#94 Hank Aguirre - Los Angeles Dodgers

Henry John Aguirre
Los Angeles Dodgers
Pitcher

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Left  Height:  6'4"  Weight:  205
Born:  January 31, 1931, Azusa, CA
Acquired:  Sent from Duluth (Northern) to the Cleveland Indians in an unknown transaction before 1952 season
Major League Teams:  Cleveland Indians 1955-1957; Detroit Tigers 1958-1967; Los Angeles Dodgers 1968; Chicago Cubs 1969-1970

Died:  September 5, 1994, Bloomfield Hills, MI (age 63)

Lefty pitcher Hank Aguirre appeared in 16 big league seasons, mostly with the Tigers, and he peaked in 1962 when he was named to both All-Star teams and won the American League ERA title with a 2.21 mark.  Of Mexican descent, his last name was pronounced ah-GEAR-ee, and not as I had assumed, rhyming with Mark McGwire.  As a rookie pitcher for the Indians, Aguirre struck out Ted Williams (#650) in a game against the Red Sox on July 15, 1956.  Aguirre asked Williams to sign the ball following the game, with Williams reluctantly agreeing.  Legend has it Williams homered off Aguirre a few weeks later and as he was circling the bases, the slugger yelled, "Get that ball, and I'll sign it too."  However, and I hate to ruin a great story, checking the records Williams didn't homer off Aguirre until July 19, 1958.

Aguirre was dealt to the Tigers before the 1958 season, and he'd settle into their pitching rotation for the next decade.  He was a 16-game winner in 1962, his finest season, and won 14 games each in 1963 and 1965.  Aguirre would retire after two seasons with the Cubs in 1969 and 1970, but he'd join the Cubs' coaching staff in 1972, where he'd stay until 1974.  He'd manage in the Athletics' organization in 1975 and 1976.  Aguirre had a lifetime record of 75-72 in 447 games pitched, with a 3.25 ERA and 856 strikeouts over 1,375 1/3 innings.  He'd go on to found and preside over Mexican Industries, Inc., an automobile parts supplier, creating hundreds of jobs in Michigan for Hispanic workers.  In 1987 he was named "Businessman of the Year" by the U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce.

Some text for this post originally appeared on my 1965 Topps blog.

Building the Set / Card #137
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 60th 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 less than a dollar.

The Card / Dodgers Team Set / Accuracy Index -10

Aguirre, who didn't play for the Dodgers in 1969, is wearing a Tigers jersey and hat in the photo used here.  The photo may date back to 1966, as he appears to be wearing the same warm-up under his jersey that can be seen on his 1967 and 1968 Topps cards.  The cartoon on the back celebrates his ERA title in 1962, and the write-up points out he had the lowest bullpen ERA on the Dodgers' staff in 1968.  Given that, it's a little surprising the Dodgers would release him (see below) following the season.

Accuracy Index:  Aguirre didn't play for the Dodgers in 1969 (-2) and he's shown in a Tigers uniform (-5) and hat (-3) in this photo.

1969 Season
Aguirre was released by the Dodgers on December 9, 1968 and signed by the Cubs three months later on March 21st.  He made 41 appearances out of the bullpen for the Cubs, going 1-0 with a 2.60 ERA over 45 innings pitched.

1957 Topps #96

1962 Topps #407

1963 Topps #257

1970 Topps #699

1974 Topps #354

Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card:  1957 Topps #96
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (16):  1957-1970, 1973-1974
Most Recent Mainstream Card:  1978 TCMA The 1960s I #225
Total Non-Parallel Baseball Cards:  66 in the Beckett online database as of 10/1/23.

Sources:  
Baseball Reference / Wikipedia

Beckett Database / The Trading Card Database
1965 Topps Blog

#93 Joe Foy - Kansas City Royals / #95 Johnny Bench - Cincinnati Reds