#401 Ron Blackburn

Ron Blackburn was a pitcher for the Pirates in the late Fifties therefore he wore a batting helmet while pitching. Supposedly it was Branch Rickey's idea that players were to wear helmets in the field. May have been a good idea but it still looks odd to me no matter how often I see it.

Blackburn signed with the Pirates in 1953 and the North Carolina native worked as a starter for five seasons in the minors before he made the Pittsburgh roster as a reliever in 1958. He picked up a win in relief in his big league debut on Opening Day against the defending champion Braves. Here is how Blackburn recalled it as quoted by Baseball Reference:

"Hank Aaron was the first hitter I faced. It was Opening Day, 1958, at Milwaukee County Stadium. I remember it right down to the last patron: 44,344 fans in the stands. I came on in the bottom of the ninth inning, the score was tied and Hank tapped a grounder between short and third and Dick Groat went over and fielded it straight in front of me and was unable to make a throw. So he beat it out for a single. I faced nine more hitters and no one else got on base and I got the victory that day, 3-2."

Wikipedia picked up that ball and ran with this:

His major league debut was on Opening Day 1958 against the Milwaukee Braves. The first batter he pitched against in his major league career was Hank Aaron. Aaron hit a single off of Blackburn, but Blackburn managed to keep the next nine batters off base for his first Major League win.

Cool story but here is how it actually went, at least according to Retrosheet's boxscore:

BRAVES 11TH: BLACKBURN REPLACED POWERS (PITCHING); WISE BATTED FOR MCMAHON; Wise flied out to left; Pafko struck out; Logan
grounded out (third to first); 0 R, 0 H, 0 E, 0 LOB.  Pirates 3,
Braves 3.

PIRATES 12TH: CONLEY REPLACED WISE (PITCHING); Groat flied out
to left; Skinner grounded out (pitcher to second to first);
Stevens singled; Thomas flied out to left; 0 R, 1 H, 0 E, 1 LOB.
 Pirates 3, Braves 3.

BRAVES 12TH: Crandall grounded out (second to first); Roach
flied out to center; Schoendienst made an out to second; 0 R, 0
H, 0 E, 0 LOB.  Pirates 3, Braves 3.

PIRATES 13TH: Clemente grounded out (shortstop to first); Baker
struck out; Foiles struck out; 0 R, 0 H, 0 E, 0 LOB.  Pirates 3,
Braves 3.

BRAVES 13TH: Hazle grounded out (catcher to first); Mathews
grounded out (second to first); Aaron singled; Conley struck
out; 0 R, 1 H, 0 E, 1 LOB.  Pirates 3, Braves 3.

PIRATES 14TH: P. SMITH BATTED FOR BLACKBURN; P. Smith flied out
to center; Virdon grounded out (pitcher to shortstop to first);
Groat doubled; Skinner singled to pitcher [Groat to third];
Stevens singled [Groat scored, Skinner to second]; Thomas flied
out to right; 1 R, 3 H, 0 E, 2 LOB.  Pirates 4, Braves 3.

BRAVES 14TH: RAYDON REPLACED P. SMITH (PITCHING); Pafko made an
out to first; Logan singled; Logan was caught stealing second
(catcher to shortstop); Crandall walked; Roach struck out; 0 R,
1 H, 0 E, 1 LOB.  Pirates 4, Braves 3.

So it appears Blackburn came on in the 11th, not the ninth and faced Casey Wise, not the Hammer. Aaron did single, but it was in the 13th, Blackburn's third inning of work. He pitched to one more batter and obviously didn't retire nine straight after Aaron. He got the win with Raydon getting the save. Final was 4-3, not 3-2.

 I frequently tell stories of my days as a kid and games I attended. I'm sure sometimes I've mixed up dates and facts so this is not to demean Blackburn in any way. I guess my point is that memories can be imprecise and BR's quoting of Blackburn without a reference is proof that you can't always believe what you read, even if it's on the internet (sarcasm intended). And of course if you rely on Wikipedia for facts you pretty much get what you deserve.

Beyond all that Blackburn did in fact go on to have a successful rookie season. He appeared in 38 games and turned in an ERA of 3.39 in almost 64 innings with three saves to go with a 2-1 record. He even had two hits in seven at bats and both were doubles.

Blackburn was back in Pittsburgh in 1959 but as the season went along his earned runs allowed kept mounting and he was farmed out in July. He pitched in the minors, mostly in the Pirates chain through 1964 before he hung up his spikes.

After retiring Blackburn earned a degree and became a teacher and baseball coach at North Carolina's Catawba College and then the recreation director at the Western Correction Center in Morganton, North Carolina.

This is one fine card condition-wise. Bright and clean. It's off center but very close to mint otherwise. Many other Pirate players are pictured in this set in Seals Stadium in San Francisco. This might be where this shot was taken although it's hard to tell without a clear view of the signature red railings. There is a chance that it's in L.A.'s Coliseum.

BTW.... Blackburn had three Topps cards in all. Each of them pictured him wearing that darn batting helmet.

