This is the Box Score for a game from the SABR Games Project
The related Game Story for this game can be found here
SOURCE: New York Clipper 1882 SEP 23
Showing posts with label No-Hitter. Show all posts
Showing posts with label No-Hitter. Show all posts
Friday, January 12, 2024
Tuesday, October 6, 2020
ANNIVERSARY: Roy Halladay
Today marks the 10th Anniversary of Roy Halladay's NLDS no-hitter. I have discussed this game a number of times in the past. Today I will just simply state it was one of the greatest games I ever attended.
Our original account of the no-hitter can be found here.
2017 Topps Untouchables #U-18 Roy Halladay
This card is not specifically dedicated to that game, but it is definitely in the neighborhood. "Untouchables" could be seen as a synonym for no-hitter, an that is the case here:
Flip
2017 Topps Untouchables #U-18 Roy Halladay (b-side)
On the backside of the card we see the top bullets are dedicated to his 2010 no-hitter pair - The regular season perfect game and the NLDS no-hitter.
Untouchables
Untouchables is a 30 card insert found in 2017 Topps Update. Halladay has two cards in the set, He reps the Blue Jays on the other card. The checklist contains one other Phillies pitcher, Steve Carlton..
Sources and Links
Saturday, July 25, 2020
ANNIVERSARY: 2015 JULY 25 - Cole Hamels No-Hits Cubs
Don't worry I am not really returning to blogging, I just wanted to make sure that Cole Hamels 2015 No-Hitter versus the Chicago Cubs didn't not go unnoticed.
2016 Topps Wrigley Celebrates 100 Years WRIG-21
How cool is it to be featured in an insert set that is dedicated to another team.
Cole Hamels 5-0 no-hit victory versus the Cubs was a bittersweet moment. On the one hand you have the excitement of the monumental accomplishment of one of the franchises most important players, however on the other hand it would be Hamels last appearance in a Phillies uniform.
A week later Hamels was traded to the Texas Rangers along with reliever Jake Diekman. The return was a bunch of ballplayers that have had varied degrees of major league time. The big chip so far has been Jorge Alfaro who the Phillies flipped for JT Realmuto.
Since leaving Philadelphia Hamels has pitched well and made the postseason with both the Rangers (2015-16) and oddly enough the Cubs in 2018.
Unfortunately he is now with the Phillies division rival Braves - however he is currenlty on the 45 day IL
5 Years Ago
For our original posting on the No-Hitter click here.
Sources and Links
NoHitter Index
Baseball-Ref
Amazon
mlbTradeRumors
How cool is it to be featured in an insert set that is dedicated to another team.
Cole Hamels 5-0 no-hit victory versus the Cubs was a bittersweet moment. On the one hand you have the excitement of the monumental accomplishment of one of the franchises most important players, however on the other hand it would be Hamels last appearance in a Phillies uniform.
A week later Hamels was traded to the Texas Rangers along with reliever Jake Diekman. The return was a bunch of ballplayers that have had varied degrees of major league time. The big chip so far has been Jorge Alfaro who the Phillies flipped for JT Realmuto.
Since leaving Philadelphia Hamels has pitched well and made the postseason with both the Rangers (2015-16) and oddly enough the Cubs in 2018.
Unfortunately he is now with the Phillies division rival Braves - however he is currenlty on the 45 day IL
5 Years Ago
For our original posting on the No-Hitter click here.
Sources and Links
NoHitter Index
Baseball-Ref
Amazon
mlbTradeRumors
Thursday, January 2, 2020
1961 Topps #402 Don Larsen (1929-2020)
When I was a kid I had a thick World Series chronicle that had the box scores for every Series game through somewhere in the late 1970s. One of the things that fascinated me was that for Don Larsen's 1956 Perfect game the entry was a batter by batter, PITCH by PITCH. I had never seen anything like it, and really PxP accounts didn't really exist in the real world until the relatively recent big data revolution.
1961 Topps #402 Don Larsen Pitches Perfect Game
One of the trading cards that covered World Series achievement was in the 1961 Topps Baseball Thrills subset.
Great card of Larsen's perfect game which occurred on October 8th 1956.
To begin with outside of a swatch announcing the event commemorated by the card the design is minimal. The picture here features our hero Larsen and the line score - perfect way summarize any no-hitter. In addition the remainder of the scoreboard tells us #8 is batting with a 1-2 coutn. The 8 correctly identifies Dale Mitchell who struck out looking on a 1-2 pitch giving the Yankees a 2-0 victory in the pivotal fifth game of the 1956 series.
The series would got the distance with the Yankees winning.
Flip
1961 Topps #402 Don Larsen Pitches Perfect Game
The newsprint themed text on the card back does a good job of recapturing the Thrill of the perfect game. The author also provides some historical context: "...first pitcher to ever hurl a no-hitter in World Series competition." and "...first in 307 World Series games". I have minor quibble that description fails to mention the games final score 2-0.
1961 Nu-Cards
On the 60th anniversary of the Perfect Game we profiled the 1961 Nu-Card dedicated to the game. That column can be found here.
Baltimore Orioles
One of my favorite fun facts is that Don Larsen started the first game in Baltimore Orioles history, a 3-0 lost to the Detroit Tigers on April 13 1954.
Peanut Gallery
Some other Don Larsen Baseball Card Memorials
The Lost Collector - Various Autographed Cards and a Baseball
The Chronicles of Fuji - 1958 Topps #161 & various Autograph/Relic cards
Sources and Links
1961 Topps Baseball Thrills Index
No-Hitter Index
Game Dated Cards Index
trading card db
Baseball-ref
One of the trading cards that covered World Series achievement was in the 1961 Topps Baseball Thrills subset.
Great card of Larsen's perfect game which occurred on October 8th 1956.
To begin with outside of a swatch announcing the event commemorated by the card the design is minimal. The picture here features our hero Larsen and the line score - perfect way summarize any no-hitter. In addition the remainder of the scoreboard tells us #8 is batting with a 1-2 coutn. The 8 correctly identifies Dale Mitchell who struck out looking on a 1-2 pitch giving the Yankees a 2-0 victory in the pivotal fifth game of the 1956 series.
The series would got the distance with the Yankees winning.
Flip
The newsprint themed text on the card back does a good job of recapturing the Thrill of the perfect game. The author also provides some historical context: "...first pitcher to ever hurl a no-hitter in World Series competition." and "...first in 307 World Series games". I have minor quibble that description fails to mention the games final score 2-0.
1961 Nu-Cards
On the 60th anniversary of the Perfect Game we profiled the 1961 Nu-Card dedicated to the game. That column can be found here.
Baltimore Orioles
One of my favorite fun facts is that Don Larsen started the first game in Baltimore Orioles history, a 3-0 lost to the Detroit Tigers on April 13 1954.
Peanut Gallery
Some other Don Larsen Baseball Card Memorials
The Lost Collector - Various Autographed Cards and a Baseball
The Chronicles of Fuji - 1958 Topps #161 & various Autograph/Relic cards
Sources and Links
1961 Topps Baseball Thrills Index
No-Hitter Index
Game Dated Cards Index
trading card db
Baseball-ref
Tuesday, July 9, 2019
ANNIVERSARY - 1979 July 10: Del Unser 3 consecutive Pinch Hit HRs (1980 Topps #6)
Wednesday July 10 marks 40th anniversary of a Pinch Hitter getting into the MLB record book
1980 Topps #6 Highlights Del Unser
That pinch hitter was the Phillies Del Unser who tied a mark first established a year prior by the Dodgers Lee Lacy.
Unser's streak commenced on June 30th. In the 9th inning of game versus the Cardinals at Busch stadium the Phillies were down 4-2 with 2 out in the 9th inning. Phillies Center Fielder Garry Maddox was on base when Unser was sent to the plate to bat for Manny Trillo. Unser homered off of reliever George Frazier to tie the game which the Phillies won 6-4 in extras.
The 2nd Home Run came in a 3-2 loss to the Mets. Unser hit a solo home run in the 7th inning while batting for Larry Bowa in what was basically a convoluted double change. The victim was starting pitcher Craig Swan.
Del Unser finished his Home Run trifecta facing Padres future Hall of Famer Rollie Fingers. The Phillies went into the 9th inning down 5-1, four batters later the Phillies had pulled to 5-3 on a 2 Run single by Bob Boone.
