#157 Bob Rodgers - California Angels

Robert Leroy Rodgers
California Angels
Pitcher

Bats:  Both  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'2"  Weight:  190
Born:  August 16, 1938, Delaware, OH
Signed:  Signed by the Detroit Tigers as an amateur free agent before 1956 season
Major League Teams:  Los Angeles Angels 1961-65; California Angels 1966-69

As a Manager:  Milwaukee Brewers 1980-82; Montreal Expos 1985-91; California Angels 1991-94

After being selected from the Tigers in the 1960 expansion draft, Buck Rodgers assumed regular catching duties for the Angels in the early 1960s, finishing as runner-up for American League Rookie of the Year honors in 1962 behind the Yankees' Tom Tresh (#212).  He was a light-hitting switch-hitter, known for his defense, and he led the league in runners caught stealing three times (1962, 1964 and 1967).  Rodgers caught Bo Belinsky's (#366) no-hitter on May 5, 1962.  He spent his entire big league playing career with the Angels, batting .232 over 932 games with 31 home runs and 288 RBIs.

Rodgers served as a coach with the Twins (1970-74), Giants (1976) and Brewers (1978-80) before getting his shot managing.  He took over on an interim basis for George Bamberger in 1980 when Bamberger suffered a heart attack.  Bamberger briefly returned, but resigned on September 9th.  Rodgers guided the Brewers to the best American League record during the first half of the strike-shortened 1981 season, but the team lost to the Yankees in the divisional playoffs.  He managed the Expos next for 6 1/2 seasons, winning 1987 National League Manager of the Year honors when his team improved to 91-71.  Rodgers' final managerial job saw him return to the Angels, but he was injured in a highway bus accident in 1992 missing the bulk of the season.  Rodgers was fired 40 games into the 1994 season, and his lifetime managerial record was 784-774 over 13 seasons.

Some text for this post originally appeared on my 1965 Topps blog.

Building the Set / Card #600
September 21, 2025 from The Philly Show (Vintage Sports)

Milestone card #600!  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 5th of 28 total cards bought from Vintage Sports, and the 41st of 91 cards for the set added overall on the day.  Sleeved, this card cost less than $2 after a dealer discount.

The Card / Angels Team Set / Accuracy Index +5

This is Rodgers' final Topps card as an active player, and the career stats are complete except for his final 18 games in 1969 - see below.  The photo dates to at least 1966, as a photo from the same session is used for his 1967 Topps card.  The back of the card digs deep into Rodgers' past, covering highlights from 1956, 1958, 1961 and 1962.  Rodgers signed reprints of this card for the 2018 Topps Heritage release.

Accuracy Index:  Rodgers card scores a +5.

1969 Season
In his final season as a player, Rodgers appeared in only 18 games for the Angels in June, August and September, and he received his final start in the majors on the last day of the season.  The bulk of his playing time came with the Triple-A Hawaii Islanders, where he appeared in 44 games, batting .255.  I'm guessing Rodgers would have had to approve a demotion, given his veteran status, and knowing his future path, his time with the Islanders was likely also in a coaching capacity.

1962 Topps #431

1967 Topps #281

1974 Topps #447

1987 Topps #293

1992 Topps #21

Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card:  1962 Topps #431
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (20):  1962-69, 1973-74, 1981, 1985-93
Most Recent Mainstream Card:  2018 Topps Heritage Real One Autographs #ROA-BRO
Total Non-Parallel Baseball Cards:  86 in the Beckett online database as of 12/31/25.

