#250 Frank Robinson - Baltimore Orioles

Frank Robinson
Baltimore Orioles
Outfield

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'1"  Weight:  183
Born:  August 31, 1935, Beaumont, TX
Signed:  Signed by the Cincinnati Reds as an amateur free agent before 1953 season
Major League Teams:  Cincinnati Reds 1956-65; Baltimore Orioles 1966-71; Los Angeles Dodgers 1972; California Angels 1973-74; Cleveland Indians 1974-76

World Series Appearances:  Cincinnati Reds 1961; Baltimore Orioles 1966, 1969-71
As a Manager:  Cleveland Indians 1975-77; San Francisco Giants 1981-84; Baltimore Orioles 1988-91; Montreal Expos 2002-04; Washington Nationals 2005-06
Died:  February 7, 2019, Los Angeles, CA (age 83)
Hall of Fame Induction:  1982

Frank Robinson was the first player to win the MVP Award in both National and American Leagues, winning the honor in 1961 with the Reds and then in 1966 in his first season with the Orioles.  Robinson won National League Rookie of the Year honors with the Reds in 1956 and was a six-time All-Star with the club before a blockbuster deal sent him to Baltimore.  Robinson won the Triple Crown in 1966 and led the Orioles to their first World Series title that season, winning World Series MVP honors in the process.  He led the Orioles to their second World Championship title in 1970.  In 21 seasons, Robinson was a 14-time All-Star, batting over .300 nine times and hitting at least 30 home runs in 11 seasons.  When he retired, his 586 career home runs ranked fourth on the all-time list.  Robinson collected 2,943 career hits to go along with 1,812 career RBIs.

In 1975, he was named a player-manager for the Indians, becoming the first black manager in Major League Baseball history.  Although he was named Manager of the Year in 1989, he never guided a team to the postseason.  Robinson was the final manager in Expos history and the first manager for the Nationals after the team had relocated to Washington, and he retired following the 2006 season with a career 1,065-1,176 record.  He was a first ballot Hall of Famer in 1982, and his #20 has been retired by the Orioles, Reds and Guardians.

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

Building the Set / Card #626

September 21, 2025 from The Philly Show (Niagara Sports Cards)

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 third stop was a smaller table with the impossible to pass up offer of 1969 Topps commons that were only $1, unless marked.  The binder was right at the end of the table, making it an even easier sell.  The prices on some of the cards were stunningly low, so I was even more surprised when the dealer, Niagara Sports Cards, gave me an even deeper discount upon tallying up my total.

I found 12 cards needed from Niagara Sports Cards, and this was the fourth of those 12, and the 67th of 91 cards for the set added overall on the day.  The card was marked at $25, but I paid a little over $18 for it after the bulk dealer discount was applied.

The Card / Orioles Team Set / Accuracy Index +5

Topps used a wildly off center photo for the card, but I guess it kind of works?  There's a lot of blue sky behind Robinson, so I still would have cropped it a little differently.  Topps reprinted the card in its 2001 Topps Through the Years insert set.  His impressive multi-league MVP wins are highlighted in the write-up on the back of the card.

Accuracy Index:  Robinson's card scores an off center +5.

Inserts:  Robinson is included as one of the 48 decals in the Topps Decals insert set.

1969 Season
From his SABR biography, written by Maxwell Kates: 

As the Orioles were poised for greatness in 1969, their catalyst was once again Frank Robinson.  Proving himself as a comeback player, he batted .308 while driving in 100 runs and hitting 32 homers, including 12 in April.  Off the field Robinson developed a way to perpetuate team chemistry while keeping his teammates relaxed.  Capitalizing on the television success of Laugh-In, Robinson established a clubhouse kangaroo court, proclaiming himself "da Judge."  Wearing a robe and a mop for a wig, Robinson levied fines for "crimes" such as missing the team bus, missing the cutoff man, or wearing running shoes in public.  As writer Ted Patterson remembered, only Robinson could have got away with saying "Stand up, Earl [Weaver]. (#516) Oh, you are standing."  The Orioles donated the proceeds of the 1969 kangaroo court fines to Cincinnati catcher Pat Corrales (#382), whose wife had died that summer giving birth to her fourth child.

Despite 109 regular-season wins and Robinson’s home run in the fifth game, Baltimore lost the 1969 World Series to the Miracle New York Mets.

1957 Topps #35

1961 Topps #360

1967 Topps #100

1975 Topps #580

2006 Topps #295

Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card:  1957 Topps #35
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (33):  1957-77, 1983-84, 1986, 1988-91, 2002-06
Most Recent Mainstream Card:  2024 Topps Dynamic Duals Ripple Effect #RE-05
Total Non-Parallel Baseball Cards:  2,422 in the Beckett online database as of 2/1/26.

