#404 Hank Sauer

At the age of 42 in 1959 Hank Sauer was the third oldest player to have a card in the set. Only Enos Slaughter and Murray Dickson had a year on the guy whose nickname was 'Honker'. While he's shown with his last team, the Giants, Sauer's glory days came with the Chicago Cubs with whom he played from 1949 through 1956.

Sauer's pro baseball career began way back in 1937 when he signed with the Yankees after the western Pennsylvania native had spent a couple of years working in a New Deal Civilian Conservation Corps job to help support his family. He spent three years playing in the Yankee's system and displaying a powerful bat before he was drafted away by the Reds. Over the next seven years Sauer played mostly in the minors for Cincinnati while getting three major league trials of various lengths and putting in a year of military service. His minor league exploits led to his being elected to the Minor League Baseball Hall of Fame.

He took over the left-field job for the Reds in 1948 and proceeded to blast 35 homers while hitting .260 and driving in 97 runs. But a slow start to 1949, combined with a propensity to strike out caused the Reds to trade Sauer to the Cubs in June. He made the most of the change in scenery and in less than 100 games he had 27 homers, 83 RBI and a .291 average. His hitting captured the hearts of Cub fans and they would shower him with pouches of his favorite chewing tobacco during games.

His hitting had improved when he switched to a heavy 40 ounce bat and it never let up during a five season stretch on Chicago's North Side. Dubbed the 'Mayor of Wrigley Field' Sauer hit over thirty homers in each of the next five seasons except one. In 1952 he led the NL in home runs with 37 and RBI with 121. He won the NL MVP Award for that production.

His numbers plummeted in 1955 and he had lost his starting job when the Cubs traded him to the Cards. He played well in a reserve role in St. Louis but was released due to what Sauer claims was his being a bad influence on Stan Musial. Sauer discusses this in his SABR bio:

Sauer, playing as a reserve in 1956, batted 151 times, but he averaged .298 with five home runs and 24 RBIs, despite being hit in the face with a bat during one of the team’s practice sessions. Also, he and his roommate stayed out until after midnight two or three nights a week, which, Hank recollected, Musial enjoyed.
The Cardinals’ management, however, did not favor late-night carousing. Sauer observed, “In September of ‘56, the manager [Fred Hutchinson] came up and said, ‘Hank, we’ve got to let you go.’ I said, ‘Let me go! I’m having a pretty damn good year. Why are you letting me go?’
“He said, ‘Yeah, you’re having a good year, but your roommate is having a lousy year. He’s only hitting .315.’ I said, ‘What the hell’s the matter with .315?’ He said, ‘Musial is not a .315 hitter. He’s a .330 hitter. You’re on your way!’ So I was the one who had to go.”

Sauer revived his career with the Giants in 1957 and earned Comeback of the Year honors but in '58 he was back to a reserve role and in '59 he played sparingly before becoming a coach at mid-season. That ended his playing days. He remained with the Giants in various capacities for 35 years. He died at the age of 84 in 2001 while playing golf.

That's Seals Stadium behind Sauer with it's distinctive red railings. The 'Honker' looks every bit of his 42 years, doesn't he?

Sauer's brother Ed played the outfield for three NL teams in the 1940s. His son Hank Jr. played three years in the lower minors in the 1970s. There are several articles about his days in Chicago on the Chicago Tribune web site. And here is his obit in that paper.

#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):

#228 Don Gross

I'm not really sure what prompted Topps to pose pitcher Don Gross holding a bat in Seals Stadium much less use the shot on his 1959 card. It's not like he was a good hitting pitcher or a converted position player. Just a curiosity of the set I guess.

Anyway, the left-handed Gross signed with the Reds in 1950 after playing (though not lettering apparently) at Michigan State University. He worked his way up through the Reds' chain with some impressive numbers, spent 1953 in the military, and debuted in July of 1955 with Cincinnati.

He went 4-5 that first half season in 11 starts over 17 appearances. He split the '56 season between the Reds and AAA Havana and then was 7-9 in a spot starters role in 1958. He was traded to the Pirates after that season in a deal that brought Bob Purkey to the Reds. While Purkey went on to All Star status with the Reds Gross won only six more games as his career finished with him bouncing around the minors through 1963.

A near no-hitter against the Braves that turned into a tough luck 1-0 loss on May 28th of 1958 was his career highlight. Or maybe not. Gross was part of a wacky 9 run bottom of the ninth rally that the Giants put together on May 5, 1958 in Seals Stadium.