Sources:  
Baseball Reference / SABR / Wikipedia

Beckett Database / The Trading Card Database
1965 Topps Blog

#156 Astros Rookies Stars / #158 Joe Gibbon - San Francisco Giants

#612 Jack Aker - Seattle Pilots

Jackie Delane Acker
Seattle Pilots
Pitcher

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'2"  Weight:  190
Born:  July 13, 1940, Tulare, CA
Signed:  Signed by the Kansas City Athletics as an amateur free agent, June 9, 1959
Major League Teams:  Kansas City Athletics 1964-67; Oakland Athletics 1968; Seattle Pilots 1969; New York Yankees 1969-72; Chicago Cubs 1972-73; Atlanta Braves 1974; New York Mets 1974

Nicknamed "Chief," given his Potawatomi ancestry, Jack Aker spent parts of 11 seasons in the majors, pitching solely in relief and primarily with the Athletics and Yankees.  Aker established himself early as an effective back-end of the bullpen fireman, using his side-armed sinker ball to lead the league in saves in 1966 with 32.  That was to be his career year, as he was 8-4 with a 1.99 ERA in 66 appearances and 113 innings pitched for the seventh place Athletics.  Aker was arguably that club's MVP.  Left unprotected in the 1968 expansion draft, Aker was selected by the Pilots as the 24th pick overall.  The reliever had fallen out of favor with Athletics' owner Charles O. Finley in recent years, leading to his availability in the draft.

Aker was only with the Pilots a month and a half before being dealt to the Yankees.  He was a steady presence in the Yankees bullpen in 1969 and the early 1970s, leading the club in saves in 1969 (11) and 1971 (4).  Aker was traded to the Cubs in early 1972, and he'd pitch the last three seasons of his big league career with the Cubs, Braves and Mets before retiring in 1974.  In 495 games, Aker was 47-45 with a 3.28 ERA and 124 career saves.  He began his minor league managerial career in 1975, managing in the Mets (1975-82) and Indians (1984-85) organizations.  Aker was the big league pitching coach for the Indians between 1985 and 1987.

Building the Set / Card #582
September 21, 2025 from The Philly Show (America's Pastime)

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.  The first place I stopped was a table with well-organized and well-marked binders of commons and semi-stars with 20% Off notes across the front of each binder.  

I took my time and found 32 commons and semi-stars needed before asking to see the dealer's star cards from the set.  It turned out this first purchase was also my biggest, as I spent over half my allotted budget here, America's Pastime from Fair Lawn, New Jersey, before moving on to my second stop.  This was the 23rd of 36 total cards bought from America's Pastime, and the 23rd of 91 cards for set added overall on the day, and it cost a little over $4 after the dealer discount.

The Card / Pilots Team Set / Accuracy Index +10

Maybe the best Pilots card in the set?  And Aker was only with the club for 15 games (see below) and was terrible before being shipped to the Bronx.  The back of the card highlights his American League Fireman of the Year honors from 1966, as determined by The Sporting News.

Accuracy Index:  Aker's card earns a +10 high score for the accurate depiction in the new Pilots' uniform.

1969 Season
Aker earned the save in the Pilots' inaugural game on April 8th.  He struggled in 15 games with the Pilots, going 0-2 with a 7.56 ERA in 16 2/3 innings pitched.  On May 20th, he was traded to the Yankees for Fred Talbot (#332), and he'd quickly turn his season around.  Aker strung together 33 straight scoreless innings in relief over 18 appearances.  As mentioned above, he led the Yankees' staff with 11 saves and had an impressive 2.06 ERA in 65 2/3 innings pitched.

1966 Topps #287

1968 Topps #224

1971 Topps #593

1974 Topps #562

1987 Topps #11

Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card:  1966 Topps #287
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (10):  1966-74, 1987
Most Recent Mainstream Card:  1988 ProCards #1134
Total Non-Parallel Baseball Cards:  54 in the Beckett online database as of 10/20/25.

Sources:  
Baseball Reference / Wikipedia

Beckett Database / The Trading Card Database

#611 Braves Rookie Stars / #613 Jim Beauchamp - Cincinnati Reds

#535 Phil Regan - Chicago Cubs

Philip Raymond Regan
Chicago Cubs
Pitcher

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'3"  Weight:  200
Born:  April 6, 1937, Otsego, MI
Signed:  Signed by the Detroit Tigers as an amateur free agent before 1956 season
Major League Teams:  Detroit Tigers 1960-65; Los Angeles Dodgers 1966-68; Chicago Cubs 1968-72; Chicago White Sox 1972

