus-baby back in the day and was immortalized in Baseball Digest as a member of the "All-Flake Team". And then there is Ron Hunt. The first Met to start in an All Star Game and is still a fan favorite in NY. The fact that there are 2 Mets from their 2nd year in existence including a genuine All Star and I have to grade it a 5: "Trade Bait". And I'm looking at you, Warren.