Sources:  
Baseball Reference / SABR / Wikipedia

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

#249 Ed Spiezio - San Diego Padres / #251 Ron Herbel - San Francisco Giants

#300 Felipe Alou - Atlanta Braves

Felipe Rojas Alou
Atlanta Braves
Outfield

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'0"  Weight:  195
Born:  May 12, 1935, Bajos de Haina, Dominican Republic
Signed:  Signed by the New York Giants as an amateur free agent, November 14, 1955
Major League Teams:  San Francisco Giants 1958-63; Milwaukee Braves 1964-65; Atlanta Braves 1966-69; Oakland Athletics 1970-71; New York Yankees 1971-73; Montreal Expos 1973; Milwaukee Brewers 1974

World Series Appearances:  San Francisco Giants 1962
As a Manager:  Montreal Expos 1992-01; San Francisco Giants 2003-06

The oldest of the three Alou brothers, Felipe Alou enjoyed a 17-year big league career, playing primarily with the Giants and Braves, and then went on to be a successful manager for the Expos and Giants.  Alou came up with the Giants in 1958, and was named to his first of three All-Star Games in 1963.  On September 15, 1963, the three Alou brothers played in the Giants' outfield for the first time together with Felipe in center, Jesus (#22) in right and Matty (#490) in left.  The brothers' time together didn't last long, as Felipe Alou was traded to the Braves in December 1963 as part of a seven-player trade.  He'd enjoy his best seasons as a player on the Braves, making the 1966 and 1968 All-Star teams while leading the league in hits both those seasons (218 and 210, respectively.)  Alou also led the league with 122 runs scored in 1966, finished second for the batting title behind his brother Matty with a .327 average, and finished fifth in the year's MVP voting.  Alou spent the early 1970s as a reserve and pinch-hitter before retiring as a player following the 1974 season.

He joined the Expos' organization in 1976 as a minor league coach, and he'd stay with the franchise for 25 years.  Alou served as a coach for the team between 1979 and 1992 before taking over as their manager on May 22, 1992, replacing Tom Runnells.  He guided the Expos to their most successful stretch in their short franchise history, including a 74-40 record in the strike-shortened 1994 season, in which he was named National League Manager of the Year.  He'd later guide the Giants into the playoffs in 2003 when his team won 100 games.  As a player, Alou played in 2,082 games and collected 2,101 hits while batting .286 with 206 home runs and 852 RBIs.  As a manager, he oversaw 2,055 games and had a record of 1,033 and 1,021.  Alou is one of just three players in major league history to have 2,000 hits, 200 home runs and win 1,000 games a manager, along with Joe Torre (#460) and Frank Robinson (#250).

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

Building the Set / Card #569
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 tenth of 36 total cards bought from America's Pastime, and the tenth of 91 cards for set added overall on the day, and it cost a little over $2 after the dealer discount.

The Card / Braves Team Set / Accuracy Index +5

This is Alou's second appearance in the set, as he appeared on the National League Batting Leaders card (#2) earlier.  The back of the card sums up the statistics from his strong 1968 season, and the cartoon highlights his seven hits in the 1962 World Series.  Alou went 7 for 26 (.269) in the series as the Giants fell to the Yankees in seven games.

Accuracy Index:  Alou's card earns a +5.

Inserts:  Alou is included in the 35 card Topps Deckle Edge insert set and is one of 48 decals in the Topps Decals insert set.  He's one of 27 players to appear in both insert sets.

1969 Season
Alou started hot as the Braves' regular center fielder, and he was batting .320 through early June when a pitch thrown by the Cardinals' Chuck Taylor broke a finger.  He'd lose playing time upon his return to the recently acquired Tony Gonzalez (#501), and his sole postseason action was limited to a pinch-hitting appearance against the Mets in Game 3 of the NLCS.  For the season, Alou batted .282 in 123 games, with 13 doubles, five home runs and 32 RBIs.  With a crowded Braves outfield, Alou was dealt to the Athletics on December 3rd for starting pitcher Jim Nash (#546).

1959 Topps #102

1965 Topps #383

1974 Topps #485

1992 Topps Traded #3T

2006 Topps #289

Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card:  1959 Topps #102
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (23):  1959-74, 1992-93, 2001, 2003-06
Most Recent Mainstream Card:  2023 Topps Living #604
Total Non-Parallel Baseball Cards:  191 in the Beckett online database as of 10/4/25.

