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Robert Belinsky
St. Louis Cardinals
Pitcher
Born: December 7, 1936, New York, NY
Signed: Signed by the Pittsburgh Pirates as an amateur free agent before 1956 season
Major League Teams: Los Angeles Angels 1962-1964; Philadelphia Phillies 1965-1966; Houston Astros 1967; Pittsburgh Pirates 1969; Cincinnati Reds 1970
Died: November 23, 2001, Las Vegas, NV (age 64)
I clearly remember seeing copies of the biography, Bo: Pitching and Wooing for sale at old baseball card shows as a young collector and thinking Bo Belinsky must have been one of the greats from the 1960s. Turns out he was simply a larger than life personality who relished the spotlight, dated a bunch of women connected to show business and had a quick rise and quicker fall from grace as a pitcher in the major leagues. He won his first five starts with the Angels in 1962 and pitched a no-hitter against the Orioles in his fourth start on May 5th. It was all downhill from there.
Belinsky pitched for three seasons with the Angels, going 21-28 with a 3.74 ERA. Seemingly focused more on the Hollywood lifestyle than pitching, the Angels quickly soured on the pitcher and traded him to the Phillies in December 1964. That began a six-year trek for Belinsky through the Phillies, Astros, White Sox, Cardinals, Pirates, Angels (again) and Reds systems before he retired following the 1970 season at the age of 34. In 146 games over 8 seasons, Belinsky compiled a 28-51 record with a 4.10 ERA. He contributed to the aforementioned biography, published in 1973 and written by Maury Allen.
I clearly remember seeing copies of the biography, Bo: Pitching and Wooing for sale at old baseball card shows as a young collector and thinking Bo Belinsky must have been one of the greats from the 1960s. Turns out he was simply a larger than life personality who relished the spotlight, dated a bunch of women connected to show business and had a quick rise and quicker fall from grace as a pitcher in the major leagues. He won his first five starts with the Angels in 1962 and pitched a no-hitter against the Orioles in his fourth start on May 5th. It was all downhill from there.
Belinsky pitched for three seasons with the Angels, going 21-28 with a 3.74 ERA. Seemingly focused more on the Hollywood lifestyle than pitching, the Angels quickly soured on the pitcher and traded him to the Phillies in December 1964. That began a six-year trek for Belinsky through the Phillies, Astros, White Sox, Cardinals, Pirates, Angels (again) and Reds systems before he retired following the 1970 season at the age of 34. In 146 games over 8 seasons, Belinsky compiled a 28-51 record with a 4.10 ERA. He contributed to the aforementioned biography, published in 1973 and written by Maury Allen.
Some text for this post originally appeared on my 1965 Topps blog.
Building the Set / Card #51
January 17, 2023 from Greg Morris Cards - Los Angeles, CA
On the evening of January 8th, I found myself sitting in Terminal C of the Philadelphia International Airport waiting to board my flight to Dallas. Earlier that day, I had enjoyed watching our oldest son Doug at a winter track meet as he pole vaulted for his high school. I was in a good mood despite the the fact that like most flights that day, my flight had been delayed. This was for a work trip, and I was doing my best to stay positive and keep myself in the post-holiday happiness hangover that had lingered into the year's second week. eBay seller Greg Morris Cards, based out of Los Angeles, somehow seems to post cards from various vintage baseball card set breaks on a weekly basis, with the cards typically all in fantastic condition. With time to kill, knowing that bidding on baseball cards was a surefire good mood sustainer, and having only 40 cards so far for our 1969 Topps set, I pleasantly passed the time by bidding on 62 commons, all with no previous bidders, and all ending within the next 30 hours.
The Card / Cardinals Team Set / Accuracy Index -16
1969 Season
As mentioned above, Belinsky began the year with the Cardinals, was in the Angels' organization for four months, and was sold to the Pirates where he'd appear in eight games in August and September. With Pittsburgh, Belinsky was 0-3 with a 4.58 ERA, making three starts and pitching 17 2/3 innings overall.
Phillies Career
Belinsky was traded to the Phillies for Rudy May and Costen Shockley on December 3, 1964. Earlier in the year, Belinsky had punched a sports reporter, been demoted to the minor leagues and refused to report. The Angels suspended him without pay. Inserted into the Phillies starting rotation, he started the season with seven rough starts (1-3, 6.58 ERA) and manager Gene Mauch (#606) shifted him to the bullpen. He'd bounce back and forth between starter and reliever throughout the season, missing most of September with a broken rib. Belinsky appeared in 30 games for the Phillies in 1965, making 14 starts and earning a 4-9 record with a 4.84 ERA. He vowed not to the return to the Phillies' bullpen in 1966, blaming Mauch for his pitching woes.
