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Ronald Kenneth Hunt
San Francisco Giants
Third Base
Born: February 23, 1941, St. Louis, MO
Signed: Signed by the Milwaukee Braves as an amateur free agent before 1959 season
Major League Teams: New York Mets 1963-66; Los Angeles Dodgers 1967; San Francisco Giants 1968-70; Montreal Expos 1971-74; St. Louis Cardinals 1974
Known for getting hit by pitches more than any other player from his era, Ron Hunt played in 12 big league seasons, primarily with the Mets and Expos. Hunt made his debut in April 1963, and settled in as the everyday second baseman for the relatively new Mets franchise. Batting .272 that season with ten home runs and 42 RBIs, Hunt finished as National League Rookie of the Year runner-up to Pete Rose (#120). He was the first position player to start an All-Star Game for the Mets, batting eighth and playing at second in the 1964 game held in his home ballpark, Shea Stadium. Hunt was named to his second All-Star team in 1966. In 1968, now with the Giants, Hunt began a seven-year streak that saw him lead the league in being hit by a pitch. He'd set a single-season record in 1971 with 50 times being plunked.
Hunt retired following the 1974 season after playing in 12 games for his hometown Cardinals. In 1,483 games, Hunt batted .273 with 1,429 hits, 39 home runs and 370 RBIs. His modern era record 243 times being hit by a pitch was broken in 1987 by Don Baylor (267) and it's been subsequently surpassed by Craig Biggio (285) and Jason Kendall (254).
Some text for this post originally appeared on my 1965 Topps blog.
Building the Set / Card #542
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.
The Card / Giants Team Set / Accuracy Index +5
1969 Season
Hunt was once again the everyday second baseman for the Giants. In 128 games, including 122 starts, he batted .262 with 23 doubles, three home runs and 41 RBIs. For the second year in a row, he led the league in being hit by pitch with 25. It was the second year in the middle of what would be his seven-year streak.
Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card: 1963 Topps #558
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (13): 1963-75
Most Recent Mainstream Card: 2001 SP Legendary Cuts #52
Total Non-Parallel Baseball Cards: 95 in the Beckett online database as of 7/27/25.
Sources:
Baseball Reference / Wikipedia
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 last of 98 commons pulled from the binder. After a generous dealer discount due to my bulk purchase, this card cost me less than $3.
Finally! It only took me eight months to get through the commons and semi-stars purchased in my December Philly Show haul from Uncle Dick's. I still have a small stack of 17 more cards to get through before this blog is completely caught up. By the time I get through those remaining cards, it should be just in time for the September Philly Show.
The Card / Giants Team Set / Accuracy Index +5
This is the final card in the set, which is probably why it was priced a little higher than a common card. Any set from before 1980 runs the risk of having the first and last cards in the checklists tougher to find in decent condition, as those were the cards that took the most damage (be it from a rubber band or just jostling in a storage box) by young collectors. The back of the card highlights Hunt's 1964 All-Star Game start and his penchant for getting plunked.
Accuracy Index: Hunt's card scores a standard +5.
1969 Season
Hunt was once again the everyday second baseman for the Giants. In 128 games, including 122 starts, he batted .262 with 23 doubles, three home runs and 41 RBIs. For the second year in a row, he led the league in being hit by pitch with 25. It was the second year in the middle of what would be his seven-year streak.
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First Mainstream Card: 1963 Topps #558
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (13): 1963-75
Most Recent Mainstream Card: 2001 SP Legendary Cuts #52
Total Non-Parallel Baseball Cards: 95 in the Beckett online database as of 7/27/25.
Sources:
Baseball Reference / Wikipedia
Beckett Database / The Trading Card Database
1965 Topps Blog
1965 Topps Blog
#663 Dick Radatz - Detroit Tigers / #1 1968 A.L. Batting Leaders
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