Sources:  
Baseball Reference / SABR / Wikipedia

Beckett Database / The Trading Card Database
1965 Topps Blog

#299 Mark Belanger - Baltimore Orioles / #301 Darrell Brandon - Seattle Pilots

#395 Chris Short - Philadelphia Phillies

J. Christopher Short
Philadelphia Phillies
Pitcher

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Left  Height:  6'4"  Weight:  205
Born:  September 19, 1937, Milford, DE
Signed:  Signed by the Philadelphia Phillies as an amateur free agent, June 14, 1957
Major League Teams:  Philadelphia Phillies 1959-1972; Milwaukee Brewers 1973

Died:  August 1, 1991, Wilmington, DE (age 53)

2006 Toyota Phillies Wall of Fame Postcards

The best and most popular left-handed Phillies pitcher of his era, Chris Short was a staff ace during a lean decade for the club, and arguably the second best left-handed pitcher in the National League behind Sandy Koufax.  He was a two-time All-Star in 1964 and 1967.  Short's first big season came in 1964, when he went 17-9 with a 2.20 ERA, third best in the league behind Koufax and Don Drysdale (#400).  Unfortunately, his team's epic September collapse overshadows the memory of Short's fantastic year, as the Phillies blew a 6 1/2 game lead with 12 games remaining to barely miss a return to the World Series for only the third time in franchise history.  Short rebounded with an even better season in 1965, going 18-11 with a 2.82 ERA in a career-high 297 1/3 innings pitched.  He also struck out a career-best 237 that season, including 18 Mets in a 15-inning outing on October 2, 1965.  Short won 20 games in 1966, and followed that up with a 19 win season in 1968.  A back injury in 1969 hampered the remaining four years of his playing days.

Short retired following a single season with the Brewers in 1973.  For his career, he was 135-132 with a 3.43 ERA and 1,629 strikeouts over 2,325 innings pitched.  Short was active in the community following his retirement.  A ruptured brain aneurysm in October 1988 left him comatose, and he'd pass away nearly three years later having never regained consciousness.  The Phillies posthumously inducted Short into their Wall of Fame in 1992.

Building the Set / Card #29
October 17, 2022 from Tomball, TX
In early October, with the Phillies improbably in the postseason and about to go on a month-long journey that would culminate with a trip to the World Series, I received an e-mail announcing a sale in the online store for The Battersbox, located in Tomball, Texas.  I had had my eye on the 1965 Topps Sandy Koufax card for quite some time, and I had assumed this would be the second to last card added to our set, with just the Mickey Mantle card remaining.  Riding the high of the good vibes brought on by the Phillies, and realizing it had been over a month since I had added any vintage cards, I happily added the Koufax card to my cart along with two cards to be added to my not-yet-collecting 1969 Topps set.  This Short card was one of the two bonus purchases, and it cost $2.50.  

It was actually the second time I had purchased this card in the span of a month, as it was one of seven cards added from the Deptford Mall Baseball Card Show in September.  But the version received from The Battersbox was sharper overall, so the earlier Short card landed in my trade pile.

The Card / Phillies Team Set / Accuracy Index +5

Much to the chagrin of local collectors, Short declined to sign a contract with Topps and spent the first seven seasons of his career without a Topps baseball card.  He appeared in the annual oversized photo packs, a set of black and white portraits of the Phillies' more prominent players, but his "rookie card" and first Topps set appearance wouldn't come until 1967.  This is therefore only his third appearance in a Topps flagship set.  The back of the card highlights his two scoreless innings pitched in the 1967 All-Star Game and his then career 20 shutouts with the Phillies.

Accuracy Index:  Short is depicted accurately on the Phillies (+5), using a photo collectors hadn't seen before.

Inserts:  Short is included as one of the 48 decals in the Topps Decals insert set.

1969 Season
Short suffered a back injury early in the season and was limited to just two starts and 10 innings overall before opting for season-ending surgery in June.  His 1969 season an anomaly, he'd return in 1970 to appear in 36 games, making 34 starts.

Phillies Career
Short's Phillies journey began with his signing in June 1957, and ended when the team released him on October 26, 1972.  Short sat atop the Phillies all-time left-handed pitcher leaderboard for just about every major pitching category until being ultimately surpassed by Steve Carlton (#255).  

As of this writing, he's currently fifth all-time in games pitched (459), fourth in shutouts (24), fourth in wins (132), fourth in innings pitched (2,253), and fourth in strikeouts (1,585), typically behind some combination of Carlton, Robin Roberts, Pete Alexander and Cole Hamels.

1967 Topps #395

1968 Topps #139

1970 Topps #270

1971 Topps #511

1972 Topps #665

Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card:  1967 Topps #395
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (6):  1967-1972
Most Recent Mainstream Card:  2004 Fleer Greats of the Game #72
Total Non-Parallel Baseball Cards:  59 in the Beckett online database as of 1/13/23.