World Series Appearances:  Los Angeles Dodgers 1966
As a Manager:  Baltimore Orioles 1995

For parts of seven decades, Phil Regan has been involved with professional baseball as a pitcher, coach or manager.  Affectionally nicknamed "the Vulture" by Sandy Koufax for his proclivity of picking up late game wins in relief, Regan enjoyed his best seasons in the mid-1960s with the Dodgers.  Prior to coming to Los Angeles, he was a 10-game winner with the Tigers in three different seasons.  Regan was an All-Star with the Dodgers in 1966, a year in which he led the league with 21 saves and went 14-1 with a 1.62 ERA, earning him some MVP votes.  He earned National League Reliever of the Year and Comeback Player of the Year honors from The Sporting News for his career year.  Regan also pitched well for the Dodgers in that year's World Series, but his club was swept in four games by the Orioles.  He'd lead the league again in saves in 1968 with 25, then as a member of the Cubs' pitching staff.  Regan made at least 50 pitching appearances five years in a row between 1966 and 1970.  For his career, he was 96-81 over 551 games with a 3.84 ERA and 92 saves.

After retiring as a player, Regan began a long second career as a collegiate, minor and major league coach, as well as a long-time manager in the Venezuelan Winter League.  At the major league level, Regan coached with the Mariners (1984-86), Indians (1994 and 1999), Cubs (1997-98) and Mets (2019).  He managed the Orioles for one season in 1995, guiding the team to a third place finish and a 71-73 record.

Some text for this post originally appeared on my 1965 Topps blog.

Building the Set / Card #575
September 21, 2025 from The Philly Show (America's Pastime)

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.  The first place I stopped was a table with well-organized and well-marked binders of commons and semi-stars with 20% Off notes across the front of each binder.  

I took my time and found 32 commons and semi-stars needed before asking to see the dealer's star cards from the set.  It turned out this first purchase was also my biggest, as I spent over half my allotted budget here, America's Pastime from Fair Lawn, New Jersey, before moving on to my second stop.  This was the 16th of 36 total cards bought from America's Pastime, and the 16th of 91 cards for set added overall on the day, and it cost a little over $2 after the dealer discount.

The Card / Cubs Team Set / Accuracy Index -8

Regan is wearing a Dodgers jersey here, and the veteran pitcher was acquired from Los Angeles by the Cubs on April 23, 1968 with Jim Hickman (#63) for Jim Ellis and Ted Savage (#471).  Hatless photos in the later series of the set are somewhat rare, and it's surprising Topps couldn't get a picture of Regan in his Cubs gear in time for this card's release.  The cartoon recounts an impressive feat as Regan twice won both ends of double headers in 1968, doing it on April 21st against the Mets (while he was still with the Dodgers) and on July 7th against the Pirates.  In his Cubs debut, he saved both ends of a double header on April 28th against the Astros.

Accuracy Index:  Regan's card scores the somewhat standard -8.

1969 Season
In his first full season with the Cubs, Regan pitched in 71 games, the third highest total among all National League relievers.  He was 12-6 with a 3.70 ERA in 112 innings pitched.  Regan's 17 saves led the Cubs and were the fifth most in the league.

1961 Topps #439

1966 Topps #347

1968 Topps #88

1970 Topps #334

1987 Topps #156

Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card:  1961 Topps #439
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (13):  1961-72, 1987
Most Recent Mainstream Card:  2021 Topps Heritage Real One Autographs #ROA-PR
Total Non-Parallel Baseball Cards:  87 in the Beckett online database as of 10/11/25.

