#311 Norm Zauchin

Big Norm Zauchin, the pride of Royal Oak, Michigan once had a dream of starring for his hometown Detroit Falcons of the brief lived Basketball Association of America. But when that league folded he set his sights on his 'other' sport, baseball, and the Detroit Tigers. In 1948 he was promised a contract by well known Tiger scout Wish Egan. But Zauchin ended up waiting fruitlessly for Egan to follow-up and decided to strike a deal with the Boston Red Sox instead.

He climbed steadily up though the Sox chain as a power hitting first baseman and got a taste of the majors in 1951 before spending two years in the military. He returned to baseball in '54 with another year of seasoning and made the Sox in 1955. He took over the first base job a few weeks into the season and went on to hit 27 homers and drive in 93 runs. He managed to bat only .239 and led the A.L. in strike outs but overall he was impressive enough to garner Rookie of the Year votes, finishing third behind winner Herb Score and his teammate Billy Klaus.

Like Klaus, he has credited another service returnee, the great Ted Williams, with showing him how to be more selective and become a better hitter. On May 27 of the 1955 season Zauchin had his best game as a major leaguer going 4 for 5 with three dingers and a double and driving in 10 runs in a 16-0 bashing of the Senators. Despite all that Zauchin lost ground career-wise in the next few seasons.

He averaged about 100 plate appearances the next two seasons, suffered some injuries and was traded to the Senators before the '58 season. He had a hot start with the Nats but when his bat cooled off and he missed time with an injury his commitment to the club was questioned my manager Cookie Lavagetto. By the following May, probably by the time this card was issued, he had been sold to the Orioles' organization and he was soon out of the game.

Following his baseball days Zauchin was a pro bowler for awhile and managed a bowling center in Birmingham which had become his home during his minor league days. He died in 1999. His SABR bio is, as always, a good place to find his full story. He is a member of the Birmingham Barons Hall of Fame alongside the likes of Willie Mays, Rollie Fingers, Reggie Jackson and Pie Traynor.

His card shows him in his Senators home duds in Griffith Stadium.

#299 Billy Klaus

Billy Klaus didn't look like such an angry tough-guy hard ass on all of his baseball cards, just the hat-less ones. But I will grant you that on this one he appears to be a guy I'd avoid trifling with.Maybe he just hated being asked to remove his cap.

Klaus originally signed with the Cleveland Indians in 1946 at age 17 and spent a year at their class D affiliate before it was discovered that his signing was illegal (before his high school eligibility was up?) and the contract was voided. He then signed with the Cubs and spent three very productive minor league seasons moving up their ladder.

In 1950 he was drafted by the Dallas club in the Texas League and played for Charlie Grimm. When Grimm moved on to the Braves organization the next year he had them sign Klaus and over the next three seasons he played at their AAA level club getting quick looks at the big leagues on a couple of occasions.

The Braves traded Klaus to the Giants for the '54 season but it wasn't until he was traded again a year later, this time to the Red Sox, that he truly found a baseball home. He won the regular shortstop job in June and his addition to the lineup is one reason the Sox surged over the second half of the season. That's according to Ted Williams and a nice Sport Illustrated story summarizes the Boston turn-around that year.

Klaus finished behind Herb Score in the Rookie of the Year voting (and ahead of fellow Red Sox infielder Norm Zauchin whose card will be shown here next) by hitting .283 and driving in 60 runs. That's pretty impressive for a guy who wasn't even a regular for the first 2 months of the season. He also got some MVP votes that year.

Klaus remained the Sox' starter at short for two more seasons although his numbers steadily declined. His continued fielding issues and back problems he incurred in 1957 led to him finding himself out of a steady job in 1958. He mostly pinch hit in Boston that year and wasn't very good at it and the Sox shipped him to the Orioles that winter.

He played in over 100 games for the Birds in 1959 and briefly played well enough to relegate Brooks Robinson to the minors but was used sparingly in 1960, hit just over .200 and was drafted away by the expansion Senators. One year there, one year plus a bit in Philadelphia and then Klaus took his glove and bat to Japan for what remained of 1963. He wasn't happy with the experience and returned to his home in Florida, opened a paint store, watched his younger brother Bobby play baseball and eventually got back into uniform as a minor league manager.

He managed (and played a bit, too) for the Senators and A's organizations and retired to his paint company for good in 1970. Klaus died in 2007. His story is best told in his SABR bio.

Billy Klaus doesn't always look like a German tank commander (that my original opening line for this entry). And for proof take a look at some of his other cards including my other Billy Klaus, the 1960 Topps:

And his '58.