Cruising along with an 11-1 lead Vern Law looked to finish off the Giants with three more outs. Then this happened:

Leading off, Ray Jablonski singles, and so does Orlando Cepeda. Hank Sauer reaches on an error and the bases are loaded. Willie Kirkland flies out. Jim King hits a pinch double to score two. John Antonelli doubles in two more to make it 11-5. Bob Speake hits a pinch double, the third in a row by the Giants and it's now 11-6. Curt Raydon replaces Law and promptly walks Willie Mays who is then forced at second, the second out of the inning.

Ray Jablonski then hits a 3 run homer to draw the Giants to within two at 11-9. Ron Blackburn comes on to pitch and gives up a homer to Cepeda and it's suddenly a one run game! But were are not quite done. Sauer walks, representing the tying run and on to pitch comes our guy, Don Gross. He walks pinch hitter Bob Schmidt and Jim Finigan, hitting for King grounds to short where it's booted for an error. The bases are now loaded. Any of the 5,502 Giants fans who had stayed to the end on a runaway game must have thought the were about to witness one of the best comebacks in baseball history.

But Don Taussig, the fifth pinch hitter of the inning, pops out to second to end the fiasco and give Don Gross a save, his first of seven that season.

Bottom line on the Giants ninth inning:
9 runs, 7 hits including three consecutive doubles and back-to-back homers, 3 walks, 
5 pinch-hitters, a pinch-runner, 2 errors and 3 LOB.

The line score:

                1  2  3   4  5  6   7  8  9    R  H  E
                -  -  -   -  -  -   -  -  -    -  -  -
Pirates         0  2  0   0  0  1   5  0  3   11 14  3
Giants          1  0  0   0  0  0   0  0  9   10 12  1

And now that I think about it, given the the picture on this card was taken in '58 at Seals Stadium in San Francisco, might Gross have been trying to send some subliminal message by holding up a bat? Taunting the Giants on the day following that crazy game? I guess we'll never know.

#405 Roy McMillan

Slick fielding shortstop Roy McMillan who, as the card-back notes, was known as 'Mr. Shortstop',  signed with the Reds out of Texas A&M in 1947. He had one good hitting season in the Reds' system but mostly used his glovework to move up to the Reds in 1951. He held down their shortstop spot for 10 seasons while winning three Gold Gloves and making a couple of NL All Star teams.

He was so respected for his defense that he finished sixth in MVP voting in 1956 despite a .263 batting average. He led the NL in assists at SS four times, putouts three times, DPs three times and fielding percentage three times. Veteran player and manager Jimmy Dykes called McMillan the best shortstop he'd ever seen. McMillan earned himself a Sports Illustrated cover appearance and called it the greatest honor of his career. He's a member of the Reds' Hall of Fame.

He was traded to the Braves for the 1961 season so he missed both the Red's title (gone too soon) and the Braves pair of titles (there too late). After three plus seasons in Milwaukee he was dealt to the Mets where he finished out his career. After retiring as a player he coached and managed and had brief stints as manger of the Mets and Brewers.

Roy McMillan died in 1997. His '59 card is a Seals Stadium shot with the seafoam green frame. Good stuff.

Here is his Sports Illustrated cover:

#443 Daryl Spencer

After coming out of Wichita State hard hitting infielder Daryl Spencer spent a year in independent ball before being acquired by the New York Giants in 1950. After a 'cup of coffee' in 1952 he broke into the Giants everyday lineup in 1953 and slugged 20 homers with 56 RBI. His .208 average was a career low although his career average was only .244 in 10 seasons.

After that rookie year Spencer spent two seasons in the military and led his army team to an armed services baseball title. Back in the bigs in 1956 he spent the next four seasons as a Giants' starting middle infielder. He was a solid if unspectacular player and was dealt to the Cardinals for 1960 and he played there for a season and a quarter as their shortstop. Then it was on to the Dodgers and Reds in a platoon role.

After he retired from the majors he spent another seven seasons in Japan where he played on four pennant winner with the Hankyu Braves. He slugged 74 homers over his first two seasons there. His aggressive style, especially on the base paths was a revelation to the Japanese and he was a very popular player there. He retired at one point, returned to Wichita to open a restaurant but was drawn back to Japan and served as a player coach before retiring for good after the 1972 season.

After returning to the States for good he managed in amateur ball and worked for Wichita's AA club.