Sources:  
Baseball Reference / Wikipedia

Beckett Database / The Trading Card Database
1965 Topps Blog

#534 Jerry McNertney - Seattle Pilots / #536 Padres Rookie Stars

#516 Earl Weaver MG - Baltimore Orioles

Earl Sidney Weaver
Baltimore Orioles
Manager

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  5'7"  Weight:  180
Born:  August 14, 1930, St. Louis, MO
Signed:  Signed by the St. Louis Cardinals as an amateur free agent before 1948 season

As a Manager:  Baltimore Orioles 1968-82, 1985-86
Died:  January 19, 2013, Caribbean Sea (age 82)
Hall of Fame Induction:  1996

After a relatively successful 13-year career in the minor leagues as a second baseman in the Cardinals, Pirates and Orioles organizations, Earl Weaver began his second career as a full-time manager, leading the Orioles to a World Series title in 1970, and earning enshrinement in Cooperstown in 1996.  Weaver was a minor league player-manager with the Orioles between 1956 and 1960, retiring as a player in 1961.  After seven years climbing the managerial ladder in the Orioles' minor league system, and winning three minor league championships, Weaver began the 1968 season as the Orioles' first base coach.  He took over as manager on July 11, 1968, replacing Hank Bauer (#124), and he'd lead the Orioles for the next 14 1/2 seasons.  The Orioles won American League pennants under Weaver in 1969, 1970, 1971 and 1979, defeating the Reds in five games int he 1970 World Series.  He retired following the 1982 season, but was briefly coaxed out of retirement for the 1985 and 1986 seasons. 

Weaver's Orioles teams won 90 or more games in ten of his 14 full seasons at the helm between 1969 and 1982, based on his philosophy of "pitching, defense, and the three-run homer."  His lifetime record of 1,480 wins to 1,060 loses earned him induction into the Hall of Fame in 1996, and the Orioles retired his #4 upon his first retirement in 1982.  At the time of his retirement, Weaver's 96 career ejections ranked third all-time.

Building the Set / Card #438
December 3, 2023 from The Philly Show (Bagger's Auctions)

I wrote a full write-up of The Philly Show from December over at The Phillies Room.  Having added another 145 commons to our 1969 Topps set build, and then securing autographs from Tom Herr and Bobby Wine (#648), Doug and I were ready to call it a day.  

On our way out, I stopped at a table near the exit when I noticed a display with baseball cards from the 1930s, including a few Diamond Stars cards.  I had been watching the Carl Hubbell card from that set for a while on a few eBay auctions, and given the reasonable price tag on this card for $110, I started a short negotiation with the dealer.  He pointed out there were some other Diamond Stars cards in a bargain bin next to the case, and I was pleasantly surprised to find an extremely reasonably priced Ducky Medwick card to pair with the Hubbell purchase.  A reasonable person would have stopped there, but this Weaver card along with the card of his regular third baseman, Brooks Robinson (#550), seemed too good to pass up, especially from what was deemed to be a bargain bin.  I bundled the Medwick, Weaver and Robinson cards together, made a fairly low offer for the trio, and had my offer accepted.  It likely helped I had already committed to buying the more expensive Hubbell card.

We quickly exited the show soon afterwards, given my now completely empty wallet.

The Card / Orioles Team Set / Accuracy Index +5

This serves as Weaver's rookie card, and the only contemporary baseball card from his playing days appears to be from the 1950 Winston-Salem Cardinals Photos set.  The photo seems to have been taken at night.  The back of the card highlights his three MVP wins while in the minor leagues.  A quick search of his biographies showed no details for these wins, and I have to imagine these came while he was a minor league manager, not a minor league player.  His best year as a player was likely 1949, when as an 18-year-old, Weaver batted .282 with 101 RBIs and 17 stolen bases for the Class C St. Joseph Cardinals.

The caricature on the back of the card is simply the reverse of the photo on front, with some graphic-y touches applied.  Topps reprinted the card for the 1997 Topps Stars Rookie Reprints insert set.

Accuracy Index:  Weaver's rookie card scores a +5.

1969 Season
Weaver's Orioles won 109 games and the American League pennant in his first full season as manager.  They swept the Twins in three games in the first ever ALCS, but fell to the underdog Mets in the World Series in five games.  On August 13th, future Hall of Famer Jim Palmer (#573) threw the only no-hitter of his career, against the Athletics.  Mike Cuellar (#453) and Dave McNally (#340) were both 20-game winners for the team, with Eddie Watt (#652) and Pete Richert (#86) essentially platooning as the club's closer, with 16 and 12 saves respectively.