A hit and an out later Del Unser found himself once again pinch hitting for Larry Bowa. This time out he hit a Walk Off Home Run to give the Phillies a 6-5 victory.
The streak ended 2 days later when Unser was Intentionally Walked by Fingers. The first time Unser was retired following the streak was July 23, Also by Rollie (strikeout).
1980 Topps Hilights
Hilights opens the 1980 set occupying the first six cards. The subset includes three Hall of Famers across two cards: Lou Brock & Carl Yastrzemski share card #1, While Willie McCovey resides at #2. In addition to Del Unser the Phillies are also represented in the subber by Pete Rose at #4.
Dennis Rasmussen?
1987 Topps #555 Dennis Rasmussen
What the heck is Dennis Rasmussen doing in the middle of a Del Unser column??, well lets turn over this card and see.
1987 Topps #555 Dennis Rasmussen (b-side)
Ok we are going to bypass that this card discusses Hall of Famer Larry Bird and move down to the On This Date section. Check it out we have today's hero Del Unser! and it mentions his 1979 Pinch Hit Home Run heroics too!
Finally Topps honors their history by mentioning Unser's 1979T card, lets have a look.
1979 Topps #628 Del Unser
Unfortunately Unser is repping a different team, however it always feels good to post and Expos card. Lets flip this one over and see if we have anymore fun items.
1979 Topps #628 Del Unser (b-side)
Well Check it out, we have another This day in History. This time it goes back to May 8 1968. On that date Hall of Famer Catfish Hunter tossed a Perfect game for the Oakland A's as they defeated the Minnesota Twins 4-0.
And just because I am chaining together cards today, I am going to add one final card.
1969 Topps #235 Jim "Catfish" Hunter
The first card issued of Catfish following his Perfect Game was in 1969 Topps. This is back when Topps was putting -Toons on the back of cards, surely the Catfish comic would be dedicated to his big Game...
1969 Topps #235 Jim "Catfish" Hunter (b-side)
or.....maybe not
The game mentioned in the cartoon was a 15 inning affair won by the National League 2-1. In Hunter's defense he pitched FIVE innings that day, the difference was a Home Run by Tony Perez.
Topps does mention the Perfecto in the text. It also mentions that Hunter's game earned him a $5000 raise, that is a $36,000 raise in 2018 dollars.
Game Dated Cards
Ok that is enough card chaining, At some point I will be adding each of these cards to the Phungo Game Dated Cards Index.
1980 Phillies
Next Year will mark the 40th anniversary of the Phillies first World Championship, I hope to feature that team throughout 2020. Since I am not writing as many columns these days I am getting an early start on the feature and will open my Anniversary series a full six months in advance.
Sources and Links
1980 World Champion Philadelphia Phillies
1980 Topps Hilights
No-Hitter Index
Catfish Hunter index
Larry Bird Index
baseball-ref
Baseball Card Database
That pinch hitter was the Phillies Del Unser who tied a mark first established a year prior by the Dodgers Lee Lacy.
Unser's streak commenced on June 30th. In the 9th inning of game versus the Cardinals at Busch stadium the Phillies were down 4-2 with 2 out in the 9th inning. Phillies Center Fielder Garry Maddox was on base when Unser was sent to the plate to bat for Manny Trillo. Unser homered off of reliever George Frazier to tie the game which the Phillies won 6-4 in extras.
The 2nd Home Run came in a 3-2 loss to the Mets. Unser hit a solo home run in the 7th inning while batting for Larry Bowa in what was basically a convoluted double change. The victim was starting pitcher Craig Swan.
Del Unser finished his Home Run trifecta facing Padres future Hall of Famer Rollie Fingers. The Phillies went into the 9th inning down 5-1, four batters later the Phillies had pulled to 5-3 on a 2 Run single by Bob Boone.
A hit and an out later Del Unser found himself once again pinch hitting for Larry Bowa. This time out he hit a Walk Off Home Run to give the Phillies a 6-5 victory.
The streak ended 2 days later when Unser was Intentionally Walked by Fingers. The first time Unser was retired following the streak was July 23, Also by Rollie (strikeout).
1980 Topps Hilights
Hilights opens the 1980 set occupying the first six cards. The subset includes three Hall of Famers across two cards: Lou Brock & Carl Yastrzemski share card #1, While Willie McCovey resides at #2. In addition to Del Unser the Phillies are also represented in the subber by Pete Rose at #4.
Dennis Rasmussen?
What the heck is Dennis Rasmussen doing in the middle of a Del Unser column??, well lets turn over this card and see.
Ok we are going to bypass that this card discusses Hall of Famer Larry Bird and move down to the On This Date section. Check it out we have today's hero Del Unser! and it mentions his 1979 Pinch Hit Home Run heroics too!
Finally Topps honors their history by mentioning Unser's 1979T card, lets have a look.
Unfortunately Unser is repping a different team, however it always feels good to post and Expos card. Lets flip this one over and see if we have anymore fun items.
Well Check it out, we have another This day in History. This time it goes back to May 8 1968. On that date Hall of Famer Catfish Hunter tossed a Perfect game for the Oakland A's as they defeated the Minnesota Twins 4-0.
And just because I am chaining together cards today, I am going to add one final card.
The first card issued of Catfish following his Perfect Game was in 1969 Topps. This is back when Topps was putting -Toons on the back of cards, surely the Catfish comic would be dedicated to his big Game...
or.....maybe not
The game mentioned in the cartoon was a 15 inning affair won by the National League 2-1. In Hunter's defense he pitched FIVE innings that day, the difference was a Home Run by Tony Perez.
Topps does mention the Perfecto in the text. It also mentions that Hunter's game earned him a $5000 raise, that is a $36,000 raise in 2018 dollars.
Game Dated Cards
Ok that is enough card chaining, At some point I will be adding each of these cards to the Phungo Game Dated Cards Index.
1980 Phillies
Next Year will mark the 40th anniversary of the Phillies first World Championship, I hope to feature that team throughout 2020. Since I am not writing as many columns these days I am getting an early start on the feature and will open my Anniversary series a full six months in advance.
Sources and Links
1980 World Champion Philadelphia Phillies
1980 Topps Hilights
No-Hitter Index
Catfish Hunter index
Larry Bird Index
baseball-ref
Baseball Card Database
Tuesday, January 22, 2019
Roy Halladay Hall of Fame!!
Things have been busy around Phungo HQ with a myriad of activities that have kept me from posting regular columns here. Most of these distractions are good things including one hobby I have picked up in the last year - sketching.
2011 Topps Roy Halladay NLDS No-Hitter
It may not be great, but it is mine - I had never drawn anything beyond a stick figure prior to last summer and I am pretty happy with some of the outcomes. The pictures never look like the people who I am trying to portray, however they do sort of look like people. This particular drawing is inspired by a 2011 Topps card, click here for a better look.
I use color pencils and draw inspiration from folks like @Mosely_Mark and @Gummyarts who both put together some fun and exciting cardboard art.
This drawing commemorates one of my favorite games and I am glad to see Roy Halladay get honored by the Hall of Fame.
sources and links
Roy Halladay HOF Index
Phungo Artwork
It may not be great, but it is mine - I had never drawn anything beyond a stick figure prior to last summer and I am pretty happy with some of the outcomes. The pictures never look like the people who I am trying to portray, however they do sort of look like people. This particular drawing is inspired by a 2011 Topps card, click here for a better look.
I use color pencils and draw inspiration from folks like @Mosely_Mark and @Gummyarts who both put together some fun and exciting cardboard art.
This drawing commemorates one of my favorite games and I am glad to see Roy Halladay get honored by the Hall of Fame.
sources and links
Roy Halladay HOF Index
Phungo Artwork
Thursday, December 7, 2017
2018 HOF Candidate: Kevin Millwood
The second installment of our 2018 HOF Candidates is on journeyman pitcher Kevin Millwood who had a pretty decent career. His two year stint for the Phillies was fair at best, however there were some big moments during those 2 seasons.
2013 Gypsy Queen No-Hitters #NH-KM Kevin Millwood
His biggest of those moments was on April 27 2003 when Millwood authored a 1-0 No-Hitter versus a San Francisco Giants team that was anchored by Barry Bonds batting clean-up.