This is a nice clean card with an action pose. I like it a lot for that reason. I'd guess it was taken at Seals Stadium because there were many in the set that were shot there. Plus, Spencer has on the Giants' home uni.

Informative interview done while Spencer was still in Japan can be found here. And as usual his SABR page is the go-to spot for his backstory.

Found this card image on the web. Spencer on a Japanese card.

#347 Bob Buhl

Bob Buhl was the perfect #3 starter for the tough Braves teams of the later 1950s. He pitched well while eating innings and matched the competitive nature of Warren Spahn and Lew Burdette. He spent a year in the White Sox chain after signing in 1947. The next year Buhl was granted free agency (free agency in 1948, who knew?) and signed with the Boston Braves. He pitched erratically for three minor league seasons then spent two years in the service.

He debuted as a rookie in 1953 and proceeded to win 13 games with 18 complete games and three shutouts. An suffered the 'sophomore jinx' in '54 but regained his form and won nearly a hundred games for the Braves during the rest of the decade  He made two starts for the Braves in the 1957 World Series and, although he was chanced early in both, he picked up a ring as a crown jewel on a nice career. An injury kept him out of the '58 Series.

Traded to the Cubs early in the 1962 season Buhl won double digit games and had respectable ERA's for Chicago teams that regularly finished at or near the bottom of the NL. He was later dealt to the Phillies in the trade that sent Fergie Jenkins to the Cubs. He pitched about a year in Philly before retiring in 1967 after he was released.

Buhl was known as one of the worst hitting pitchers of all time and went 0 fer 70 in 1962 which set a record for at bats without a hit. He tried hitting left-handed at one point but didn't have any better results.

Bob Buhl died in 2001 within two days of the death of his Braves roommate and friend, Ed Mathews. That's the sett Braves uni Buhl is wearing in front of the Seals Stadium grandstand. Add in the yellow frame and it adds up to a nice card.

#193 Sammy Taylor

I like digging into some of these player bios when I can. You never know what you'll find when you go down some rabbit hole that presents itself through a cardback. Take Sammy Taylor for example. He played a year at the age of 17 (1950) with an independent club in North Carolina and then the next line of type reads "Did Not Report". What? What kid gets a chance to play baseball for pay and then 'does not report'?

Well actually there are a few scenarios I could see. Maybe he was working elsewhere and needed to make steady money. Maybe his folks disapproved of baseball, or one of them was ill. Maybe he was planning to go into the service very soon, after-all he served the next four years in the employ of Uncle Sam. Maybe, and the romantic in me wants this to be true, he had a girl he just couldn't bear to leave. Sadly I dug about 10 Google pages deep and couldn't find anything to explain Sammy Taylor's reluctance to begin a career on the diamond.

But begin (or actually resume) his career he did in 1956 in the Milwaukee Braves system. After two years he was dealt to the Cubs and debuted in Chicago in 1958. In his four years with the Cubs he was a platoon catcher for the most part but he did get more than 300 at bats his first two seasons. His best year was 1959 when he hit .269 with 13 homers.

He was traded early in the 1962 season to the Mets and then in 1963 he split the year with three clubs, Mets, Indians and Reds. He retired after that season.

Taylor was involved in one of the strangest plays in baseball history, one that ended up with two balls 'in play'. Rather than recount it here check out this link to a Cub fan page for the details. Cool story, bro.

One thing I came across when searching Taylor's story is the fact that in that when he was playing in that independent league in 1950 one of his teammates was a guy named Cliff Bolton. Now Bolton at that point was 43 years old having began his days as a player in 1927 at the age of 20. He played all or part of 7 major league seasons, mostly with the Senators. After his last big league game in 1941 he returned to the minors and played through 1952 at the age of  45! And he hit .344 in 27 games that year.

Getting back to Sammy Taylor... nothing says '1959 baseball card' like a catcher posed squatting along the track without any equipment other than his glove. The red railings mean Seals Stadium in San Francisco.

#28 Red Worthington

I never remember 'Red' Worthington as 'Red'. He was 'Al' Worthington. But then again I don't remember his pitching for the Giants, only the Twins, so don't go by me.

Anyway, Worthington signed with the Chicago Cubs out of the University of Alabama in 1951. He had led the Crimson Tide to an SEC title and a College World Series berth. After an unremarkable year in the Cubs system he was dealt off to the Giants prior to the 1952 season.

