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Camilo Alberto Pascual
Washington Senators
Pitcher
Born: January 20, 1934, La Habana, Cuba
Signed: Signed by the Washington Senators as an amateur free agent before 1952 season
Major League Teams: Washington Nationals 1954-56; Washington Senators 1957-60; Minnesota Twins 1961-66; Washington Senators 1967-69; Cincinnati Reds 1969; Los Angeles Dodgers 1970; Cleveland Indians 1971
World Series Appearances: Minnesota Twins 1965
If not for Camilo Pascual, the Nationals/Senators/Twins teams of the late 1950s/early 1960s would have lost a lot more games than they actually did. Pascual was a mainstay in those teams' pitching rotations, making at least 25 starts in 11 different seasons between 1956 and 1967. He was named to seven All-Star teams and was a 20-game winner in 1962 and 1963. Pascual led the American League in complete games in 1959, 1962 and 1963 and in shutouts in 1959, 1961 and 1962. He struck out over 200 in a season four times, leading the league in that category in 1961, 1962 and 1963. He finished in the top four in ERA in four different seasons. Pascual holds the record for opening day strikeouts, having fanned 15 Red Sox on opening day in 1960. Ted Williams (#650) described Pascual's overhand curveball as the "most feared curveball in the American League for 18 years."
The Twins, who had moved from Washington, traded Pascual to the expansion Washington Senators in December 1966, giving him the distinction of having pitched for both versions of the expansion Senators teams.
Over his career, Pascual pitched in 529 games and had a record of 174-170 with a 3.63 ERA. His 2,167 career strikeouts currently ranks him 71st on the all-time list. Following his playing career, Pascual served as Gene Mauch's (#606) pitching coach for the Twins between 1978 and 1980. He also worked as a scout for the A's, Mets and Dodgers and he was the scout who recommended the A's sign Jose Canseco. Pascual was inducted into the Twins Hall of Fame in 2012.
If not for Camilo Pascual, the Nationals/Senators/Twins teams of the late 1950s/early 1960s would have lost a lot more games than they actually did. Pascual was a mainstay in those teams' pitching rotations, making at least 25 starts in 11 different seasons between 1956 and 1967. He was named to seven All-Star teams and was a 20-game winner in 1962 and 1963. Pascual led the American League in complete games in 1959, 1962 and 1963 and in shutouts in 1959, 1961 and 1962. He struck out over 200 in a season four times, leading the league in that category in 1961, 1962 and 1963. He finished in the top four in ERA in four different seasons. Pascual holds the record for opening day strikeouts, having fanned 15 Red Sox on opening day in 1960. Ted Williams (#650) described Pascual's overhand curveball as the "most feared curveball in the American League for 18 years."
Over his career, Pascual pitched in 529 games and had a record of 174-170 with a 3.63 ERA. His 2,167 career strikeouts currently ranks him 71st on the all-time list. Following his playing career, Pascual served as Gene Mauch's (#606) pitching coach for the Twins between 1978 and 1980. He also worked as a scout for the A's, Mets and Dodgers and he was the scout who recommended the A's sign Jose Canseco. Pascual was inducted into the Twins Hall of Fame in 2012.
Some text for this post originally appeared on my 1956 and 1965 Topps blogs.
The Card / Senators Team Set / Accuracy Index -12
Building the Set / Card #450
December 15, 2024 from The Philly Show (Uncle Dick's Cards)
On Sunday, December 15th, Doug and I attended the latest Philly Show, spaciously spread out inside Hall A of the Greater Philadelphia Expo Center in Oaks, Pennsylvania. I wrote a full show report over at The Phillies Room, including some thoughts on attending the show with our oldest son, who first graced the Philly Show floors back in 2012.
December 15, 2024 from The Philly Show (Uncle Dick's Cards)
On Sunday, December 15th, Doug and I attended the latest Philly Show, spaciously spread out inside Hall A of the Greater Philadelphia Expo Center in Oaks, Pennsylvania. I wrote a full show report over at The Phillies Room, including some thoughts on attending the show with our oldest son, who first graced the Philly Show floors back in 2012.
Having had success the prior two shows at Uncle Dick's Cards with his well-organized, neon common binders, I opted to pull up a chair once again at the friendly dealer's array of tables. The aim was simple: Clear out Uncle Dick's 1969 Topps commons, starting off where I had left off the year before with card #501 and going through the end of the set, card #664. In less than 25 minutes, I completed my quest, and this is the sixth of 98 commons pulled from the binder. After a generous dealer discount due to my bulk purchase, this card cost me about $1.75.
This is the same photo Topps used for Pascual's 1968 card, and I'm guessing he's wearing a Twins jersey here, putting the photo at at least three years old. Given his longevity in the league, the back of the card doesn't have room for a cartoon and is filled with his career stats to date. The one sentence write-up highlights Pascual achieving 2,000 strikeouts. Pascual struck out the Angels' Chuck Hinton (#644) on April 15, 1968 to reach the milestone.
Accuracy Index: This is the first -12 in a while, as Pascual's card loses points for the former team uniform (-5), lack of a hat (-3) and the repeat photo (-4).
Inserts: With not a lot of big names on the Senators, Pascual is included as one of the 48 decals in the Topps Decals insert set.
1969 Season
Pascual made his fifth and final Opening Day start, getting hit hard and allowing four runs in 2 2/3 innings before being pulled by Williams, the new Senators' manager. Pascual labored through 14 games with Washington, and was 2-5 with a 6.83 ERA when the team sold him to the Reds on July 7th. The veteran pitcher continued to struggle in Cincinnati, earning an 8.59 ERA in five appearances and just 7 1/3 innings pitched.
Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card: 1955 Topps #84
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (16): 1955-70
Most Recent Mainstream Card: 1994 Topps Archives 1954 #255
Total Non-Parallel Baseball Cards: 137 in the Beckett online database as of 1/12/25.
Sources:
Baseball Reference / SABR / Wikipedia
1969 Season
Pascual made his fifth and final Opening Day start, getting hit hard and allowing four runs in 2 2/3 innings before being pulled by Williams, the new Senators' manager. Pascual labored through 14 games with Washington, and was 2-5 with a 6.83 ERA when the team sold him to the Reds on July 7th. The veteran pitcher continued to struggle in Cincinnati, earning an 8.59 ERA in five appearances and just 7 1/3 innings pitched.
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First Mainstream Card: 1955 Topps #84
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (16): 1955-70
Most Recent Mainstream Card: 1994 Topps Archives 1954 #255
Total Non-Parallel Baseball Cards: 137 in the Beckett online database as of 1/12/25.
Sources:
Baseball Reference / SABR / Wikipedia
Beckett Database / The Trading Card Database
1956 Topps Blog / 1965 Topps Blog
1956 Topps Blog / 1965 Topps Blog
#512 Cleon Jones - New York Mets / #514 Mike Lum - Atlanta Braves
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