#93 Joe Foy - Kansas City Royals

Joseph Anthony Foy
Kansas City Royals
Third Base

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'0"  Weight:  215
Born:  February 21, 1943, New York, NY

Signed:  Signed by the Minnesota Twins as an amateur free agent before 1962 season
Major League Teams:  Boston Red Sox 1966-1968; Kansas City Royals 1969; New York Mets 1970; Washington Senators 1971

World Series Appearances:  Boston Red Sox 1967
Died:  October 12, 1989, Bronx, NY (age 46)

Joe Foy peaked in 1965 when he won International League MVP and Rookie of the Year honors as a member of the Toronto Maple Leafs, then the top farm team of the Red Sox.  Foy batted .302 with 14 home runs and 73 RBIs that season, earning him a roster spot with the Red Sox in 1966.  He was one of the top players in Boston in 1966, and as their regular third baseman, Foy batted .262 with a career-high 63 RBIs.  He was fifth in the American League with 97 runs scored.  

1969 Mike Anderson Postcards

His numbers slipped in 1967 as Boston improbably advanced to the World Series, and in his only postseason action Foy batted .133 (2 for 15) in the seven game series against the Cardinals.  Left unprotected in the 1968 expansion draft, Foy was selected by the Royals and was the franchise's first ever third baseman on opening day 1969.  He spent his final two seasons in the majors with the Mets and Senators, and his career was likely cut short due to his struggles with alcohol and drug abuse.  In 716 games, Foy batted .248 with 58 home runs and 291 RBIs.

Building the Set / Card #136
March 12, 2023 from The Philly Show (Uncle Dick's Cards)

In mid-March, Doug and I attended the Philadelphia Sports Collectors Show, held within the Greater Philadelphia Expo Center in Oaks, Pennsylvania.  My main focus for this show was accumulating as many 1969 Topps commons as possible, which I did by adding a grand total of 193 cards to our set.  That's almost 30% of the entire set added in one enjoyable afternoon.  I wrote a full summary of the show in a post over at The Phillies Room, found here.

This is the 59th of the 193 commons and semi-stars purchased, pulled and stacked from the first two neon green binders housing 1969 Topps cards at the multi-table spread of Uncle Dick's Cards from Babylon, New York.  My method was simple - I pulled up a chair, found a card I needed, picked the best of the group from the binder page and set it aside.  After each 100 cards, I'd ask the dealer to tell me how much damage I had done so far.  With a budget in mind, I kept going twice, continuing after card #100 and card #200, and stopping at card #298.  The final amount due was 17% off the sticker price for the pile of 193 cards, with this card costing me $1.25.

The Card / Royals Team Set / Accuracy Index -8

Foy is posing in a Red Sox uniform here, and the back of the card highlights his MVP-winning 1965 season.  I'm curious to know what the orange-colored arc is behind Foy's ear.  The mysterious arc is present on both Foy's base card and his Decal insert card (see below).

Accuracy Index:  Foy's card loses five points for his Red Sox uniform and another three for the blacked out hat.

Inserts:  Foy is included in the 35 card Topps Deckle Edge insert set and is one of 48 decals in the Topps Decals insert set.  He's one of 27 players to appear in both insert sets.  Foy was a late addition to the Deckle Edge set, as Topps wanted a Royals representative given Hoyt Wilhelm (#565) was dealt from the Royals to the Angels on December 12, 1968, less than two months following the expansion draft.

1969 Season
Foy was the 4th pick in the 1968 expansion draft, selected by the Royals from the Red Sox.  He appeared in 145 games, making 107 starts at third base.  Foy batted .262 with 11 home runs and 71 RBIs, leading the Royals in that category.  He also led the team with 72 runs scored.  On December 3rd, Foy was traded to the Mets for Bob Johnson (#261) and Amos Otis (#31).

1966 Topps #456

1967 Topps #331

1968 Topps #387

1970 Topps #138

1971 Topps #706

Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card:  1966 Topps #456
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (6):  1966-1971
Most Recent Mainstream Card:  1981 TCMA The 1960s II #321
Total Non-Parallel Baseball Cards:  44 in the Beckett online database as of 10/1/23.

Sources:  
Baseball Reference / SABR / Wikipedia

Beckett Database / The Trading Card Database

#92 Jack Billingham - Montreal Expos / #94 Hank Aguirre - Los Angeles Dodgers