He made his major league debut in July of 1953. Boy, did he ever! Worthington became the first major leaguer to open his career with back-to-back shutouts. He beat the Phils (at home) and the Dodgers (in Flatbush) on July 6 & 11 by identical 6-0 scores. He went on to lose his next eight decisions that year before finishing up with a couple of strong starts to land at 4-8 for the season.

He pitched mostly in the minors for a couple of years before returning as a starter in 1956. He began transitioning into a reliever in 1957. He had a career high 11 wins in 1958 and pitched well in '59 but found himself bounced from the Giants to the Red Sox, White Sox and Reds before finding a plsce with the 1964 Twins and taking over the closer role there.

Between '64 and his retirement at the age of forty following the 1969 season Worthington saved 88 games for the Twins with 37 wins and a 2.62 ERA. Following his playing days he went on the coach the Twins in 1972 under his manager from his Giants days, Bill Rigney. He then spent 13 years as the head coach at Liberty University. His book was published in 2004. In 2011 the Birmingham native was inducted into the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame.

There is just enough red in the background of that picture to ID the scene as Seals Stadium. These seafoam green cards have grown on me since i began blogging this set. This one is in great shape other than the slight yellowing of the cardboard.

Btw... there was another Red Worthington, an outfielder for the Braves and Cards in the early 30s. That Red and Al were not related.

#14 Pete Whisenant

Pete Whisenant had one season of semi-regular outfield duty getting almost 350 at bats with the Cubs in 1956 and spent the rest of his eight big league seasons as a fourth outfielder. He was signed by the Braves in 1947 and debuted with them in 1952 following a year of military service. He's apprenticed for a major league spot by showing good power and a spotty batting average in the Braves system.

Whisenant spent those eight seasons with six different clubs. In addition to the Cubs and Braves he played for the Reds (obviously), the Cardinals, Indians and Senators/Twins. He had two separate runs with the Reds, the second coming in his final big league season, 1961.

He coached for the Reds for a season or so immediately after he retired as an active player and then returned nearly two decades later to manage in the A's chain. I found a sort of neat story posted by a blogger on his non-sports blog that tells a story of Whisenant giving a baseball to the then young blogger's mom. It's a quick fun read.

Another nice black framed Reds card. And another shot with San Francisco's Seals Stadium's distinctive red railings in the background. This is Whisenant's second straight cool looking card as he appeared on a black 1958 Topps the year before. Here it is as a scan I found on the 'net. I like the '59 better.

#68 Dick Schofield

The first of a three generation baseball family, Dick 'Ducky' Schofield began his baseball life as a 'bonus baby' with the St. Louis Cardinals and as such spent the 1953 and 1954 seasons languishing on the Cards' bench. After playing most of the next two seasons in the minors Schofield became the Cards utility infielder before being dealt to the Pirates in 1958.

He played a key role in the Bucs' 1960 pennant run when he filled in admirably for  Dick Groat at shortstop in September after the soon-to-be MVP was sidelined with a broken wrist. Schofield hit .400 in his sub role but with Groat back for the World Series Schofield was back to being a bench rider. He did get a championship ring for his troubles, though. His .333 average for the year, even as a part timer, was easily his best ever.

He was handed the full time shortstop job for a couple of seasons in Pittsburgh and hit .246 in both '63 and '64. He was dealt to the Giants in 1965 and started most of that season as well. After that he was shuffled around the majors never again playing full time. After runs with the Dodgers, Yanks, Red Sox and twice more with the Cardinals he ended his career with the Brewers in 1971.

His son, also named Dick Schofield, had a long career in the 80s and 90s, mostly with the Angels. Grandson Jason Werth is a current Washington National.

Interesting interview with Ducky Schofield appeared in a St. Louis paper a few years back. Schofield has some strong opinions on the game today and the article explains the intricate Schofield/Werth family tree which is chock full of athletes and athletic accomplishments. His granddaughter played volleyball for the Nebraska Cornhuskers and was a team standout.

This is a Seals Stadium shot. And it has a pink frame. I like action cards, even the 'posed' action cards. Seems like I've had a ton of portrait cards lately.

#184 Harvey Haddix

I consider Harvey Haddix the 'cover boy' for my 1959 Topps set. I keep the cards in one of those wide binders that has a sleeve attached to the spine and I keep a copy of this card in that sleeve. When it comes time to get a new run of posts done I reach for my 'Harvey binder'.

