#379 Bob Miller

There have been four guys named 'Bob Miller' to play in the big leagues, all of them pitchers and three of them nearly pitched in the bigs at the same time. Our featured Bob Miller, the only one to appear on a '59 Topps, was a member of the 'Whiz Kids' Phillies club of 1950. That was his first full season in the majors and he won 11 games as he finished second in the Rookie of the Year voting. Late that season, after beginning the year 8-0, Miller hurt his back and his effectiveness diminished.

He started (and lost) the fourth and final game of the World Series. In that game he allowed two runs (just one earned) on a pair of hits and a wild pitch. A game opening error contributed to his demise. With the Phils facing elimination he was on a very short leash that day.

His back woes continued to plague him into 1951 and in fact he was never able to match that rookie year. He spent 1952 in the minors and then returned to the Phillies and pitched through 1958, pitching primarily as a starter for a couple of years before moving to the bullpen. On August 9, 1953 Miller tossed a six hit shutout and had four hits of his own in a 7-0 win over the Cubs.

He finished his career with a 42-42 mark and a 3,96 ERA. He had been signed out of the University of Detroit by the Phils and he had served (and pitched) in the Army before his pro career began. After his playing days he went back to coach his old team at the University of Detroit for 39 years and worked in the insurance business. A very nice interview with Bob Miller appeared last summer on MLB.com.

He's pictured on this card as a Cardinal but he was only a member of that club for a short time and he never pitched for them. Late in 1958 he was sent to St. Louis in a conditional deal but the Cards returned him to the Phils the following April. He pitched in the minors very briefly that year before hanging up his glove. Topps re-used a picture of Miller that had been around for awhile and just airbrushed in a St. Louis cap logo.

Here are some of the cards of Miller that used that same photo:

1950 Bowman

1952 Topps

1958 Topps

#254 Zeke Bella

Signed off the Connecticut sandlots by the Yankees in 1951 John 'Zeke' Bella took a three year 'detour on his way up the Yankee ladder with a military stint during the Korean War. He hit over three hundred in his four full minor league season and got a ten at-bat look with the Yankees in 1957. Bella relates the story of his September call-up on his BR Bullpen page:

"The day I got called up it was raining and the game with the Indians was postponed," said Bella. "So we made it up with a day-night doubleheader the next day. The first time I went out to right field, I looked up and said to myself, "This is something."
"Late in the second game Casey Stengel said, 'Hey you with the funny first name, go up and hit.' I faced Ray Narleski and struck out."

Another .330 season in the minors in 1958 earned him a trade to the Yankees' kissin' cousins in Kansas City. 1959 was Bella's last and best shot at the majors. He hit .207 in 43 games for the A's and after another year in the minors he was out of baseball after 1960. He was a mail carrier in his home state after his baseball days.

The Greenwich Time webpage has a nice story of Bella celebrating his 80th birthday in 2010. He poses with his '59 card in the photo gallery accompanying the story. The '59 is his only card by the way. He's got an airbrushed cap and his Yankee pinstripes.

Zeke hasn't changed much. He's got the same smile!

#313 Frank House

Happy Birthday, Frank House. Frank was born on this date in 1930. He passed away at the age of 75 in 2005. He was a part-timer/platoon catcher through the 1950's, beginning and ending his major league career with the Tigers. He squeezed in stints with the A's and Reds as well. He was property of the Orioles during the 1961 season but never got a call-up from Rochester and then was dealt to the Tigers in July of that year.

He's pictured here in his Athletics uni but I think there is a good chance that he posed as a Tiger and was airbrushed enhanced, but maybe I'm just paranoid. I AM sure he is posing at Yankee Stadium. And I bet Topps wasn't lying when they state in House's blurb that he was 'a powerhouse behind the plate'. He looks pretty solid.

This blog will have it's share of cards in nice condition but more than not will appear to have lived a full life as has this example. After all, I am building my set one fair to good card at a time.

#530 Wally Moon

Wally Moon seemed to be avoiding me. I lost two or three auctions for his card and twice (twice!!) purchased it only to have the seller refund my money because it wasn't in stock after all. Finally nabbed this pretty nice specimen a week or two ago. It features nice corners, clean, bright front and back, yet another airbrushed cap logo and Wally's easily recognizable uni brow. It's a high number to boot.

The back of this one was full of stuff that I never knew... the fact that Wally was an Aggie ...err, excuse me...IS an Aggie. I'm told there is no such thing as a former Ag. Got himself a Masters degree no less. I also didn't know he played for the Houston Buffs, the cards top minor affiliate at the time.

The writeup mentions that the Dodgers were hoping that a change of scenery would 'act as a tonic' to his batting average. Seemed to work as Moon jumped back to a .302 average, his best since his Rookie of the Year season of 1954. The deal that sent Moon to the Dodgers brought Gino Cimoli to the Cardinals. Cimoli only lasted a year in St. Louis while Moon finished 4th in NL MVP voting for 1959 and had several more good years on the west coast before he retired after earning another ring with the '65 Dodgers.

Moon homered off the previously featured Dick Donovan in the sixth and final game of the '59 World Series. I didn't plan that. Those two cards just happened to be close at hand.