Belinsky's performance suffered further in 1966, as he appeared in 9 games with the Phillies (0-2, 2.93 ERA in 15 1/3 innings) before getting demoted to Triple-A San Diego in June. With the Padres, Belinsky appeared in only 13 games. The Phillies left him unprotected following the season, and the Astros drafted him on November 28, 1966 in the annual rule 5 draft. Mauch said of Belinsky, “He could pitch. He just wouldn’t work out. I wish I had a thousand guys with his arm and none with his head.”
Belinsky appeared in the 1965 and 1966 Topps sets with the Phillies, and he has a third mainstream Phillies card within the 1989 Swell Baseball Greats set.
Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card: 1962 Topps #592
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (7): 1962-1967, 1969
Most Recent Mainstream Card: 1999 Sports Illustrated Greats of the Game #29
Total Non-Parallel Baseball Cards: 32 in the Beckett online database as of 2/4/23.
Sources:
Baseball Reference / SABR / Wikipedia
January 17, 2023 from Greg Morris Cards - Los Angeles, CA
On the evening of January 8th, I found myself sitting in Terminal C of the Philadelphia International Airport waiting to board my flight to Dallas. Earlier that day, I had enjoyed watching our oldest son Doug at a winter track meet as he pole vaulted for his high school. I was in a good mood despite the the fact that like most flights that day, my flight had been delayed. This was for a work trip, and I was doing my best to stay positive and keep myself in the post-holiday happiness hangover that had lingered into the year's second week. eBay seller Greg Morris Cards, based out of Los Angeles, somehow seems to post cards from various vintage baseball card set breaks on a weekly basis, with the cards typically all in fantastic condition. With time to kill, knowing that bidding on baseball cards was a surefire good mood sustainer, and having only 40 cards so far for our 1969 Topps set, I pleasantly passed the time by bidding on 62 commons, all with no previous bidders, and all ending within the next 30 hours.
The next afternoon, while on a break at our work conference in the Hilton Anatole, I checked on the auctions, noting I had been outbid on a few, but was still the high bidder for most of the 62 cards. That night, as auctions were close to ending, and as I was enjoying a few adult beverages at the fine Rodeo Goat establishment across the street from the Hilton, my Apple Watch began vibrating every few seconds as I was outbid on dozens of auctions. When the dust had settled, I had won 24 new cards at an average price of about $2.50 per card. This Belinsky card was $1.51, and arrived a week after I had made the return trip home from Dallas.
The Card / Cardinals Team Set / Accuracy Index -16
Belinsky's final Topps flagship set appearance shows him with the Cardinals, a team for which he never pitched. He was selected by the Cardinals from the Astros in the 1968 rule 5 draft and then sold to the Angels on April 3, 1969. A reunion with the Angels never happened as he was sold again to the Pirates on July 30, 1969.
Accuracy Index: This represents a new high score on the merit of Belinsky never having played with the Cardinals in 1969 (-2) or at any point during his career (-6). He's also hatless (-3) and wearing an Astros uniform (-5).
1969 Season
As mentioned above, Belinsky began the year with the Cardinals, was in the Angels' organization for four months, and was sold to the Pirates where he'd appear in eight games in August and September. With Pittsburgh, Belinsky was 0-3 with a 4.58 ERA, making three starts and pitching 17 2/3 innings overall.
Belinsky was traded to the Phillies for Rudy May and Costen Shockley on December 3, 1964. Earlier in the year, Belinsky had punched a sports reporter, been demoted to the minor leagues and refused to report. The Angels suspended him without pay. Inserted into the Phillies starting rotation, he started the season with seven rough starts (1-3, 6.58 ERA) and manager Gene Mauch (#606) shifted him to the bullpen. He'd bounce back and forth between starter and reliever throughout the season, missing most of September with a broken rib. Belinsky appeared in 30 games for the Phillies in 1965, making 14 starts and earning a 4-9 record with a 4.84 ERA. He vowed not to the return to the Phillies' bullpen in 1966, blaming Mauch for his pitching woes.
Belinsky's performance suffered further in 1966, as he appeared in 9 games with the Phillies (0-2, 2.93 ERA in 15 1/3 innings) before getting demoted to Triple-A San Diego in June. With the Padres, Belinsky appeared in only 13 games. The Phillies left him unprotected following the season, and the Astros drafted him on November 28, 1966 in the annual rule 5 draft. Mauch said of Belinsky, “He could pitch. He just wouldn’t work out. I wish I had a thousand guys with his arm and none with his head.”
Belinsky appeared in the 1965 and 1966 Topps sets with the Phillies, and he has a third mainstream Phillies card within the 1989 Swell Baseball Greats set.
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First Mainstream Card: 1962 Topps #592
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (7): 1962-1967, 1969
Most Recent Mainstream Card: 1999 Sports Illustrated Greats of the Game #29
Total Non-Parallel Baseball Cards: 32 in the Beckett online database as of 2/4/23.
Sources:
Baseball Reference / SABR / Wikipedia
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