Happy 90th Birthday Joe Garagiola; 1951 Bowman #122

Just found out from the @Baseball_More Twitter feed that today is Joe Garagiola 90th Birthday. This gives us the rare opportunity to post a 1951 Bowman Card of a living MLB player on a marquee birthday.

1951 Bowman #122 Joe Garagiola

 

I like Baseball and More remember Garagiola as the Voice from Game of the Week back when I was a kid.  A few years back I picked up this beauty at a card show for a dollar - how sweet is that!

 

To busy to list off a mini bio of Garagiola. Two quick things - he won the World Series with the 1946 Cardinals and He was once traded with Hall of Famer Ralph Kiner.

 

 

Sources and Links





Twitter Baseball And More
Baseball-ref

Mad Men: 1951 Bowman #221 Dick Whitman

On Sunday Night Mad Men returns for it's 7th and final season. (Well at least the first half of it's final season)

1951 Bowman #221 Dick Whitman

If your a fan of the show you will know why I am posting this card - Don Draper's birth name is Dick Whitman.

The real Dick Whitman had a six year Major League career which started in 1946 as a member of the Brooklyn Dodgers and finished with the Phillies in 1951. While he was basically a part time player who only got into 285 games he was fortunate enough to play in back to back World Series. The first Series was as a member of the '49 Dodgers, followed by the 1950 campaign with the Philles Whiz Kids. While in the majors Whitman tallied 165 hits two of which were Home Runs.

Dick Whitman was also a World War II Veteran who served in Europe prior to his Major League career. He suffered shrapnel wounds and frostbite during the Battle of the Bulge. Whitman was awarded a Purple Heart and Bronze Star for Bravery. 

His baseball related honors include induction into Oregon Sports Hall of Fame in 1982.

Whitman retired to Peoria Arizona in the 1990s, he passed away in 2003 at the age of 82. During his retirement years Whitman became an avid fan of the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Sources
SABR Bio - Ted Smith
Baseball-ref
Oregon Sports Hall of Fame

1951 Bowman #56 Ralph Branca

I Haven't seen 42 yet but I have seen the ads as well as the trailer and some promotional interviews. Ralph Branca has been featured in the interviews and appears to have a prominent role in the film.   

1951 Bowman #56 Ralph Branca

Ralph Branca is one of the Brooklyn Dodgers that befriended Jackie Robinson rather than shunning the new player. According to wikipedia Branca stood with Jackie Robinson for Opening Day lineups in 1947, when other Dodgers refused. Nothing quite like being on the right side of history.  

Branca is also known for giving up "The Shot Heard Round the World" to Bobby Thomson in 1951.  The Home Run by Thomson completed a victory for the Giants in a 3 game series to determine the NL champ.

The three time all-stars career was much bigger than that single game. He pitched for a dozen years almost entirely with the Dodgers - He pitched in two World Series (1947, 1949).  

Jackie Robinson's first season (1947) was Branca's best as he posted a 21-12 record with 4 shutouts and loggged 280 innings. The 21 Ws and his 147 Ks were both good enough for 2nd in the league while his 2.67 ERA was 3rd.

Ralph Branca is still alive at age 87 and can be seen promoting the film 42 on several baseball and sports outlets. There is also an official Ralph Branca website for fan who are interested in autographs and other memorabilia.

For the Collector

I picked up the above Branca card for $1 at a show last April. The card may be a little rough, but any vintage Brooklyn Dodger card for a buck is like stealing. The Lo E-Bay for a really rough 51 Bowman Branca among recent closes is $3.78, for $4.04 you could get a much nicer card.  The card peaks at $69 for a PSA 7 NM.   

1949 Bowman #194
The Bowman RC of Ralph Branca started at $66.  High numbers for the 1949 Bowman set start at #145 - Hall of Famers and Stars like Branca are virtually impossible to find.  Best of luck to anyone looking to build that baby.  The card peaks at $109 (BVG 7.5 NM+)

Topps
The only Topps card for Ralph Branca is from the iconic 1952 set #274. The low recent auction for an acceptable condition card was $11.94.  A PSA 8 NM-MT went for a tidy $414.  If your willing to settle for PSA 5 EX you can get the card at the far lower price of $95.   It should be noted that the card is part of the middle series of 1952 Topps which runs #251-310.  I have found commons in this series run 2-3x higher then the low series, stars and HoF vary but typically multiply more.