Here is the '58 Topps (from COMC):

And here is the '60 Topps (also from COMC):

#29 Jim Bolger

Another in a spate of recent 'hometown' signees, outfielder Jim Bolger was a native of Cincinnati and was signed by the Reds in 1950. Despite being only 18 at the time he saw a bit of action with them that year. He got a couple more looks sandwiched around some impressive minor league seasons but was dealt to the Cubs for 1955 but hit only .207 in 173 at bats.

Another minor league season passed and then in 1957 Bolger enjoyed his best days in the majors. He led the NL pinch hitters with 17 hits and a .354 average. He hit .275 overall for the year. In 1958 he numbers dropped off and he was dealt off to the Indians and then to the Phils getting little action in either place. He spent 3 years in the minors and hit well but never got another shot at the big leagues. He retired to go into private business and still lives in Cincinnati.

Bolger touches on his pinch hitting philosophy and the burden of being a ballplayer wearing glasses in a post on Tom Owens' blog.

My copy is off center but is otherwise in EX shape and I like the green frame. I believe the photo was shot in the Coliseum in LA but I wouldn't put money on it. Might be Seals Stadium.

#19 Ed Bressoud

Eddie Bressoud had a long baseball career. Signed by the Giants in 1950 he played three years in their farm system, gave two years to military service and returned to play a couple more seasons in the minors. He debuted with the Giants, still based in New York, in June of 1956. He opened the '57 season back on the farm but returned to the big club in July of that year.

As the team moved west Bressoud gained more playing time at shortstop, playing in over a hundred games in both 1959 and 1960. In 1961 his slick fielding was no longer enough to hold off other competitors for the starting slot and he was relegated back to the bench in place of Jose Pagan.

The Houston Colt '45s took Bressoud as their first expansion pick and them dealt him to the Red Sox. While he missed by a year the chance to play on the Giants' 1962 NL Champs club, he did enjoy his best big league seasons with the Red Sox. He had double digit homers and his best batting averages in three seasons in Fenway. He made the AL All Star squad in 1964 but didn't get into the game, a fact that he was always bitter about. By 1966 however he had been traded to the Mets and then to the Cards for 1967. He got a Series ring and a couple of at bats in the '67 Series against his old Red Sox club.

He managed a year in the minors before becoming a teacher and coach at DeAnza Community College in California. Bressoud has said that despite his success in Boston and that title in St. Louis, he always considered himself as a member of the Giants.

I'm guessing that Bressoud (btw...Baseball Reference gives the pronunciation as 'bruh-sue', with a silent 'D' which means I have had it wrong for 40 50 years) posed for this picture while a member of the New York Giants which would explain the hatless pose chosen. But that could be the Los Angeles Coliseum so, who knows.

#506 Bob Purkey

Pittsburgh native Bob Purkey began and ended his major league career with the Pirates but it was the seven seasons he pitched in Cincinnati that were the most productive. Signed by the Bucs in 1948 Purkey worked his way up through the minors, battling injuries and taking two years off for military service (he pitched for some highly successful Army teams) and getting several short looks with the big club before he established himself in 1957. He had learned the knuckleball from Branch Rickey along the way and he went 11-14 that year for a 62-92 seventh place club. Traded that winter to the Reds for Don Gross (who won only seven games in 2+ seasons in Pittsburgh) Purkey became one of the better pitchers in the NL, winning 17 games and making the All Star team.

He won double digit games in all but one of his seasons with the Reds, was a three time All Star, and in 1962 he went 23-5 with a 2.81 ERA and finished a distant third in the Cy Young voting behind winner Don Drysdale despite having numbers that compared quite well with the Dodger righty.

He pitched and lost Game Three of the 1961 World Series against the Yankees. In that game he allowed only six hits in a nine inning effort but homers he gave up late to Johnny Blanchard and Roger Maris cost him a 3-2 decision. He came back to appear in the fifth and final game of that Series as one of seven guys that Fred Hutchinson dragged out of the bullpen in a futile effort to stop the Yankee momentum.

He pitched one season for the Cardinals (1965 winning 10 games) and then returned to Pittsburgh for 1966 where he appeared in just 10 games before being released and retireing.

After baseball he founded an insurance agency which still operates under his name. As always the black frame on this card makes the red Reds uni stand out. Looks like Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum is the scene of the photo shoot.

#107 Norm Larker

Norm Larker began as a pro in 1949 in his hometown of Hazleton, Pennsylvania and caught the eye of Brooklyn scouts who signed him for the 1950 season. Larker began a long trek through the loaded Dodger system as an outfielder before he finally emerged with the now-Los Angeles Dodgers in 1958.

In his rookie season he batted .277 in 99 games. The following year, 1959, he played mostly first base and picked up a World Series ring playing in all six games and hitting .188. In 1960 he moved to first base spelling Gil Hodges and had by far his best season. Hitting .323 he finished 2nd in the batting race and made the NL All Star squad.