Right fielder Frank Robinson (#250) (.308, 32 home runs, 100 RBIs) and center fielder Paul Blair (#506) (.285, 32 doubles, 26 home runs and 76 RBIs) were offensive forces for the Orioles.  First baseman Boog Powell (#15) slugged 37 home runs and drove in 121 runs.

1971 Topps #477

1974 Topps #306

1978 Topps #211

1983 Topps #426

1987 Topps #568

Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card:  1969 Topps #516
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (17):  1969-81, 1983, 1985-87
Most Recent Mainstream Card:  2024 Topps Living #741
Total Non-Parallel Baseball Cards:  280 in the Beckett online database as of 12/9/24.

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.  The Orioles are fairly well represented in the set, but these five players deserve a card in my imaginary update series.

• Merv Rettenmund (of) - Outfielder Merv Rettenmund is sharing a Rookie Stars card with pitcher Mike Adamson (#66) and I've give him a solo card.
• Chico Salmon (inf) - Chico Salmon (#62) is in the set with the Pilots, but he played in 52 games for the Orioles after a trade to Baltimore in late March.
• Marcelino Lopez (lhp) - Two of the top five relievers for Weaver's Orioles aren't in the set, starting with Marcelino Lopez.  Lopez and Dick Hall made 27 and 39 appearances, respectively, throughout the season.
• Dick Hall (rhp)
• Terry Crowley (1b) - Long-time Oriole Terry Crowley was a September call-up in 1969, appearing in seven games.  He'd earn a rookie card in the 1970 Topps set.

Sources:  
Baseball Reference - Weaver / Baseball Reference - 1969 Orioles / SABR / Wikipedia

National Baseball Hall of Fame
Beckett Database / The Trading Card Database

#515 Dick Green - Oakland Athletics / #517 Mike McCormick - San Francisco Giants

#480 Tom Seaver - New York Mets

George Thomas Seaver
New York Mets
Pitcher

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'1"  Weight:  195
Born:  November 17, 1944, Fresno, CA
Signed:  Signed by the New York Mets as an amateur free agent, April 3, 1966
Major League Teams:  New York Mets 1967-1977; Cincinnati Reds 1977-1982; New York Mets 1983; Chicago White Sox 1984-1986; Boston Red Sox 1986

World Series Appearances:  New York Mets 1969, 1973
Died:  August 31, 2020, Calistoga, CA (age 75)
Hall of Fame Induction:  1992

The greatest pitcher in Mets franchise history, Tom Seaver earned the nicknames Tom Terrific and The Franchise as one of the most dominant pitchers in the game between 1967 and the late 1970s.  Seaver was a 16-game winner for the Mets in 1967, leading to his Rookie of the Year win.  He was a 12-time All-Star, making the team in nine of ten years between 1967 and 1977.  Seaver was a 25-game winner in 1969, leading the Mets to a World Series victory and winning the first of his three Cy Young Awards.  He'd win the award again in 1973, perhaps his best season statistically, and 1975.  A three-time wins leader, three-time ERA leader and five-time strikeout leader, Seaver is at the top of most pitching categories in Mets franchise history.  He recorded at least 200 strikeouts in 10 seasons, attaining a career-high with 289 strikeouts in 1971.

Traded to the Reds in June 1977, Seaver continued his success with a no-hitter against the Cardinals on June 16, 1978.  Pitching into his 40s, he had two last solid seasons for the White Sox in 1984 and 1985, winning 15 and 16 games respectively.  Seaver retired in 1986 after 16 starts for the Red Sox.  He was a first ballot Hall of Famer in 1992, inducted by the highest percentage of votes ever attained.  Seaver earned a lifetime record of 311-205 with a 2.86 ERA, 231 complete games, 61 shutouts (seventh all-time) and 3,640 strikeouts (sixth all-time).  His #41 was retired by the Mets in 1988, and he's a member of both the New York Mets and Cincinnati Reds Hall of Fames.

