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Willie Murphy Crawford
Los Angeles Dodgers
Pitcher
Born: September 7, 1946, Los Angeles, CA
Signed: Signed by the Los Angeles Dodgers as an amateur free agent before 1964 season
Major League Teams: Los Angeles Dodgers 1964-1975; St. Louis Cardinals 1976; Houston Astros 1977; Oakland Athletics 1977
World Series Appearances: Los Angeles Dodgers 1965, 1974
Died: August 27, 2004, Los Angeles, CA (age 57)
Appearing in 12 seasons for the Dodgers, Willie Crawford was a regular presence in their line-up between 1969 and 1975. Signed as a bonus baby, Crawford didn't receive much playing time with the Dodgers between 1964 and 1967, although he was added to the team's World Series roster in 1965. Crawford went 1 for 2 as a pinch-hitter in the World Series as an 18-year-old, with the Dodgers prevailing over the Twins in seven games. He was the team's regular left fielder in 1969, and then primarily a back-up for the next three seasons. Crawford enjoyed his best seasons in 1973 and 1974, now playing right field, as he batted .295 while driving in at least 60 runs in each season. He batted .333 (2 for 6) in the 1974 World Series but the Dodgers fell to the Athletics in five games.
After spending one last season in 1975 with the Dodgers, Crawford finished his big league career with the Cardinals, Astros and Athletics in 1976 and 1977. In 1,210 games, he had 921 hits and batted .268 with 86 home runs and 419 RBIs.
Died: August 27, 2004, Los Angeles, CA (age 57)
Appearing in 12 seasons for the Dodgers, Willie Crawford was a regular presence in their line-up between 1969 and 1975. Signed as a bonus baby, Crawford didn't receive much playing time with the Dodgers between 1964 and 1967, although he was added to the team's World Series roster in 1965. Crawford went 1 for 2 as a pinch-hitter in the World Series as an 18-year-old, with the Dodgers prevailing over the Twins in seven games. He was the team's regular left fielder in 1969, and then primarily a back-up for the next three seasons. Crawford enjoyed his best seasons in 1973 and 1974, now playing right field, as he batted .295 while driving in at least 60 runs in each season. He batted .333 (2 for 6) in the 1974 World Series but the Dodgers fell to the Athletics in five games.
After spending one last season in 1975 with the Dodgers, Crawford finished his big league career with the Cardinals, Astros and Athletics in 1976 and 1977. In 1,210 games, he had 921 hits and batted .268 with 86 home runs and 419 RBIs.
Some text for this post originally appeared on my 1965 Topps blog.
Building the Set / Card #282
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 / Dodgers Team Set / Accuracy Index +5
1969 Season
Still just 22 years old, Crawford was the opening day center fielder for the Dodgers, and he'd move across the outfield as the season progressed. At season's end, he had made 45 starts in left field, 30 starts in right field and 22 starts in center field. In 129 games overall, Crawford batted .247 with 11 home runs and 41 RBIs
Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card: 1965 Topps #453
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (12): 1965, 1968-1978
Most Recent Mainstream Card: 1978 Topps #507
Total Non-Parallel Baseball Cards: 42 in the Beckett online database as of 4/17/24.
Sources:
Baseball Reference / Wikipedia
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 Crawford 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.
Every 15 or 20 cards or so in this set, I come across a card featuring a photo that works great with the set's design. This is one of those cards. The cartoon on the back touts Crawford's .500 batting average in the World Series, given he had gone 1 for 2 as a pinch-hitter in 1965.
Accuracy Index: Crawford earns a solid +5. If I ever re-do my scoring system, and I've thought about doing that, I might award discretionary extra credit for cards that feature photos that work well with the set's design. This card would be bumped up a few points.
1969 Season
Still just 22 years old, Crawford was the opening day center fielder for the Dodgers, and he'd move across the outfield as the season progressed. At season's end, he had made 45 starts in left field, 30 starts in right field and 22 starts in center field. In 129 games overall, Crawford batted .247 with 11 home runs and 41 RBIs
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First Mainstream Card: 1965 Topps #453
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (12): 1965, 1968-1978
Most Recent Mainstream Card: 1978 Topps #507
Total Non-Parallel Baseball Cards: 42 in the Beckett online database as of 4/17/24.
Sources:
Baseball Reference / Wikipedia
Beckett Database / The Trading Card Database
1965 Topps Blog
1965 Topps Blog
#326 Gary Sutherland - Montreal Expos / #328 Joe Horlen - Chicago White Sox
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