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Edward Mayo Smith
Detroit Tigers
Manager
Born: January 17, 1915, New London, MO
Drafted: Drafted by the Philadelphia Athletics from the Detroit Tigers in the 1944 Rule 5 draft.
Major League Teams: Philadelphia Athletics 1945
As a Manager: Philadelphia Phillies 1955-58; Cincinnati Reds 1959; Detroit Tigers 1967-70
Died: November 24, 1977, Boynton Beach, FL (age 62)
Mayo Smith spent almost four decades in organized baseball, first as an outfielder in the Tigers, Reds, Athletics and Yankees system between 1933 and 1952, and then as a manager for the Phillies, Reds and Tigers between 1955 and 1970. Smith's sole year as a player in the big leagues came in 1945 when he hit .212 in 73 games for the Athletics. He was named the manager of the Phillies in October 1954 at the age of 39, replacing the outgoing Terry Moore. The Phillies never finished above fourth place in his 3 1/2 years at the helm, and he was fired in mid-1958. Smith briefly managed the 1959 Reds before getting fired again mid-season.
He found his most success as manager of the Tigers for four seasons, leading the Tigers to a World Series title in 1968. The Cardinals had taken a commanding three games to one lead in that series, but the Tigers won three in a row to take the title. Smith was named American League Manager of the Year in 1968 and would manage the Tigers for two more seasons. He was fired following the 1970 season and replaced by Billy Martin (#547), having managed Detroit to a 363-285 record. After a single season as a scout for the Oakland Athletics in 1971, Smith officially retired from baseball.
Died: November 24, 1977, Boynton Beach, FL (age 62)
Mayo Smith spent almost four decades in organized baseball, first as an outfielder in the Tigers, Reds, Athletics and Yankees system between 1933 and 1952, and then as a manager for the Phillies, Reds and Tigers between 1955 and 1970. Smith's sole year as a player in the big leagues came in 1945 when he hit .212 in 73 games for the Athletics. He was named the manager of the Phillies in October 1954 at the age of 39, replacing the outgoing Terry Moore. The Phillies never finished above fourth place in his 3 1/2 years at the helm, and he was fired in mid-1958. Smith briefly managed the 1959 Reds before getting fired again mid-season.
He found his most success as manager of the Tigers for four seasons, leading the Tigers to a World Series title in 1968. The Cardinals had taken a commanding three games to one lead in that series, but the Tigers won three in a row to take the title. Smith was named American League Manager of the Year in 1968 and would manage the Tigers for two more seasons. He was fired following the 1970 season and replaced by Billy Martin (#547), having managed Detroit to a 363-285 record. After a single season as a scout for the Oakland Athletics in 1971, Smith officially retired from baseball.
Some text for this post originally appeared on my 1956 Topps blog.
Building the Set / Card #548
December 15, 2024 from The Philly Show (Vintage Cardboard Collectibles)
The Card / Tigers Team Set / Accuracy Index +5
1969 Season
The Tigers weren't able to defend their World Championship title, going 90-72 for the season, and finishing 19 games behind the powerhouse Orioles in the American League East. Pitching was once again the Tigers' strength, with Denny McLain (#150) going 24-9 with a 2.80 ERA in 325 innings pitched. McLain led the league in wins, starts (with 49) and shutouts (with nine). He'd win his second straight Cy Young Award. Mickey Lolich (#270) had a solid season too, going 19-11 with a 3.14 ERA. The offense was paced by center fielder Jim Northrup (#580), who batted .295 with 25 home runs and 66 RBIs. Left fiedler Willie Horton (#180) led the team in both main power categories with 28 home runs and 91 RBIs.
December 15, 2024 from The Philly Show (Vintage Cardboard Collectibles)
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 spent the first half hour or so pulling 98 commons and semi-stars from the neon green binder of Uncle Dick's Cards, and adding the big purchase of the day, the Rollie Fingers (#597) rookie card, and after adding a few more star cards, the remaining cash I had was starting to burn a hole in my wallet. I had noticed the common/semi-star boxes at the tables of Vintage Cardboard Collectibles, and I found 14 more cards for our 1969 Topps set and six cards for our not-yet-officially collecting 1959 Topps set. This is the third of those 14 cards. After the obligatory dealer discount, I handed over the last of my cash, and we exited the show for the drive home.