Topps recognized the accomplishment in their 2013 Gypsy Queen No-Hitters insert set. Decent looking card which fits the GQ motif. I like that Topps added the uniform number to the front of the card. While looking at this card it occurred to me an awful lot of No-Nos have been tossed by players wearing #34. Within the 15 card 2013 GQ No-Hitter Insert Set alone there are several: Millwood, Felix Hernandez, Homer Bailey, the recently deceased Roy Halladay, and of course Nolan Ryan.
This card also hit on my continuity error nerve. Millwood pitched his No-Hitter at the Vet and yeah that is obviously not the Vet. In fact our here is shown here wearing a road uni - so this game was not even played in Philadelphia.
Flip
2013 Gypsy Queen No-Hitters #NH-KM Kevin Millwood (B-side)
Functional back text doesn't really bring out the excitement of a no-hitter. Topps first cover Millwood's No-Hitter much better in their 2004 offering which is discussed here.
Phungo Verdict
In addition to Pitching the No-Hitter for the Phillies, Kevin Millwood also started the final game ever played at the Vet. Unfortunately the game was a 5-2 loss to Millwood's former team, the Atlanta Braves.
Obviously that is not the difference maker in Millwood's credentials. He is a respectable 30+ career WAR player, who racked up 169 Ws during a 16 years career. His Cy Young peak was #3 in 1999 (Randy Johnson). That season featured his sole All-Star and World Series Appearances.
Good pitcher, rough Phillies tenure despite some big moments. Verdict VETO.
Sources and Links
2018 HOF Candidates
Kevin Millwood No-Hitter Index
Cardboard Connection
Kronozio
Baseball-Reference
His biggest of those moments was on April 27 2003 when Millwood authored a 1-0 No-Hitter versus a San Francisco Giants team that was anchored by Barry Bonds batting clean-up.
Topps recognized the accomplishment in their 2013 Gypsy Queen No-Hitters insert set. Decent looking card which fits the GQ motif. I like that Topps added the uniform number to the front of the card. While looking at this card it occurred to me an awful lot of No-Nos have been tossed by players wearing #34. Within the 15 card 2013 GQ No-Hitter Insert Set alone there are several: Millwood, Felix Hernandez, Homer Bailey, the recently deceased Roy Halladay, and of course Nolan Ryan.
This card also hit on my continuity error nerve. Millwood pitched his No-Hitter at the Vet and yeah that is obviously not the Vet. In fact our here is shown here wearing a road uni - so this game was not even played in Philadelphia.
Flip
Functional back text doesn't really bring out the excitement of a no-hitter. Topps first cover Millwood's No-Hitter much better in their 2004 offering which is discussed here.
Phungo Verdict
In addition to Pitching the No-Hitter for the Phillies, Kevin Millwood also started the final game ever played at the Vet. Unfortunately the game was a 5-2 loss to Millwood's former team, the Atlanta Braves.
Obviously that is not the difference maker in Millwood's credentials. He is a respectable 30+ career WAR player, who racked up 169 Ws during a 16 years career. His Cy Young peak was #3 in 1999 (Randy Johnson). That season featured his sole All-Star and World Series Appearances.
Good pitcher, rough Phillies tenure despite some big moments. Verdict VETO.
Sources and Links
2018 HOF Candidates
Kevin Millwood No-Hitter Index
Cardboard Connection
Kronozio
Baseball-Reference
Sunday, April 16, 2017
ANNIVERSARY: 2007 April 18 Mark Buehrle No-Hitter
Little bit early on this Anniversary posting but we have a Phillies card to get to as well.
2008 Topps Finest Moments #FM-MB Mark Buehrle
On April 18 2007 Mark Buehrle posted his first of his two career No-Hitters. The victims of the Chicago White Sox 6-0 victory were the Texas Rangers. Batters in the Rangers potent lineup that day included Past & future Phillies Kenny Lofton and Michael Young as well as several other luminaries: Ian Kinsler, Sammy Sosa, Mark Teixeira and Nelson Cruz (Who batted 8th!).
Jeraine Dye provided the bulk of the offense for the White Sox with a grand slam off of Phillies Alum, Kevin Millwood. Jim Thome picked up the other 2 RBI on a pair of Home Runs one off of Millwood the other off of current Phillies reliever Joaquin Benoit.
Flip
2008 Topps Finest Moments #FM-MB Mark Buehrle (b-side)
The back of the card does a good job of succinctly summarizing Buehrle's big day. His other no-hitter versus the Tampa Bay Rays in 2009 was a perfect game, therefore he pitched to the minimum at least twice.
Buehrle's battery-mate for the no-hitter was AJ Pierzynski. AJ did not call Buehrle's perfect game but he was the backstop for a different White Sox perfecto authored by Phil Humber.
The plate umpire for both of the no-hitters was Eric Cooper.
Sources and Links
No-Hitter Index
Game Dated Cards
Baseball-Reference
Baseball Almanac
On April 18 2007 Mark Buehrle posted his first of his two career No-Hitters. The victims of the Chicago White Sox 6-0 victory were the Texas Rangers. Batters in the Rangers potent lineup that day included Past & future Phillies Kenny Lofton and Michael Young as well as several other luminaries: Ian Kinsler, Sammy Sosa, Mark Teixeira and Nelson Cruz (Who batted 8th!).
Jeraine Dye provided the bulk of the offense for the White Sox with a grand slam off of Phillies Alum, Kevin Millwood. Jim Thome picked up the other 2 RBI on a pair of Home Runs one off of Millwood the other off of current Phillies reliever Joaquin Benoit.
Flip
The back of the card does a good job of succinctly summarizing Buehrle's big day. His other no-hitter versus the Tampa Bay Rays in 2009 was a perfect game, therefore he pitched to the minimum at least twice.
Buehrle's battery-mate for the no-hitter was AJ Pierzynski. AJ did not call Buehrle's perfect game but he was the backstop for a different White Sox perfecto authored by Phil Humber.
The plate umpire for both of the no-hitters was Eric Cooper.
Sources and Links
No-Hitter Index
Game Dated Cards
Baseball-Reference
Baseball Almanac
Tuesday, November 1, 2016
1991 Upper Deck Final #50F Dennis Martinez
Tonight Denny Martinez is scheduled to throw out the first pitch prior to game six of the World Series.
This gives an opportunity to present a fun card of Martinez from his Expos days.
1991 Upper Deck Final #50F Dennis Martinez Perfecto!
Hopefully I will return to this post at some future time, but for now I will just mention that the card was part of UDs 1991 Final Set and honored the Perfect game pitched by Martinez earlier that year - which as close as we got to Topps Now in 1991.
flip
1991 Upper Deck Final #50F Dennis Martinez Perfecto! (b-side / image swiped from COMC)
Nice summary on the back of the card including quotes from not just Dennis Martinez but also his catcher Ron Hassey. Your not going to get that kind of quality write up on any card much less a Topps Now issue today.
Ticket
The Baseball Hall of Fame has a ticket to the perfect game on display as part of their Viva Baseball exhibition. It is one of 45,560 tickets that the Dodgers sold for the game.
Notice that the Viva Baseball exhibit is curated with the artifact descriptions presented in Spanish - and the Spanish is expressed first.
Sources and Links
No-Hitter Index
Hall of Fame
VWellsArt
Baseball Almanac
Cleveland.com
Check Out My Cards
This gives an opportunity to present a fun card of Martinez from his Expos days.
Hopefully I will return to this post at some future time, but for now I will just mention that the card was part of UDs 1991 Final Set and honored the Perfect game pitched by Martinez earlier that year - which as close as we got to Topps Now in 1991.
flip
Nice summary on the back of the card including quotes from not just Dennis Martinez but also his catcher Ron Hassey. Your not going to get that kind of quality write up on any card much less a Topps Now issue today.
Ticket
The Baseball Hall of Fame has a ticket to the perfect game on display as part of their Viva Baseball exhibition. It is one of 45,560 tickets that the Dodgers sold for the game.
Notice that the Viva Baseball exhibit is curated with the artifact descriptions presented in Spanish - and the Spanish is expressed first.