Building the Set / Card #274
September 23, 2023 from The Philly Show (Ed's Old Baseball Cards)
Given the massive haul of 193 cards acquired for our 1969 Topps set at the March Philly Show, I held off on adding more cards throughout the summer of 2023.  We weren't even going to go to the Philly Show last September, but our oldest son's baseball tournament was rained out, and we found ourselves with a free weekend.  I wrote about the show originally over at The Phillies Room.

I added just 15 cards to our set build at this show, all from the same dealer, Ed's Old Baseball Cards out of the Buffalo area.  Technically, the cards I bought were from Ed's associate, Gary, who explained he was along for the ride and brought a bunch of his vintage cards for sale.  I picked four needed star cards, including this Seaver card.  Gary gave us a nice discount on the purchase, so we went back after securing a few autographs and I picked 11 more commons and semi-stars from his modest selection of 1960s Topps cards for sale.  Posting for these 15 cards should take me a lot less longer than what it took to get through the box of cards brought home from the March 2023 Philly Show.

The Card / Mets Team Set / Accuracy Index +1

Collectors had already seen this exact same photo on Seaver's 1968 Topps card.  The back of the card highlights his young career, which at this point consisted of only two seasons with the Mets.  His performance in the 1967 All-Star Game is noted.  Tied 1-1 heading into the 15th, Tony Perez (#295) hit a home run off Catfish Hunter (#235) to give the National League the lead.  Seaver pitched a scoreless bottom of the 15th to earn the save.

Topps reprinted this card in its 2022 Topps Archives and Topps Archives Reserve sets, and again in its 2011 Topps 60 Years of Topps insert set.

Accuracy Index:  Great card, but Seaver's score drops to +1 as Topps had used the photo before.

Inserts:  Seaver is one of 48 decals in the Topps Decals insert set.

1969 Season
A star the prior two seasons, this was the season Seaver established himself as a superstar.  He was 25-7 with a 2.21 ERA as the ace for the Amazin' Mets.  Over half of his 35 starts resulted in complete games (18) and he also tossed five shutouts.  He was 1-1 in the World Series, losing Game 1, but pitching a 10-inning complete game victory in Game 4.  Seaver was the nearly unanimous choice for the National League Cy Young, receiving 23 of 24 first place votes.  Phil Niekro (#355), who was 23-13, earned the hold-out first place vote.

1967 Topps #581

1968 Topps #45

1973 Topps #350

1978 Topps #450

1987 Topps #425

Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card:  1967 Topps #581
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (22):  1967-1987, 2001
Most Recent Mainstream Card:  2024 Topps Heritage Baseball Flashbacks #BF-7
Total Non-Parallel Baseball Cards:  2,557 in the Beckett online database as of 4/14/24.

Sources:  
Baseball Reference / SABR / Wikipedia

National Baseball Hall of Fame
Beckett Database / The Trading Card Database

#479 Richie Scheinblum - Cleveland Indians / #481 Bill Melton - Chicago White Sox

#255 Steve Carlton - St. Louis Cardinals

Steven Norman Carlton
St. Louis Cardinals
Pitcher

Bats:  Left  Throws:  Left  Height:  6'4"  Weight:  210
Born:  December 22, 1944, Miami, FL
Signed:  Signed by the St. Louis Cardinals as an amateur free agent, October 8, 1963
Major League Teams:  St. Louis Cardinals 1965-1971; Philadelphia Phillies 1972-1986; San Francisco Giants 1986; Chicago White Sox 1986; Cleveland Indians 1987; Minnesota Twins 1987-1988

World Series Appearances:  St. Louis Cardinals 1967; Philadelphia Phillies 1980, 1983
Hall of Fame Induction:  1994

Steve Carlton was one of the best left-handed pitchers in the history of the game.  He found early success with the Cardinals, making three All-Star squads and earning his first World Series ring in 1967.  After the Phillies acquired him in February 1972 for Rick Wise (#188), he took his career to the next level.  Lefty led the league in strikeouts five times, wins four times and he clinched an ERA title in 1972 with a 1.97 mark to go along with his 27-10 record and 30 complete games.  That was also the year he won the first of his four Cy Young Awards, winning the honor again in 1977, 1980 and 1982.  His pitching helped the Phillies win their first World Championship in 1980.  