The Card / Tigers Team Set / Accuracy Index +5
This card is almost identical to Smith's card in the 1968 Topps set, as the photographer snapped photos as Smith turned right and then left. The back of the card highlights the Tigers' recent World Series win.
Accuracy Index: Smith's card earns a solid +5.
1969 Season
The Tigers weren't able to defend their World Championship title, going 90-72 for the season, and finishing 19 games behind the powerhouse Orioles in the American League East. Pitching was once again the Tigers' strength, with Denny McLain (#150) going 24-9 with a 2.80 ERA in 325 innings pitched. McLain led the league in wins, starts (with 49) and shutouts (with nine). He'd win his second straight Cy Young Award. Mickey Lolich (#270) had a solid season too, going 19-11 with a 3.14 ERA. The offense was paced by center fielder Jim Northrup (#580), who batted .295 with 25 home runs and 66 RBIs. Left fiedler Willie Horton (#180) led the team in both main power categories with 28 home runs and 91 RBIs.
Pitching coach Johnny Sain was fired in August following public disagreements with Smith on how to handle the pitching staff.
Phillies Career
Smith's record as Phillies manager was 264-282-2, and his best season came in 1957 when the Phillies battled at the top of the division until mid-July. That team finished the season right at .500 with a 77-77 record. The play was much of the same at the start of the 1958 season, and the Phillies reached a winning record on July 12th at 39-38. However, the team lost eight of their next nine games and Smith was fired on July 22nd. Whiz Kids manager Eddie Sawyer was brought back to replace Smith, his second managerial stint with the club.
Smith received two mainstream baseball cards to mark his time with the Phillies, in the 1955 and 1956 Topps sets. He also appears in the 1956, 1957 and 1958 Jay Publishing Phillies sets, as well as in the oddball 1956 Topps Pins and 1956 Topps Hocus Focus sets. He's also in the rare 1955 Felin's Franks Match the Phillies set, which according to my edition of the Standard Catalog of Vintage Baseball Cards, may not have actually been released.
Smith's record as Phillies manager was 264-282-2, and his best season came in 1957 when the Phillies battled at the top of the division until mid-July. That team finished the season right at .500 with a 77-77 record. The play was much of the same at the start of the 1958 season, and the Phillies reached a winning record on July 12th at 39-38. However, the team lost eight of their next nine games and Smith was fired on July 22nd. Whiz Kids manager Eddie Sawyer was brought back to replace Smith, his second managerial stint with the club.
Smith received two mainstream baseball cards to mark his time with the Phillies, in the 1955 and 1956 Topps sets. He also appears in the 1956, 1957 and 1958 Jay Publishing Phillies sets, as well as in the oddball 1956 Topps Pins and 1956 Topps Hocus Focus sets. He's also in the rare 1955 Felin's Franks Match the Phillies set, which according to my edition of the Standard Catalog of Vintage Baseball Cards, may not have actually been released.
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First Mainstream Card: 1955 Topps #130
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (6): 1955-56, 1967-70
Most Recent Mainstream Card: 1970 Topps #313
Total Non-Parallel Baseball Cards: 26 in the Beckett online database as of 8/9/25.
Update Cards
For my 1965 Topps blog, I used the team card posts to come up with five or six candidates per team for an imaginary update series. With no team cards in the 1969 Topps set, I'll use each manager card for this exercise, and come up with a list of deserving cards to be included in an 8th/update series. Maybe because they were the defending World Championships, and they're weren't a lot of offseason moves, but just about every player to play for the Tigers in 1969 received a card in the set.
- Tom Tresh (ss) - This is probably the only "must" for the update set, as Tom Tresh (#212) appears in the set with the Yankees, but after a mid-June trade, he became the everyday second baseman for the Tigers.
- Ike Brown (2b) - Ike Brown's rookie card is in the 1970 Topps set. He played in 70 games for the Tigers in 1969.
- Mike Kilkenny (lhp) - Lefty swingman Mike Kilkenny is in the set on a Rookie Stars card (#544), but I'd give him a solo card.
- Tom Timmermann (rhp) - Like Brown, Timmermann would receive a rookie card in the 1970 Topps set.
- Cesar Gutierrez (ss) - Infielder Cesar Gutierrez came to the Tigers late in the season from the Giants. He's on a Rookie Stars card (#16) with the Giants, and his appearance here is a push.
Baseball Reference - Smith / Baseball Reference - 1969 Tigers / SABR / Wikipedia
His 1967 card is 1 of only 4 airbrushed cards in that set.
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