Sources and Links
No-Hitter Index
Hall of Fame
VWellsArt
Baseball Almanac
Cleveland.com
Check Out My Cards
Friday, October 7, 2016
ANNIVERSARY: October 8 1956 - Don Larsen Throws World Series Perfect Game
October 8th marks the 60th Anniversary of Don Larsen's perfect game, which he threw in Game 5 of the 1956 World Series.
1961 NU-Cards Baseball Scoops #418 Larsen Hurls Perfect World Series Game
Larsen and the Yankees defeated the crosstown rival Brooklyn Dodgers 2-0 that day. Offensive Heroes including Mickey Mantle who clubbed a fourth inning Home Run and Hank Bauer who plated the games other run with a single in the sixth.
The event was honored by this beautiful 1961 Basesball Scoops Card. Nice touches include a decent photo for the era and a date line specific to the game. I am also a fan of the title logo which contains the bouncing baseball iconography rather in place of the OOs in scOOps.
The pivotal game five victory gave the Yankees a 3 games to 2 advantage over the Dodgers in a Series that would eventually go the distance. The Yanks won game 7 and Larsen took home MVP honors.
Flip
1961 NU-Cards Baseball Scoops #418 Larsen Hurls Perfect World Series Game (b-side)
Great back of the card for a game that certainly warrants the attention. Four Paragraphs of text! Some of it is a little awkward - the 2nd Paragraph has two sentences that essentially state the same fact about 3 ball counts. Pee Wee Reese's first inning AB is mentioned both here and in the final paragraph. Regardless I still love the card.
Topps honored Larsen with a similar card in their 1961 set which can be found here.
Update (2020 01 02)
1961 Topps #402 Baseball Thrills / Don Larsen memorial
Sources and Links
Phungo No-Hitter Index
Phungo Game Dated Cards Index
Check out My Cards
Baseball Card Database
Baseball-ref
Larsen and the Yankees defeated the crosstown rival Brooklyn Dodgers 2-0 that day. Offensive Heroes including Mickey Mantle who clubbed a fourth inning Home Run and Hank Bauer who plated the games other run with a single in the sixth.
The event was honored by this beautiful 1961 Basesball Scoops Card. Nice touches include a decent photo for the era and a date line specific to the game. I am also a fan of the title logo which contains the bouncing baseball iconography rather in place of the OOs in scOOps.
The pivotal game five victory gave the Yankees a 3 games to 2 advantage over the Dodgers in a Series that would eventually go the distance. The Yanks won game 7 and Larsen took home MVP honors.
Flip
Topps honored Larsen with a similar card in their 1961 set which can be found here.
Update (2020 01 02)
1961 Topps #402 Baseball Thrills / Don Larsen memorial
Phungo No-Hitter Index
Phungo Game Dated Cards Index
Check out My Cards
Baseball Card Database
Baseball-ref
Monday, May 23, 2016
Tommy Greene No-Hitter Card #2: Stadium Club Members Only
For the middle edition of our Tommy Greene No-Hitter Trilogy we take a look at a special card from the 1991 Topps Stadium Club set.
1991 Topps Stadium Club Members Only Tommy Greene
Little hard to make out in the card photo but at the bottom of the card it states "Members Only". The Phrase refers to the set only issued to TSC Members.
Good Action shot of Tommy Greene here and the Full Bleed is nice, especially for 1991. However Topps stumbled on a pet peeve for me - on Specialty card dedicated to No-Hitters and other milestones it always irks me when the card messes up the Home/Away illusion.
As we know from the no-hitter box featured in our earlier posting, Tommy Greene tossed his gem in Montreal. In the above photo Greene is obviously in the Phillies Home Whites.
1991 Topps Stadium Club Members Only Tommy Greene (b-side)
Topps makes up for that oversight on the back of the card. Yeah my irrational dislike for Fouling up the Uni- Colors is matched by Irrational love of Newsprint themed cards.
Pretty sure I would read the Stadium Club Herald cover to cover if it were published today.
I am a little disappointed with the portion of the Text that specifies "Seven bases on balls were all Tommy permitted...".
In what world are 7 walks considered trivial!
Sources and Links
Tommy Greene No-Hitter Master Posting
No-Hitter Index
Standard Catalog of Baseball Cards - Bob Lemke
Little hard to make out in the card photo but at the bottom of the card it states "Members Only". The Phrase refers to the set only issued to TSC Members.
Good Action shot of Tommy Greene here and the Full Bleed is nice, especially for 1991. However Topps stumbled on a pet peeve for me - on Specialty card dedicated to No-Hitters and other milestones it always irks me when the card messes up the Home/Away illusion.
As we know from the no-hitter box featured in our earlier posting, Tommy Greene tossed his gem in Montreal. In the above photo Greene is obviously in the Phillies Home Whites.
Topps makes up for that oversight on the back of the card. Yeah my irrational dislike for Fouling up the Uni- Colors is matched by Irrational love of Newsprint themed cards.
Pretty sure I would read the Stadium Club Herald cover to cover if it were published today.
I am a little disappointed with the portion of the Text that specifies "Seven bases on balls were all Tommy permitted...".
In what world are 7 walks considered trivial!
Sources and Links
Tommy Greene No-Hitter Master Posting
No-Hitter Index
Standard Catalog of Baseball Cards - Bob Lemke
Sunday, May 22, 2016
25 Years Ago: Tommy Greene 1992 Score #426 No-Hit Club
We have reached 25th anniversary of the No-Hitter authored by the Phillies own Tommy Greene.
1992 Score #426 No-Hit Club Tommy Greene
Greene Shutout the Expos 2-0 in Montreal. The game was Greene's second start of the season and only the 15th of his career. Greene's Catcher Darrin Fletcher was just as inexperienced, playing in only his 27th game.
Tommy Greene had come over to the Phillies in the same deal that brought Dale Murphy to the team less than a year prior. As of May 1992 the 24 year old Greene had still not established himself as a regular starting pitcher. The only reason that Greene even got to face the Expos was because Danny Cox had to skip a start due to an injury.
Box Notes
1992 Score #426 No-Hit Club Tommy Greene (b-side)
Lots of unknowns in the Phillies LineUp of May 23 1991. I vaguely remember Rod Booker and the short-lived Wally Backman era, John Morris rings no bells at all. We also have a John Kruk game with him playing in Left Field.
Among the hitters that Tommy Greene were Hall of Stats member Larry Walker, Andres Galarraga, and Delino DeShields. Greene struck out 10 Expos in the game including Hat Tricks for Galarraga and Marquis Grissom.
Greene's game was not without it's blemishes. He gave up seven walks which led to him facing 33 batters, which I suspect is a pretty high number for a no-hitter.
The opposing pitcher was Oil Can Boyd who had a pretty good game of his own 8 innings, 6 Hits and 1 run.
More Greene
The Tommy Greene No-Hitter gave Phillies fans a few other cards, over the next day or two we will take a quick look at these gems.
1991 Topps Stadium Club Members Only Tommy Greene
We discuss the above Stadium Club here.
1992 Donruss #94 Tommy Greene No-Hitter Against Expos
Sources and Links
No-Hitter Index
Philadelphia Inquirer/Daily News - Jennifer Frey 1991 0524
Philadelphia Inquirer/Daily News - Paul Hagen
Philadelphia Inquirer - Jayson Stark/Dick Polman
Baseball-Ref
Inky/Montreal Gazette - Larry Fredricks and Frank Lawlor
Hall of Stats
Greene Shutout the Expos 2-0 in Montreal. The game was Greene's second start of the season and only the 15th of his career. Greene's Catcher Darrin Fletcher was just as inexperienced, playing in only his 27th game.
Tommy Greene had come over to the Phillies in the same deal that brought Dale Murphy to the team less than a year prior. As of May 1992 the 24 year old Greene had still not established himself as a regular starting pitcher. The only reason that Greene even got to face the Expos was because Danny Cox had to skip a start due to an injury.
Box Notes
Lots of unknowns in the Phillies LineUp of May 23 1991. I vaguely remember Rod Booker and the short-lived Wally Backman era, John Morris rings no bells at all. We also have a John Kruk game with him playing in Left Field.
