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Clyde Wright
California Angels
Pitcher
Bats: Right Throws: Left Height: 6'1" Weight: 180
Born: February 20, 1941, Jefferson City, TN
Drafted: Drafted by the California Angels in the 6th round of the 1965 amateur draft
Major League Teams: California Angels 1966-73; Milwaukee Brewers 1974; Texas Rangers 1975
Born: February 20, 1941, Jefferson City, TN
Drafted: Drafted by the California Angels in the 6th round of the 1965 amateur draft
Major League Teams: California Angels 1966-73; Milwaukee Brewers 1974; Texas Rangers 1975
A dominant pitcher at Carson-Newman College, Clyde Wright struck out 22 batters in a game during the NAIA Baseball World Series in 1965, leading to the Angels drafting him a few weeks following his feat. Wright was a swingman for the Angels during his first seasons in the majors and he appeared in a career-high 41 games in 1968. After slumping in 1969, with a 1-8 record, Wright was waived by the Angels. But while pitching for teammate Jim Fregosi's (#365) team in winter ball in Puerto Rico, Wright learned a screwball that revitalized his career. He was 22-12 in 1970 with a 2.83 ERA in 39 starts, and was named to his only All-Star team. Wright threw a no-hitter on July 3, 1970 against the Athletics, and in a pregame ceremony before that big game he was inducted into the NAIA Hall of Fame. Wright followed up that season with 16 wins in 1971 and 18 wins in 1972, but his struggles returned in 1973 and he lost 19 and 20 games in successive seasons.
Wright pitched in Japan for three seasons between 1976 and 1978 for the Yomiuri Giants, where he was a combined 22-18 with a 3.97 ERA in 59 games pitched. In the majors, and in 329 appearances, Wright was 100-111 with a 3.50 ERA, 67 complete games and nine shutouts. His son, Jaret Wright, pitched for 11 seasons in the majors with the Indians (1997-02), Padres (2003), Braves (2003-04), Yankees (2005-06) and Orioles (2007).
Building the Set / Card #491
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 47th of 98 commons pulled from the binder. After a generous dealer discount due to my bulk purchase, this card cost me less than a dollar.
The Card / Angels Team Set / Accuracy Index +5
This is Wright's rookie card, and given he pitched 20 games in each of the 1966 and 1967 seasons, and he was a college pitching star, it's surprising he had to wait this long. The cartoon on the back of the card highlights his college success. The walkless streak mentioned on the back ended on July 26, 1968, when Wright intentionally walked the White Sox' Tommy Davis (#135) to get to Duane Josephson (#222). And the combined one-hitter with Rick Clark came on August 20th. Clark started and went 2 2/3 innings, with Wright relieving over the final 6 1/3 innings.
Accuracy Index: Wright's card scores a now standard +5.
1969 Season
The low point of Wright's career, he was 1-8 with a 4.10 ERA in 37 games, including five starts. His SABR biography notes the Angels tried to trade him following the season, but had no takers. Wright's winter in Puerto Rico proved to be a turning point in this career as he added the screwball to his pitching arsenal and regained his confidence.
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First Mainstream Card: 1956 Topps #63
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (8): 1969-76
Most Recent Mainstream Card: 2013 BBM Giants Legends #93
Total Non-Parallel Baseball Cards: 46 in the Beckett online database as of 4/26/25.
Sources:
Baseball Reference / SABR / Wikipedia
Beckett Database / The Trading Card Database
#582 7th Series Checklist 589-664 / #584 Don Mason - San Francisco Giants
Topps missed a lot of young Angels pitchers in their 1967 and 1968 sets:
ReplyDelete1970topps.blogspot.com/2018/08/clyde-wright-543.html