Carlton currently ranks 11th on the all-time wins list (329) and 4th on the all-time strikeouts list (4,136) and only Warren Spahn has more wins in baseball history (363) among all left-handed pitchers.  He briefly held the top spot for all-time strikeouts before being ultimately overtaken by Nolan Ryan (#533) in 1984, and along with Ryan, Randy Johnson and Roger Clemens he's one of only four players with over 4,000 strikeouts in major league history.  That mark also puts him atop the all-time National League leaders list for strikeouts.  His #32 was retired by the Phillies in 1989, and he was an easy first ballot Hall of Famer in 1994.

Some text for this post originally appeared on my 1965 Topps blog.

Building the Set / Card #272
September 23, 2023 from The Philly Show (Ed's Old Baseball Cards)
Given the massive haul of 193 cards acquired for our 1969 Topps set at the March Philly Show, I held off on adding more cards throughout the summer of 2023.  We weren't even going to go to the Philly Show last September, but our oldest son's baseball tournament was rained out, and we found ourselves with a free weekend.  I wrote about the show originally over at The Phillies Room.

I added just 15 cards to our set build at this show, all from the same dealer, Ed's Old Baseball Cards out of the Buffalo area.  Technically, the cards I bought were from Ed's associate, Gary, who explained he was along for the ride and brought a bunch of his vintage cards for sale.  I picked four needed star cards, including this Carlton card.  Gary gave us a nice discount on the purchase, so we went back after securing a few autographs and I picked 11 more commons and semi-stars from his modest selection of 1960s Topps cards for sale.  Posting for these 15 cards should take me a lot less longer than what it took to get through the box of cards brought home from the March 2023 Philly Show.

The Card / Cardinals Team Set / Accuracy Index +5

The photo used here was likely taken at the same time as the photo used for Carlton's 1968 Topps card.  The back of the card highlights his career achievements to date, and Topps seems somewhat surprised Carlton had a decent season in 1968, following his rookie season of 1967.

Carlton signed reprints of this card for the 2018 Topps Heritage release.

Accuracy Index:  No issues here, as Carlton's card scores a +5.

1969 Season
Carlton enjoyed his best season to date in 1969, going 17-11 in 31 starts with an impressive 2.17 ERA.  He struck out 210 over 236 1/3 innings pitched, both career highs for him at that point in his career.  He and Bob Gibson (#200) won 37 games between the two of them, nearly half of the Cardinals' 87 total wins for the fourth place club.  Carlton was the starting pitcher for the National League All Stars, pitching three innings and ultimately getting credited with the win, despite allowing home runs to Frank Howard (#170) and Bill Freehan (#390).  On September 15th, Carlton set a then major league record by striking out 19 batters in a game against the Mets.

Phillies Career
Carlton put together a Hall of Fame career as the greatest left-handed pitcher in Phillies team history.  He was an All-Star in 1972, 1974, 1977 and 1979 through 1982.  Carlton was the winning pitcher in the World Series clinching game against the Royals in 1980.  He's the franchise's all-time leader in games started (499), wins (241) and strikeouts (3,031).  

A statute of Carlton stands at Citizens Bank Park, the current home of the Phillies, along with statues of the other members of the franchise's Mount Rushmore - Robin Roberts, Richie Ashburn and Mike Schmidt.

1965 Topps #477

1972 Topps #751

1977 Topps #110

1980 Topps #210

1987 Topps Traded #19T

Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card:  1965 Topps #477
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (22):  1965, 1967-1987
Most Recent Mainstream Card:  2024 Topps 1989 Topps Baseball 35th Anniversary Autographs #89BA-SC
Total Non-Parallel Baseball Cards:  2,223 in the Beckett online database as of 3/25/24.

Sources:  
Baseball Reference / SABR / Wikipedia

National Baseball Hall of Fame
Beckett Database / The Trading Card Database
1965 Topps Blog / The Phillies Room

#254 Joe Schultz MG - Seattle Pilots / #256 Gates Brown - Detroit Tigers