Among the hitters that Tommy Greene were Hall of Stats member Larry Walker, Andres Galarraga, and Delino DeShields. Greene struck out 10 Expos in the game including Hat Tricks for Galarraga and Marquis Grissom.
Greene's game was not without it's blemishes. He gave up seven walks which led to him facing 33 batters, which I suspect is a pretty high number for a no-hitter.
The opposing pitcher was Oil Can Boyd who had a pretty good game of his own 8 innings, 6 Hits and 1 run.
More Greene
The Tommy Greene No-Hitter gave Phillies fans a few other cards, over the next day or two we will take a quick look at these gems.
We discuss the above Stadium Club here.
Sources and Links
No-Hitter Index
Philadelphia Inquirer/Daily News - Jennifer Frey 1991 0524
Philadelphia Inquirer/Daily News - Paul Hagen
Philadelphia Inquirer - Jayson Stark/Dick Polman
Baseball-Ref
Inky/Montreal Gazette - Larry Fredricks and Frank Lawlor
Hall of Stats
Sunday, May 8, 2016
1976 ASG +40: Catfish Hunter 1988 Topps 87 ASG #11
We have a lot going on with our Sunday Night Baseball posting this week.
ESPN is back in New York for another Red Sox v Yankees match up. The Big Apple venue gives us a chance to discuss one of the sadder of our 1976 All-Star Game subjects, Jim "Catfish" Hunter.
1988 Topps 87 All-Star #11 of 22 Jim Hunter
The 1976 All-Star game was the final of Catfish Hunter's eight appearances on the Mid-Summer Classic Roster. He represented the A's six times and the Yankees twice.
Overall 1976 was a mediocre season for Catfish, his ASG roster spot was earned with four consecutive top-4 Cy Young finishes in the seasons prior. His 1975 Cy 2nd included leading the league with 23 Wins and 30 Complete Games. His the most recent player to break the 30 CG mark and will probably be the last of my generation
Hunter was the 2nd AL pitcher to take the mound in the 76 ASG. He pitched the 3rd and 4th innings giving up a pair of runs on a 2-run bomb by Reds Outfielder George Foster. Hunter faced 3 HoF players in the two innings:
Joe Morgan - Singled and scored in front of Foster's Home Run
Johnny Bench - Stuck Out to end the 3rd Inning
Tom Seaver - Stuck Out to end the 4th Inning
So really he faced only 2 HoF Hitters, we are being precise here - blogging is important.
The sole Phillies batter he faced was Greg Luzinski who flew out to Left.
1988 Topps All-Star Commemoratives
Picked this card because Catfish was not issued an All-Star card as a Yankee during his playing days.
The 1988 Topps Commemoratives which were placed in rack packs included two 1987 ASG Honorary Captain cards. Hunter represented the AL while Billy Williams received the honor for the NL. The two were inducted into the Hall of Fame later that summer.
Sloppy Topps
Details kids, the 1987 All-Star game was held in Oakland and Catfish wore the colors of his original team the A's for the occasion.
Catfish Hunter All-Star
Catfish Hunter spent his entire career in the AL during an era when the NL dominated the All-Star Game. The Junior Circuit lost all eight games in which he was on the roster, and truth be told he didn't help the AL very much.
Hunter pitched in six of those eight games including a fine performance in his first ASG in 1967. The game went 15 innings and Catfish pitched the final 5. Hunter only gave up two hits through his first four innings, unfortunately he gave up a Home Run to Tony Perez in the 15th.
The games outcome is noted in the -toon on the back of Hunter's 1969T card.
1969 Topps #236 Jim Hunter (b-side)
In today's terms giving up a run in an All-Star game seems about average, the cartoon neglects to mention that the single run occurred in an outing that went 5 innings.
And an Anniversary
Turning our attention to the text, the card mentions Catfish Hunter's No Hit Perfect Game. Today happens to be the anniversary of that Perfect Game a 4-0 A's victory over the Twins on May 8 1948. Hunter's 1969 Topps card is the first one issued after the game, therefore the first of his cards to include the words "Perfect Game". I imagine that prior to this card the only Topps Cards that mentioned "Perfect Game" were dedicated to Don Larsen, Jim Bunning and Sandy Koufax.
According to Baseball-Ref Catfish Hunter made $23,500 in 1968. Assuming that is his post bonus number, the $5,000 raise mentioned on the card is an increase of 27%. The US Department of Labor Inflation Calculator estimates that five grand is the equivalent of $34,000 in 2016 Dollars.
Here is a look at the front o the card
1969 Topps #236 Jim Hunter
Hunter's other ASG appearances were all mediocre at best
1966: DNP
1967: See above
1970: 3 Earned runs including a Home Run to Dick Dietz, while recording only a single out.
1972: DNP
1973: His Best ASG 1 1/3 no runs 1 hit, no walks. outs recorded vs HoF Joe Morgan and Hank Aaron plus Pete Rose.
1974: 2 Innings allowed a Home Run to Reggie Smith, Struck out 3 batters including Perez.
1975: Allowed 2 ER in 2IP - although the runs were both allowed in by Goose Gossage after Hunter exited the game without recording an out in the 9th.
1976: See Above
Sources and Links
1976 ASG 40th Anniversary Index
Catfish Hunter HoF Index
No-Hitter Index
Standard Catalog of Baseball Cards - Bob Lemke
Getty Images
YouTube - 1976 ASG
Baseball Almanac
Baseball-ref
Bureau of Labor Inflation Calculator
ESPN is back in New York for another Red Sox v Yankees match up. The Big Apple venue gives us a chance to discuss one of the sadder of our 1976 All-Star Game subjects, Jim "Catfish" Hunter.
The 1976 All-Star game was the final of Catfish Hunter's eight appearances on the Mid-Summer Classic Roster. He represented the A's six times and the Yankees twice.
Overall 1976 was a mediocre season for Catfish, his ASG roster spot was earned with four consecutive top-4 Cy Young finishes in the seasons prior. His 1975 Cy 2nd included leading the league with 23 Wins and 30 Complete Games. His the most recent player to break the 30 CG mark and will probably be the last of my generation
Hunter was the 2nd AL pitcher to take the mound in the 76 ASG. He pitched the 3rd and 4th innings giving up a pair of runs on a 2-run bomb by Reds Outfielder George Foster. Hunter faced 3 HoF players in the two innings:
Joe Morgan - Singled and scored in front of Foster's Home Run
Johnny Bench - Stuck Out to end the 3rd Inning
Tom Seaver - Stuck Out to end the 4th Inning
So really he faced only 2 HoF Hitters, we are being precise here - blogging is important.
The sole Phillies batter he faced was Greg Luzinski who flew out to Left.
1988 Topps All-Star Commemoratives
Picked this card because Catfish was not issued an All-Star card as a Yankee during his playing days.
The 1988 Topps Commemoratives which were placed in rack packs included two 1987 ASG Honorary Captain cards. Hunter represented the AL while Billy Williams received the honor for the NL. The two were inducted into the Hall of Fame later that summer.
Sloppy Topps
Details kids, the 1987 All-Star game was held in Oakland and Catfish wore the colors of his original team the A's for the occasion.
Catfish Hunter All-Star
Catfish Hunter spent his entire career in the AL during an era when the NL dominated the All-Star Game. The Junior Circuit lost all eight games in which he was on the roster, and truth be told he didn't help the AL very much.
Hunter pitched in six of those eight games including a fine performance in his first ASG in 1967. The game went 15 innings and Catfish pitched the final 5. Hunter only gave up two hits through his first four innings, unfortunately he gave up a Home Run to Tony Perez in the 15th.
The games outcome is noted in the -toon on the back of Hunter's 1969T card.
In today's terms giving up a run in an All-Star game seems about average, the cartoon neglects to mention that the single run occurred in an outing that went 5 innings.
And an Anniversary
Turning our attention to the text, the card mentions Catfish Hunter's No Hit Perfect Game. Today happens to be the anniversary of that Perfect Game a 4-0 A's victory over the Twins on May 8 1948. Hunter's 1969 Topps card is the first one issued after the game, therefore the first of his cards to include the words "Perfect Game". I imagine that prior to this card the only Topps Cards that mentioned "Perfect Game" were dedicated to Don Larsen, Jim Bunning and Sandy Koufax.
