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Delbert Bernard Unser
Washington Senators
Outfield
Bats: Left Throws: Left Height: 6'1" Weight: 180
Born: December 9, 1944, Decatur, IL
Drafted: Drafted by the Washington Senators in the 1st round (18th pick) of the 1966 amateur draft, June 7, 1966
Major League Teams: Washington Senators 1968-71; Cleveland Indians 1972; Philadelphia Phillies 1973-74; New York Mets 1975-76; Montreal Expos 1976-78; Philadelphia Phillies 1979-82
Outfield
Born: December 9, 1944, Decatur, IL
Drafted: Drafted by the Washington Senators in the 1st round (18th pick) of the 1966 amateur draft, June 7, 1966
Major League Teams: Washington Senators 1968-71; Cleveland Indians 1972; Philadelphia Phillies 1973-74; New York Mets 1975-76; Montreal Expos 1976-78; Philadelphia Phillies 1979-82
World Series Appearances: Philadelphia Phillies 1980
Del Unser played 15 seasons in the majors, and was an everyday center fielder for the Senators, Indians, Phillies and Mets between 1968 and 1975, but most fans will remember him for his late-career pinch-hitting prowess that contributed to the Phillies' first World Championship title in 1980. Unser first earned regular playing time with the Senators in 1968, and although he batted just .230 with a home run and 30 RBIs in his rookie season, he finished as Rookie of the Year runner-up to Stan Bahnsen (#380). He batted .286 with a league-leading eight triples in 1969 and overall spent four strong seasons with the Senators. Dealt to the Indians prior to the 1972 season, Unser's stay in Cleveland would last one year before he began his first stint with the Phillies in 1973. He'd bat a career-high .294 with the Mets in 1975, essentially his last full season as an everyday player.
Del Unser played 15 seasons in the majors, and was an everyday center fielder for the Senators, Indians, Phillies and Mets between 1968 and 1975, but most fans will remember him for his late-career pinch-hitting prowess that contributed to the Phillies' first World Championship title in 1980. Unser first earned regular playing time with the Senators in 1968, and although he batted just .230 with a home run and 30 RBIs in his rookie season, he finished as Rookie of the Year runner-up to Stan Bahnsen (#380). He batted .286 with a league-leading eight triples in 1969 and overall spent four strong seasons with the Senators. Dealt to the Indians prior to the 1972 season, Unser's stay in Cleveland would last one year before he began his first stint with the Phillies in 1973. He'd bat a career-high .294 with the Mets in 1975, essentially his last full season as an everyday player.
After two and half seasons in Montreal, Unser was reacquired by the Phillies in 1979 via free agency and he'd settle into an almost full-time role as a pinch-hitter. He batted .455 (5 for 11) in the 1980 postseason, with two clutch pinch-hit doubles helping the Phillies defeat the Royals in Games 2 and 5 of the World Series. Unser retired in 1982 with a .258 career average, 179 doubles, 42 triples, 87 home runs and 481 RBIs. He'd serve as a coach with the Phillies between 1985 and 1988, and then as the team's farm director between 1990 and 1999.
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| From the 1980 Phillies Yearbook |
September 21, 2025 from The Philly Show (Vintage Sports)
On Sunday morning, September 21st, I made the hour-long drive to the Greater Philadelphia Expo Center in Oaks, Pennsylvania for the latest installment of the Philadelphia Sports Card & Memorabilia Show, known to its friends as The Philly Show. The show has a legitimate official sponsor (eBay) and the advertisement for the event notes the show is in its 50th year. I hadn't attended a baseball card show since the last Philly Show in December, and I was flying solo to this one as our oldest son is in his first month of college at Villanova. I posted a full summary of the show over at The Phillies Room.
I made stops at six tables at the show, all yielding needed cards for our 1969 Topps set, and I left the show with just 16 more cards to go for my version of a complete set. My second stop was the aptly named Vintage Sports table. I always appreciate a dealer with clear signage explaining their pricing method, and Vintage Sports had a marker in their selection of 1969 Topps cards laying out that cards without a sleeve were $1 and cards with a sleeve were $2. I had one "high number" in a sleeve, and that was a whopping $4.
I found 28 commons needed before moving on to my third stop. This was the 21st of 28 total cards bought from Vintage Sports, and the 56th of 91 cards for the set added overall on the day. Unsleeved, this card cost less than $1 after a dealer discount.
The Card / Senators Team Set / Accuracy Index +5
This is Unser's rookie card, and most importantly, as celebrated I think a few times over on the wonderful and prolific Night Owl Cards blog, this could be the first baseball card to feature an actual photograph taken at night. I had always known of Unser because of his heroics while with the Phillies, so it's even cooler to know he graces a landmark baseball card. The back of the card explains how Unser's hot spring in 1968 led to him landing a regular job with the Senators on his way to a solid rookie campaign.
Accuracy Index: Unser's card scores a +5, although I'd give it a few extra points for the night-related awesomeness.
1969 Season
Under new manager Ted Williams (#650), Unser played in 153 games and had one of the strongest seasons of his career. His 57 RBIs would ultimately be the second highest total of his career, behind the 61 he drove in with the Phillies in 1974.
On November 30, 1972, the Indians traded Unser and minor leaguer Terry Wedgewood to the Phillies for Roger Freed and Oscar Gamble. Unser would be the club's opening day center fielder in 1973 and 1974, batting .276 overall in 278 games with 22 home runs and 113 RBIs. On December 3, 1974, Unser was packaged with Mac Scarce and John Stearns in a trade with the Mets that brought the Phillies Don Hahn, Dave Schneck and most importantly, reliever Tug McGraw (#601). Unser would return to the Phillies for a second time, signing with the club as a free agent on March 29, 1979.
Unser played all three outfield positions and some first base during his second stint with the Phillies, but his biggest contribution was as a pinch-hitter. He'd set a record on July 10, 1979, hitting his third of three consecutive pinch-hit home runs. Unser's heroics in the 1980 postseason are well-known to all Phillies fans. Along with his two huge pinch-doubles in the World Series, Unser's pinch-single off the Astros' Ken Forsch in NLCS Game 5 tied the game, and he'd score the eventual winning run a few innings later in the top of the 10th. In 550 games overall with the Phillies, Unser batted .268 with 55 doubles, 28 home runs and 158 RBIs.
He was manager John Felske's and Lee Elia's (#312) first base and hitting coach for four seasons. And in his role as the team's farm director in the 1990s, he helped oversee the development of Mike Lieberthal, Jimmy Rollins and Scott Rolen, among many others.
Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card: 1969 Topps #338
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (14): 1969-82
Most Recent Mainstream Card: 1982 Topps #713
Total Non-Parallel Baseball Cards: 79 in the Beckett online database as of 1/18/26.
Sources:
Baseball Reference / SABR / Wikipedia
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First Mainstream Card: 1969 Topps #338
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (14): 1969-82
Most Recent Mainstream Card: 1982 Topps #713
Total Non-Parallel Baseball Cards: 79 in the Beckett online database as of 1/18/26.
Sources:
Baseball Reference / SABR / Wikipedia