Most folks that bother to look at this blog likely have a sense of baseball history and are aware of the remarkable game that Haddix pitched on May 26, 1959 when, while pitching for the Pirates, he tossed 12 perfect innings against the Milwaukee Braves before losing the game in the 13th inning. It was a remarkable effort by an under-the-weather Haddix and it's been chronicled all over the place. One of the most well written accounts can be found on the SI Vault site located here. 

An interesting recollection of the night is supplied by a New York Times staffer in this story. A shorter account can be found on the History.com site or just google Harvey Haddix perfect game and click any of the 36,000 hits.

Harvey Haddix pitched for 14 years and went 136-113 with a 3.63 ERA. All but two of those seasons came with National League clubs, the Cardinals (he won 53 games for them after signing in 1947 and working his way up to the bigs in 1952), the Phils (22 wins in two seasons), the Redlegs (one season but he was shown as a Redleg on this '59 card even after being dealt to the Bucs in January), and the Pirates (five seasons and a couple of wins in the 1960 World Series).

His best season was his actual rookie year of 1953 when he won 20 games for St. Louis and led the league with six shutouts. He finished second to Jim Gilliam in the Rookie of the Year balloting.

Haddix closed out his career with two seasons with the Orioles in their bullpen and he saved 10 games in 1964. Haddix had made three NL All Star squads and won three Gold Gloves. One odd note... in 1965 the Orioles sold Haddix to the Braves late in the year but was returned to the Orioles two days later. Since he didn't patch after that point (and had been getting shelled out of the pen for Baltimore for a few weeks previous) I would assume he was found to be 'damaged goods' by Milwaukee and sent back to Charm City for a refund. 

Haddix served with several clubs as pitching coach after his active career. Like some other recent cards shown of National Leaguers, this pic was taken in Seals Stadium in San Francisco. 

#305 Curt Raydon

Curt Raydon had one year in the majors, 1958. It was a very promising season that saw him go 8-4 on 20 starts and post a tidy 3.62 ERA in 31 total appearances. But he never made it back to the bigs. Plagued by hand and shoulder injuries he had some good numbers in the Pirates system but never was able to make the club in the spring. Topps thought enough of him to put in on a 1960 card despite him spending '59 in the minors.

He became a police officer after he retired in 1962.

I believe (but I wouldn't swear to it) that this pic was taken in Seals Stadium in San Francisco. Color pics of the place are hard to find but I've seen some and I recall the red railings. Note the politically incorrect cartoon on the back and the note in the write up that mentions a two hit shutout he threw in '58.

#25 Don Hoak

You uncover a lot when researching players in this set. I found out that Don Hoak was married to Jill Corey, a pop/nightclub singer of some renown in the late 1950s. Ms. Corey has devoted a large part of her website to her late husband. 

Don Hoak played for eleven seasons in the NL, retiring in 1964. He was known as a tough, hard-nosed player who brought a boxers mentality (he was a youth boxer) to the ball field. He also gained some notoriety for once facing a pitcher named Fidel Castro on a sandlot field in Havana.

Hoak grabbed a couple of World Series rings along the way, first with the 1955 Dodgers and then with the 1960 Pirates. He finished as runner-up in the MVP balloting for 1960.

I've mentioned several times how much I like these black framed Reds (aka Redlegs) cards. They are 1950s baseball on a square of cardboard. 

#62 Tony Taylor

Though shown here early in his career when he toiled for the Cubs, Tony Taylor spent his salad days as the 2nd baseman for the Phillies. He had a solid career both at the plate and in the field. His .261 career average is a point higher than his contemporary Bill Mazeroski's .260 (and Maz made the Hall of Fame). Taylor, one of many Cuban players who were around the majors in the late '50s, signed originally with the Giants but debuted with the Cubs before his long stretch through the 1960's as a Phils regular and a stint in the early '70's with the Tigers. Taylor finished up his career with the Phillies as a bench player for 3 seasons.

While not in any way a H-O-F caliber player Taylor was a solid major leaguer and was twice honored for his accomplishments. He's a member of the Philadelphia Baseball Wall of Fame as well as the Hispanic Heritage Baseball Museum Hall of Fame.

I'm not sure what it is about the pink frames that I like so much. Somehow, against all odds, they work well on the 59s. Once again my terrible scanning skills rear up and make the card appear different than it truly is. I cut off the bottom of the card front scan. Those corners are no way nearly that sharp.