According to Baseball-Ref Catfish Hunter made $23,500 in 1968. Assuming that is his post bonus number, the $5,000 raise mentioned on the card is an increase of 27%. The US Department of Labor Inflation Calculator estimates that five grand is the equivalent of $34,000 in 2016 Dollars.
Here is a look at the front o the card
Hunter's other ASG appearances were all mediocre at best
1966: DNP
1967: See above
1970: 3 Earned runs including a Home Run to Dick Dietz, while recording only a single out.
1972: DNP
1973: His Best ASG 1 1/3 no runs 1 hit, no walks. outs recorded vs HoF Joe Morgan and Hank Aaron plus Pete Rose.
1974: 2 Innings allowed a Home Run to Reggie Smith, Struck out 3 batters including Perez.
1975: Allowed 2 ER in 2IP - although the runs were both allowed in by Goose Gossage after Hunter exited the game without recording an out in the 9th.
1976: See Above
Sources and Links
1976 ASG 40th Anniversary Index
Catfish Hunter HoF Index
No-Hitter Index
Standard Catalog of Baseball Cards - Bob Lemke
Getty Images
YouTube - 1976 ASG
Baseball Almanac
Baseball-ref
Bureau of Labor Inflation Calculator
Monday, November 30, 2015
1990 Year of the No-Hitter: June 11th - Nolan Ryan Pt 4
Our 1991 Year of the No-Hitter coverage will always be a work in progress. I started the series focusing on the 1991 Score No-Hit Club subset, but it has become more interesting as I have found other cards related to that years no-hitters.
1992 Pacific Nolan Ryan #170 Number Six
Pet peeve here as Nolan Ryan is clearly shown in a Home Rangers uni rather than a Road Texas jersey which he would have been wearing the night that he no-hit the Oakland A's. We have featured four other cards on Ryan's 6th no-hitter and all four card companies got the threads correct.
1992 Pacific Nolan Ryan is a continuation of the 1991 set that Pacific put out the previous year. Each of the two sets are similar in design and consist of 110 cards.
1992 Pacific Nolan Ryan #170 Number Six (b-side)
The flip contains the box score with a two sentence synopsis of Ryan's achievement.
Of the four previous cards we featured on Nolan Ryan's 1990 gem only one included the box score. The 1991 Score No-Hit Club Card.
1991 Score No-Hit Club #701 Nolan Ryan (b-side)
While formatted just a bit differently the two box scores cover the info at the same level of detail. The Date is given on the Pacific Card, while it is only on the front of the Score card.
Sources and Links
1991 0611 Nolan Ryan 6th No-Hitter Index
Standard Catalog of Baseball Cards (2006 ed) - Bob Lemke
sbnation
Pet peeve here as Nolan Ryan is clearly shown in a Home Rangers uni rather than a Road Texas jersey which he would have been wearing the night that he no-hit the Oakland A's. We have featured four other cards on Ryan's 6th no-hitter and all four card companies got the threads correct.
1992 Pacific Nolan Ryan is a continuation of the 1991 set that Pacific put out the previous year. Each of the two sets are similar in design and consist of 110 cards.
The flip contains the box score with a two sentence synopsis of Ryan's achievement.
Of the four previous cards we featured on Nolan Ryan's 1990 gem only one included the box score. The 1991 Score No-Hit Club Card.
While formatted just a bit differently the two box scores cover the info at the same level of detail. The Date is given on the Pacific Card, while it is only on the front of the Score card.
Sources and Links
1991 0611 Nolan Ryan 6th No-Hitter Index
Standard Catalog of Baseball Cards (2006 ed) - Bob Lemke
sbnation
Wednesday, September 9, 2015
50th Anniversary: Sandy Koufax = Perfect
Most of the season we have been looking back 25 years to the Year of the No-Hitter. Today we turn the clock back an additional quarter century and find ourselves on the day that Sandy Koufax became the first man to pitch four no-hitters.
That fourth No-Hitter was also a Perfect Game.
2007 UD Masterpieces #17 Sandy Koufax
Love the Image on the card. Four Baseball symbolizing the Four No-Hitters and The 29 year old Sandy Koufax with a reluctant smile that he can't hold back. Hard to believe 13 months later his career would be over.
Flip
2007 UD Masterpieces #17 Sandy Koufax (b-side)
The text on the back of the card tells the story of the Perfect Game in which the Dodgers beat the Cubs by the narrowest of margins 1-0. The hard luck loser was journeyman pitcher Bob Hendley who pitched a 1-Hitter giving up only an unearned run.
The Cubs lineup that day featured three future Hall of Famers, Ernie Banks (3 Strikeouts), Billy Williams (2 Ks), and Ron Santo (1 K). Of course on the other side of the ledger there were two Cubbies making their Major League Debut Don Young and future Phillie Bryon Browne.
Notable Dodgers in the Lineup were Maury Williams, Willie Davis, Catcher Jeff Torborg (see below), and Lou Johnson who scored the Dodgers lone Run and got the games only hit.
I re-read the chapter on Koufax's Game in James Buckley Jr's "Perfect". Couple of interesting things in the article.
1) The Cubs were in LA for one game only, Apparently this was part of the regular schedule NOT a rain out make-up.
2) The final out was a strikeout of Harvey Kuenn who was also the the last out in Koufax's 2nd No-Hitter.
3) The Cubs Bob Hendley pitched to two over the minimum for an 8-inning start, meaning only 53 batters came to the plate combined. The Lowest possible Combined PAs is 52, which has never been done.
4) The Perfect Game was the 2nd of three called by Hall of Fame broadcaster Vin Scully: Don Larsen, Koufax, and Denny Martinez. Both the Larsen and Martinez Perfectos were versus the Dodgers.
Scully's call of the final 3 outs of the Perfect Game can be heard at Archive.org. If you stay with the recording to the end Vin Scully can be heard in an interview, he notes that he specified the time of day during this broadcast in an effort to add something special to the No-hitter since Sandy Koufax already had 3 recordings of the 9th innings of his no-hitters.
Much of Buckley's essay was derived from an interview with Catcher Jeff Torborg who caught no-hitters in Both Leagues. In addition to the Koufax Perfecto Torborg while with the Angels caught Nolan Ryan's first No-Hitter. He is one of 3 men to have caught No-Hitters in both leagues - all 3 have caught Perfect Games as well (Gus Triandos - Jim Bunning (NL - Phillies vs Mets) & Hoyt Wilhelm (AL) , and Ron Hassey Len Barker (AL) & Denny Martinez (NL))
Sources and Links
Phungo Sandy Koufax HoF Index
Phungo No-Hitter Card Index
archive.org
Perfect - James Buckley Jr
SABR Baseball Games Project - Mike Huber
Sandy Koufax Time Capsule
baseball-ref
Baseball Almanac
That fourth No-Hitter was also a Perfect Game.
Love the Image on the card. Four Baseball symbolizing the Four No-Hitters and The 29 year old Sandy Koufax with a reluctant smile that he can't hold back. Hard to believe 13 months later his career would be over.
Flip
The text on the back of the card tells the story of the Perfect Game in which the Dodgers beat the Cubs by the narrowest of margins 1-0. The hard luck loser was journeyman pitcher Bob Hendley who pitched a 1-Hitter giving up only an unearned run.
The Cubs lineup that day featured three future Hall of Famers, Ernie Banks (3 Strikeouts), Billy Williams (2 Ks), and Ron Santo (1 K). Of course on the other side of the ledger there were two Cubbies making their Major League Debut Don Young and future Phillie Bryon Browne.
Notable Dodgers in the Lineup were Maury Williams, Willie Davis, Catcher Jeff Torborg (see below), and Lou Johnson who scored the Dodgers lone Run and got the games only hit.
I re-read the chapter on Koufax's Game in James Buckley Jr's "Perfect". Couple of interesting things in the article.
1) The Cubs were in LA for one game only, Apparently this was part of the regular schedule NOT a rain out make-up.
2) The final out was a strikeout of Harvey Kuenn who was also the the last out in Koufax's 2nd No-Hitter.
3) The Cubs Bob Hendley pitched to two over the minimum for an 8-inning start, meaning only 53 batters came to the plate combined. The Lowest possible Combined PAs is 52, which has never been done.
