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Joseph Clifton Martin
New York Mets
Catcher
Born: December 13, 1936, Axton, VA
Signed: Signed by the Chicago White Sox as an amateur free agent before 1956 season
Major League Teams: Chicago White Sox 1959-1967; New York Mets 1968-1969; Chicago Cubs 1970-1972
World Series Appearances: New York Mets 1969
J.C. Martin began his career as a third baseman and first baseman, until White Sox manager Al Lopez (#527) convinced him to return to the minor leagues and learn how to catch. As the regular catcher for the White Sox in 1963 and 1964, Martin struggled at the plate, batting .205 and .197 respectively, and behind the plate on defense. He led the American League in passed balls in 1964 with 24 and a record-setting 33 in 1965, due in part to having to catch knuckle-ballers Hoyt Wilhelm (#565) and Eddie Fisher (#315). Martin improved both his offense and defense over the next few seasons, and was dealt to the Mets following the 1967 season. With the Mets, Martin, along with Duffy Dyer (#624), was one of two back-up catchers to regular Jerry Grote (#55). In 1969, the Amazin' Mets shocked the baseball world by winning the National League pennant and advancing to the World Series.
Martin played for three seasons with the Cubs beginning in 1970 before joining their coaching staff for the 1974 season. In 14 big league seasons, Martin batted .222 with 32 home runs, 230 RBIs and one unforgettable World Series bunt.
J.C. Martin began his career as a third baseman and first baseman, until White Sox manager Al Lopez (#527) convinced him to return to the minor leagues and learn how to catch. As the regular catcher for the White Sox in 1963 and 1964, Martin struggled at the plate, batting .205 and .197 respectively, and behind the plate on defense. He led the American League in passed balls in 1964 with 24 and a record-setting 33 in 1965, due in part to having to catch knuckle-ballers Hoyt Wilhelm (#565) and Eddie Fisher (#315). Martin improved both his offense and defense over the next few seasons, and was dealt to the Mets following the 1967 season. With the Mets, Martin, along with Duffy Dyer (#624), was one of two back-up catchers to regular Jerry Grote (#55). In 1969, the Amazin' Mets shocked the baseball world by winning the National League pennant and advancing to the World Series.
Martin played for three seasons with the Cubs beginning in 1970 before joining their coaching staff for the 1974 season. In 14 big league seasons, Martin batted .222 with 32 home runs, 230 RBIs and one unforgettable World Series bunt.
Some text for this post originally appeared on my 1965 Topps blog.
Building the Set / Card #277
September 23, 2023 from The Philly Show (Ed's Old Baseball Cards)
Given the massive haul of 193 cards acquired for our 1969 Topps set at the March Philly Show, I held off on adding more cards throughout the summer of 2023. We weren't even going to go to the Philly Show last September, but our oldest son's baseball tournament was rained out, and we found ourselves with a free weekend. I wrote about the show originally over at The Phillies Room.
The Card / Mets Team Set / Accuracy Index -8
September 23, 2023 from The Philly Show (Ed's Old Baseball Cards)
Given the massive haul of 193 cards acquired for our 1969 Topps set at the March Philly Show, I held off on adding more cards throughout the summer of 2023. We weren't even going to go to the Philly Show last September, but our oldest son's baseball tournament was rained out, and we found ourselves with a free weekend. I wrote about the show originally over at The Phillies Room.
I added just 15 cards to our set build at this show, all from the same dealer, Ed's Old Baseball Cards out of the Buffalo area. Technically, the cards I bought were from Ed's associate, Gary, who explained he was along for the ride and brought a bunch of his vintage cards for sale. I picked four needed star cards first, and Gary gave us a nice discount on the purchase, so we went back after securing a few autographs. I picked 11 more commons and semi-stars from his modest selection of 1960s Topps cards for sale, including this Martin card. Posting for these 15 cards should take me a lot less longer than what it took to get through the box of cards brought home from the March 2023 Philly Show.
The Card / Mets Team Set / Accuracy Index -8
I've found while building this set, the Mets cards are harder to find than other team's cards. Given the popularity of the 1969 Mets team, I imagine many collectors wanted a Mets team set in their collections making finding the cards for set-building purposes a little more difficult. Martin is wearing a road White Sox jersey here, and the photo was likely taken in 1966 at the same time as the photo used for his 1967 Topps card. The back of the card highlights how he came to the Mets and his conversion to a catcher in 1962.
Accuracy Index: The White Sox jersey (-5) and the lack of a hat (-3) drops Martin's card to a -8.
1969 Season
As mentioned above, Grote was the Mets' every day catcher, but Martin made 44 starts behind the plate, playing more as the year wore on. Martin batted .209 in 66 games overall, with four home runs and 21 RBIs. But he most remembered for a bunt during the World Series. In Game 4 against the Orioles, with the scored tied 1-1 in the bottom of the 10th, Martin pinch-hit for pitcher Tom Seaver (#480). He laid down a bunt and was hit by pitcher Pete Richert's (#86) throw, allowing Rod Gaspar to score the winning run. As a result of the controversy caused by the play, Major League Baseball added a running lane on the approach to first base to better delineate the runners' path. The Mets would win the Series in six games.
Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card: 1960 Leaf #92
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (15): 1960-1974
Most Recent Mainstream Card: 2001 Upper Deck Legends of NY Game Bat #LMB-JM
Total Non-Parallel Baseball Cards: 70 in the Beckett online database as of 4/16/24.
Sources:
Baseball Reference / SABR / Wikipedia
As mentioned above, Grote was the Mets' every day catcher, but Martin made 44 starts behind the plate, playing more as the year wore on. Martin batted .209 in 66 games overall, with four home runs and 21 RBIs. But he most remembered for a bunt during the World Series. In Game 4 against the Orioles, with the scored tied 1-1 in the bottom of the 10th, Martin pinch-hit for pitcher Tom Seaver (#480). He laid down a bunt and was hit by pitcher Pete Richert's (#86) throw, allowing Rod Gaspar to score the winning run. As a result of the controversy caused by the play, Major League Baseball added a running lane on the approach to first base to better delineate the runners' path. The Mets would win the Series in six games.
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First Mainstream Card: 1960 Leaf #92
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (15): 1960-1974
Most Recent Mainstream Card: 2001 Upper Deck Legends of NY Game Bat #LMB-JM
Total Non-Parallel Baseball Cards: 70 in the Beckett online database as of 4/16/24.
Sources:
Baseball Reference / SABR / Wikipedia
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