His production and playing time declined in 1961 and he was drafted by the expansion Houston franchise for which he played one year. He was traded to the Braves and then to the Giants late in 1963. That was his last season in the majors although he played some minor league ball and also played in Japan through 1966.

Pretty standard card for this set. That's the LA Coliseum in the background.

The September 10, 1962 issue of Sports Illustrated featured a bit of by-play that included both Norm Larker and a player whose card was featured a week or so ago, Hal Woodeshick:

The Houston Colts put on quite a show for early arrivals in Cincinnati's Crosley Field recently. First, Pitcher Hal Woodeshick and Catcher Jim Campbell almost had a fight when Campbell tried to hurry his teammate out of the batting cage. Woodeshick refused to be hurried, saying, "I'm taking my cuts." "What for?" said Campbell. "You're never around long enough to bat." Woodeshick went for Campbell and the two had to be separated.
Then Infielder Bob Aspromonte, upset because First Baseman Norm Larker wouldn't let him use one of his bats, threw it the length of the dugout and broke the knob end. Then he pulled all of Larker's bats out of the rack onto the concrete floor. Larker didn't go for Aspromonte—just for Aspromonte's bats, pulling them out of the rack and flinging them to the floor, too. When none broke, he took one and started hitting it against the concrete steps.
"What in hell is going on here?" suddenly roared Manager Harry Craft, and an uneasy peace settled over the Houston Colts.

#206 Carl Furillo

It's not quite Ted Kluszewski as a Pirate or Roger Maris on the A's but Carl Furillo is one of the 'Boys of Summer' and just doesn't look right on an "L.A." Dodger card. He needs the distinctive Brooklyn Dodger "B" on that cap. And the view of the vast L.A. Coliseum bleachers just doesn't say "Carl Furillo" to me. Where's the 'GEM Razor' sign? So to me the severe 'off-centeredness' of this card isn't the only thing 'wrong' with it.

Furillo (aka "Skoonj") was known for his powerful arm, ability to play the quirky rightfield corner in Ebbetts Field and his consistent work with the bat. He won the 1953 batting title in the NL with an average of .344 and hit at least .290 in nearly every season he was a regular. Furillo finished with a career .299 average and nearly 200 homers as well. Like a lot of players of his generation Furillo lost several potential major league seasons serving in World War II.

He saved a lot of his best work for the seven World Series' in which he participated. His spectacular catch of a blast off the bat of Johnny Mize (who already had hit three homers in the Series) saved the Game 5 6-5 Dodger victory in the 1952 Series against the Yankees. He hit a pinch single drove in two runs in the Los Angeles Dodgers' 3-1 win over the White Sox in Game 3 of the '59 Series.

Furillo's career ended the following season when he was released by L.A. while injured and Furillo later sued over his release, winning a reported $21,000. Though the allegation was denied by baseball Furillo always maintained he was blackballed by the sport due to that lawsuit.

Carl Furillo went on to own a Queens, N.Y. deli and worked for Otis Elevator. He worked as a foreman on the installation of the elevators in the World Trade Center.

#366 Humberto Robinson



Humberto Robinson was the first of many Panamanians to play in the major leagues. He debuted on April 20, 1955 with a one batter save in Wrigley Field against the Cubs. He entered the game in relief of Lew Burdette with the bases loaded and the Braves on top, 9-5. He K'd Cub cleanup hitter Hank Sauer to preserve Burdette's second win of the young season. Welcome to the majors, Humberto Robinson.

Robinson remained with the Braves through the 1958 season pitching mostly in relief. He spent the '57 campaign in the minors (winning 23 games with Toronto) and last pitched in '58 during mid-September so it's unclear if he was on the Braves World Series roster that season.

By the time this card was issued he had already passed from the Braves organization via an April trade to the Indians and a month later was moved along to the Phillies. By the end of 1960 he has back in the minors and never resurfaced on a major league club.

But before he died in Brooklyn in September of 2009 he was able to tell folks that he wore (arguably) the finest uniform in baseball if not all of sports, the Braves gorgeous togs seen in this card.

#20 Duke Snider

Edwin Donald "Duke" Snider died today at the age of 84.

The Duke of Flatbush played 18 seasons in the Majors. All but his last two seasons were with the Dodgers, eleven of those in Brooklyn. He, of course, is the 'Duke' part of "Mickey, Willie and the Duke" fame. Those three being centerfielders for the three New York franchises during the 1950s.

There will be a lot written about Duke Snider in the next few days so I won't attempt a real bio here but I do have one fact that will likely surprise, or even amaze, your friends. Who would you guess is the leading home run hitter during the decade of the 1950s? Willie Mays? Hank Aaron? Mickey Mantle? Nope, its The Duke.

This card was one of the first 'star' cards I acquired when I began this project. It's in better shape than the scan shows. Nice seafoam green framed shot of Snider in that iconic Dodger uniform taken in what I believe is the LA Coliseum. It even somehow conveys his reputation as one of the nicer guys in the game.

RIP Duke Snider