4) The Perfect Game was the 2nd of three called by Hall of Fame broadcaster Vin Scully: Don Larsen, Koufax, and Denny Martinez. Both the Larsen and Martinez Perfectos were versus the Dodgers.
Scully's call of the final 3 outs of the Perfect Game can be heard at Archive.org. If you stay with the recording to the end Vin Scully can be heard in an interview, he notes that he specified the time of day during this broadcast in an effort to add something special to the No-hitter since Sandy Koufax already had 3 recordings of the 9th innings of his no-hitters.
Much of Buckley's essay was derived from an interview with Catcher Jeff Torborg who caught no-hitters in Both Leagues. In addition to the Koufax Perfecto Torborg while with the Angels caught Nolan Ryan's first No-Hitter. He is one of 3 men to have caught No-Hitters in both leagues - all 3 have caught Perfect Games as well (Gus Triandos - Jim Bunning (NL - Phillies vs Mets) & Hoyt Wilhelm (AL) , and Ron Hassey Len Barker (AL) & Denny Martinez (NL))
Sources and Links
Phungo Sandy Koufax HoF Index
Phungo No-Hitter Card Index
archive.org
Perfect - James Buckley Jr
SABR Baseball Games Project - Mike Huber
Sandy Koufax Time Capsule
baseball-ref
Baseball Almanac
Tuesday, September 1, 2015
1990: Year of the No-Hitter - September 2 Dave Stieb
On September 2nd of 1990 Dave Stieb’s quest for a no-hitter finally ended.
1990 Score #707 No-Hit Club Dave Stieb
Stieb and his Blue Jays teammates defeated the Cleveland Indians 3-0. Stieb Struck out 9 while issuing 4 bases on balls. However he pitched to 2 over the minimum thanks to his batterymate Pat Borders throwing out a a pair of runners on attempted steals.
Box Notes
Tomorrow I'll be Perfect
Notice above I state Stieb’s quest “Finally Ended” well I have no real way of knowing if this was really a quest for the Blue Jays Ace. But I do know that he came awful close to tossing no-hitters several times.
September 24th 1988 - with 2 outs in the 9th inning also against the Indians Stieb gave up a bad hop single to Julio Franco
Dave Stieb’s autobiography titled “Tomorrow I’ll be Perfect” was released in 1986, two years prior to his No-Hitter string. The reference to Tossing a Perfect Game, which never happened but hopefully the No-Hitter he got on September 2 1990 was close enough.
Like Dave Stieb finally getting his No-Hitter, we have finally finished are year of the No-Hitter series. I enjoyed writing the series and find it fitting that it occurred in another heavy no-hitter year. While our coverage of the 1990 No-Hitters has ended, I see the series continuing by checking in on a smattering of the remaining 280+ No-Hitters and related trading cards
SABR Games (added 2015 1104)
Stieb and his Blue Jays teammates defeated the Cleveland Indians 3-0. Stieb Struck out 9 while issuing 4 bases on balls. However he pitched to 2 over the minimum thanks to his batterymate Pat Borders throwing out a a pair of runners on attempted steals.
Box Notes
1990 Score #707 No-Hit Club Dave Stieb (b-side)
Not a lot of big names in the unit that Dave Stieb recorded his milestone game against. Two parts of the Indians lineup versus Stieb arrived from San Diego in a Trade for Joe Carter (Boo!) Carlos Baerga and Chris James. The Padres originally received James in a trade that sent John Kruk to the Phillies.
Seifeld favorite Ken Phelps makes his 3rd appearance in our Year of the No-Hitter Series. He busted up Brian Holman's perfect game on April 20th and was struck out in a pinch hitting appearance versus Nolan Ryan on June 11th. Phelps went 0 for 2 versus Stieb but did reach base via one of the four walks.
Borders, Mookie Wilson and Fred "Crime Dog" McGriff are the Notables that backed up Dave Stieb in his outing. The Center Fielder for Toronto was future White Sox GM Ken Williams who we previously saw on the wrong side of a no-hitter pitched by Randy Johnson (June 2)
Not a lot of big names in the unit that Dave Stieb recorded his milestone game against. Two parts of the Indians lineup versus Stieb arrived from San Diego in a Trade for Joe Carter (Boo!) Carlos Baerga and Chris James. The Padres originally received James in a trade that sent John Kruk to the Phillies.
Seifeld favorite Ken Phelps makes his 3rd appearance in our Year of the No-Hitter Series. He busted up Brian Holman's perfect game on April 20th and was struck out in a pinch hitting appearance versus Nolan Ryan on June 11th. Phelps went 0 for 2 versus Stieb but did reach base via one of the four walks.
Borders, Mookie Wilson and Fred "Crime Dog" McGriff are the Notables that backed up Dave Stieb in his outing. The Center Fielder for Toronto was future White Sox GM Ken Williams who we previously saw on the wrong side of a no-hitter pitched by Randy Johnson (June 2)
Tomorrow I'll be Perfect
Notice above I state Stieb’s quest “Finally Ended” well I have no real way of knowing if this was really a quest for the Blue Jays Ace. But I do know that he came awful close to tossing no-hitters several times.
September 24th 1988 - with 2 outs in the 9th inning also against the Indians Stieb gave up a bad hop single to Julio Franco
September 30th 1988 - Versus the Orioles Pinch Hitter Jim Traber singled
August 4th 1989 – Stieb was perfect for 8 2/3 innings versus the Yankees prior to giving up a double to Roberto Kelly
Dave Stieb’s autobiography titled “Tomorrow I’ll be Perfect” was released in 1986, two years prior to his No-Hitter string. The reference to Tossing a Perfect Game, which never happened but hopefully the No-Hitter he got on September 2 1990 was close enough.
Like Dave Stieb finally getting his No-Hitter, we have finally finished are year of the No-Hitter series. I enjoyed writing the series and find it fitting that it occurred in another heavy no-hitter year. While our coverage of the 1990 No-Hitters has ended, I see the series continuing by checking in on a smattering of the remaining 280+ No-Hitters and related trading cards
Saturday, August 15, 2015
1990 Year of the No-Hitter August 15th Terry Mulholland PT 3
This is our third and final card dedicated to Terry Mulholland's 1990 No-Hitter.
1991 Donruss #BC-14 Terry Mulholland
Nice looking card I like the Highlights flair and the succinct "NO-HITS GIANTS" tag line. I do however ding them for picking a shot of Mulholland on the road rather than pitching at the Vet where he recorded the No-Hitter.
1991 Donruss #BC-14 Terry Mulholland (b-side)
A very thorough write up here. Can you imagine a baseball card containing this much text today?
Too bad there is a glaring error in the first sentence. I am no journalists, but I do remember this from my 100 level Journalism course I took 30 years ago - Spell the names correctly and get the Dates right. Donruss failed on the date here as they have the No-Hitter a month early on July 15th rather than August 15.
The card has a second error while discussing a Baseball error. Donruss refers to Phillies Third Baseman Charlie Hayes as "Chris" - perhaps that is what his friends call him.
I give Donruss credit for mentioning that Mulholland pitched to the minimum and also name dropping Gary Carter at the end of the text.
1991 Donruss Bonus Cards
The Donruss BC are essentially a subset of 1991 Donruss. BC consists of 22 cards split between the two Donruss series for 1991, Mulholland falls in S2. All nine of the 1990 no-hitters are represented in the Bonus Cards subber.
Sources and Links
1990 0815 Terry Mulholland No-Hitter Index
Baseball Cardpedia
Baseball Ref
Nice looking card I like the Highlights flair and the succinct "NO-HITS GIANTS" tag line. I do however ding them for picking a shot of Mulholland on the road rather than pitching at the Vet where he recorded the No-Hitter.
A very thorough write up here. Can you imagine a baseball card containing this much text today?
Too bad there is a glaring error in the first sentence. I am no journalists, but I do remember this from my 100 level Journalism course I took 30 years ago - Spell the names correctly and get the Dates right. Donruss failed on the date here as they have the No-Hitter a month early on July 15th rather than August 15.
The card has a second error while discussing a Baseball error. Donruss refers to Phillies Third Baseman Charlie Hayes as "Chris" - perhaps that is what his friends call him.
I give Donruss credit for mentioning that Mulholland pitched to the minimum and also name dropping Gary Carter at the end of the text.
1991 Donruss Bonus Cards
The Donruss BC are essentially a subset of 1991 Donruss. BC consists of 22 cards split between the two Donruss series for 1991, Mulholland falls in S2. All nine of the 1990 no-hitters are represented in the Bonus Cards subber.
Sources and Links
1990 0815 Terry Mulholland No-Hitter Index
Baseball Cardpedia
Baseball Ref
1990 Year of the No-Hitter: August 15th Terry Mulholland PT 2
This is what happens when you take those memorable Yellow 1991 Fleer Cards and lazily create a subset based off the original.
1991 Fleer Box Botton #8 Terry Mulholland
Just when you think 1991 Fleer can't look any worse, you add a quick game, date and score in the dullest font possible. The #8 refers to Mulholland's No-Hitter being the leagues eighth of the season which set the record - for purposes of the Fleer box bottom No-Hitter "subset" it is also the card number.
The No-Hitter flair is the only thing of any interest here.
Fleer produced this card as part of a series of Box Bottom cards dedicated to the 1990 No-Hitters. Each Box Bottom contains 4 Cards, 3 No-Hitter related plus a fourth card that has a Team Logo. The Mulholland card shares a Panel with Andy Hawkins and Hall of Famer Nolan Ryan.
Speaking of the Express, I Just happened to see that Thorzul posted the Nolan Ryan Fleer Box Bottom as part of his most recent Pull the Trigger promo. This card is, of course, related to Ryan's No-Hitter which we featured two months ago.
Since these cards are Box Bottoms they are blank backed.
Sources and Links
Thorzul Will Rule
1990 0815 Terry Mulholland No-Hitter Index
1990 0611 Nolan Ryan No-Hitter Index
Standard Catalog of Baseball Cards (Bob Lemke)
Baseball Ref
Sunday, July 26, 2015
Cole Hamels Tosses No-Hitter
It was great watching Cole Hamels No-Hitter yesterday. During the course of a long season even the worst teams have bright spots, I am glad to see Cole Hamels got to be part of one.
2006 Fleer Tradition #29 Cole Hamels (rc - sort of)
The above Fleer card specifies that it is Cole Hamels Rookie Card, but that designation may vary. Hamels had cards at least as far back as 2003. 2006 was the first year of the current Rookie Card guidelines. Essentially a player gets the RC logo once they make a 25 man roster - apparently September Call ups don't count, I haven't bothered to research the latter point, but I question whether it is still followed.
Hamels came up in May of 2006 and thus earned the RC flair, His debut is covered in the text on the back of the card.
2006 Fleer Tradition #29 Cole Hamels (b-side)
One of the issues I have always had with Upper Deck is they have no problem wasting acres of real estate on the flip sides
Snapshots
2006 0904 Cole Hamels vs Craig Biggio (click to enlarge)
This is one of best photos I took early in my digital camera apprenticeship. Cole Hamels is facing Craig Biggio. It is a great photo to bring out today - on the Day that Biggio goes into the Hall and Hamels is fresh off his no-hitter.
This is one of the common shots I go after, the ball is in motion between pitcher and batter - in this pix the pitch appears to be pretty close to dead center of that 60 feet 6 inch stretch.
To read more about the great game where this photo was taken click here.
Extra Innings
Since we are covering No-Hitters this year I am adding this posting to our Year of the No-Hitter index.
Sources and Links
1990 Year of the No-Hitter Index
Cardboard Connection
Topps Baseball Card Database
The above Fleer card specifies that it is Cole Hamels Rookie Card, but that designation may vary. Hamels had cards at least as far back as 2003. 2006 was the first year of the current Rookie Card guidelines. Essentially a player gets the RC logo once they make a 25 man roster - apparently September Call ups don't count, I haven't bothered to research the latter point, but I question whether it is still followed.
Hamels came up in May of 2006 and thus earned the RC flair, His debut is covered in the text on the back of the card.
One of the issues I have always had with Upper Deck is they have no problem wasting acres of real estate on the flip sides
Snapshots
This is one of best photos I took early in my digital camera apprenticeship. Cole Hamels is facing Craig Biggio. It is a great photo to bring out today - on the Day that Biggio goes into the Hall and Hamels is fresh off his no-hitter.
This is one of the common shots I go after, the ball is in motion between pitcher and batter - in this pix the pitch appears to be pretty close to dead center of that 60 feet 6 inch stretch.
To read more about the great game where this photo was taken click here.
Extra Innings
Since we are covering No-Hitters this year I am adding this posting to our Year of the No-Hitter index.
Sources and Links
1990 Year of the No-Hitter Index
Cardboard Connection
Topps Baseball Card Database
Sunday, July 19, 2015
Sunday Night Baseball: Red Sox @ Angels 1975 Topps #7 No-Hitter Highlights
Sunday Night Baseball is in LA for the Red Sox and Angels which gives an opportunity to dig a bit deeper into our Year of the No-Hitter series.
1975 Topps #7 1974 Highlights No-Hitters - Busby Bosman & Ryan
Two of the Ten pitchers who were involved in Year of the No-Hitter had thrown previous no-hitters. Mike Witt who finished Mark Langston's No-Hitter tossed a perfect game in 1984, the other of course was was Nolan Ryan.
The No-Hitter referred to by the 1975 Topps Card above is Ryan's Third. Ryan and the Angels defeated the Twins 4-0. The Twins lineup that Ryan faced that day included Future Hall of Famer Rod Carew (Who was the focus of our previous Angels SNB posting) and pinch hitter Harmon Killebrew. Ryan had the opportunity to finish the No-Hitter when he faced the Killer with 2 outs in the ninth, but ended up walking the slugger before getting Eric Soderholm for the final out.
1975 Topps #7 1974 Highlights No-Hitters - Busby Bosman & Ryan (b-side)
The newspaper style text on the back of the card gives short descriptions of the No-Hitters. Steve Busby beat the Brewers 2-0. Milwaukee's Shortstop that day was rookie Robin Yount who was playing in his 56th career game.
Dick Bosman shutdown Reggie Jackson and the Oakland A's 4-0 in the middle of their three-peat World Series Run. Today is the Anniversary of Bosman's No-Hitter which occurred 41 years ago.
2007 09 23 Dick Bosman Throws out first pitch at RFK Stadium
Dick Bosman threw out the final first pitch at RFK Stadium. The Phillies lost to the Nationals 5-3 that day. Chuck Cordero struck out Jayson Werth for the final out.
Peanut Gallery
Night Owl covered this No-Hitter card on his 1975 Topps Blog.
Sources and Links
1990 Year of the No-Hitter
Nolan Ryan HoF Index
Washington Nationals
baseball almanac
Baseball-ref
Two of the Ten pitchers who were involved in Year of the No-Hitter had thrown previous no-hitters. Mike Witt who finished Mark Langston's No-Hitter tossed a perfect game in 1984, the other of course was was Nolan Ryan.
The No-Hitter referred to by the 1975 Topps Card above is Ryan's Third. Ryan and the Angels defeated the Twins 4-0. The Twins lineup that Ryan faced that day included Future Hall of Famer Rod Carew (Who was the focus of our previous Angels SNB posting) and pinch hitter Harmon Killebrew. Ryan had the opportunity to finish the No-Hitter when he faced the Killer with 2 outs in the ninth, but ended up walking the slugger before getting Eric Soderholm for the final out.
The newspaper style text on the back of the card gives short descriptions of the No-Hitters. Steve Busby beat the Brewers 2-0. Milwaukee's Shortstop that day was rookie Robin Yount who was playing in his 56th career game.
Dick Bosman shutdown Reggie Jackson and the Oakland A's 4-0 in the middle of their three-peat World Series Run. Today is the Anniversary of Bosman's No-Hitter which occurred 41 years ago.
Dick Bosman threw out the final first pitch at RFK Stadium. The Phillies lost to the Nationals 5-3 that day. Chuck Cordero struck out Jayson Werth for the final out.
Peanut Gallery
Night Owl covered this No-Hitter card on his 1975 Topps Blog.
Sources and Links
1990 Year of the No-Hitter
Nolan Ryan HoF Index
Washington Nationals
baseball almanac
Baseball-ref
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