Sources:  
Baseball Reference / SABR / Wikipedia

Beckett Database / The Trading Card Database
The Phillies Room

#394 Pilots Rookie Stars / #396 Jim Campanis - Kansas City Royals

#350 Richie Allen - Philadelphia Phillies

Richard Anthony Allen
Philadelphia Phillies
Outfield

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  5'11"  Weight:  187
Born:  March 8, 1942, Wampum, PA
Signed:  Signed as an amateur free agent by the Philadelphia Phillies before the 1960 season
Major League Teams:  Philadelphia Phillies 1963-1969; St. Louis Cardinals 1970; Los Angeles Dodgers 1971; Chicago White Sox 1972-1974; Philadelphia Phillies 1975-1976; Oakland Athletics 1977

Died:  December 7, 2020, Wampum, PA (age 78)

2006 Toyota Phillies Wall of Fame Postcards

A seven-time All-Star and the A.L. MVP in 1972, Dick Allen was one of the most feared sluggers of the '60s and '70s.  He won Rookie of the Year honors in 1964, hitting .318 and leading the league in runs scored (125) and triples (13) the year the Phillies heartbreakingly collapsed down the stretch.  The first black superstar for the Phillies, he dealt with racism throughout his climb up the team's minor league system and experienced a tense relationship with the front office, the media and fanbase during his years with the club.  Still, he was a prolific power hitter, landing in the top ten for home runs in National League in five seasons with the Phillies between 1964 and 1969.

Allen requested and received a trade following the 1969 season, and he played for two seasons with the Cardinals and Dodgers before landing with the White Sox in 1972 and experiencing another power surge.  He hit .308 for the 1972 White Sox and led the league in home runs (37) and RBIs (113) en route to winning the league's MVP honors.  Allen was coaxed out of retirement following the 1974 season and re-joined the Phillies in 1975.  He saw his first and only postseason action with the club in 1976, teaming with Mike Schmidt and Greg Luzinski to form a formidable middle of the line-up.

Over 15 big league seasons, Allen hit .292 with 351 home runs and 1,119 RBIs, and he's widely acknowledged as one of the best players in the history of the game not yet in the Hall of Fame.  On August 13, 2020, the Phillies announced they would be retiring Allen's #15, reversing a long-time policy of the club not to retire the number of any player not yet in the Hall of Fame.

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

Building the Set / Card #19
August 20, 2022 from Philadelphia, PA (Phillies Authentics at Citizens Bank Park)
In 2022, the Phillies made the welcome move of selling vintage baseball cards from its Phillies Authentics location behind Section 133.  This storefront is a mandatory stop for Doug and me whenever we go to a Phillies game, as the merchandise offerings frequently change and Doug has started a collection of Gameday Scorecards.  This is from my field report for the game from a Phillies Room post:

Doug and I joined roughly 40,000 other fans at this game, getting our new sustainable Phillies hats at the front gate and then heading immediately to Bull's BBQ for dinner.  The biggest shocker of the night was seeing Ron Reed (#177) signed Wall of Fame baseballs for sale at the Phillies Authentics stand prior to the start of the game.  We agreed to return to the stand during the game to secure a Reed ball for Doug's collection.  Returning in the eighth inning, we were shocked to learn all Reed balls had been sold out, and I'm assuming he didn't sign many of them.  Lesson learned, and we'll be sure to buy something when first seen from here on out.

Bummed at having missed out on the Reed baseball, we bought three other Wall of Fame baseballs, signed by Manny Trillo, Bobby Abreu and Pat Gillick, to be hidden away until Doug's December birthday.  I took advantage of my 10% partial season ticket holder discount and added this Allen card to the signed baseball haul.  I thought it was cool to add a card for our future 1969 Topps set build while attending an actual Phillies game.

The Card / Phillies Team Set / Accuracy Index +5

The photos used for Allen's 1968 and 1969 Topps cards are from the same Topps photo session.  The back of the card highlights his star status with the Phillies and celebrates his 1964 National League Rookie of the Year win.

Accuracy Index:  Allen scores a 5 for appearing in an accurate uniform and on his actual 1969 team.

Inserts:  Allen is included in the 35 card Topps Deckle Edge insert set and is one of 48 decals in the Topps Decals insert set.  He's one of 27 players to appear in both insert sets.

1969 Season
In his final season with the Phillies before returning in 1975, Allen began the season as the team's opening day first baseman.  He missed two flights to St. Louis in early May, where the Phillies were set to begin a series with the Cardinals.  Increasingly unhappy to be playing for the Phillies, Allen informed the press he had requested a trade over the winter and, "They had their chance.  I don't feel sorry for them."  In late June, he skipped a scheduled double header with the Mets and was suspended indefinitely by manager Bob Skinner (#369).  Fined $1,000 a day, Allen stayed away from the team for 26 days, finally returning on July 19th after brokering peace with owner Bob Carpenter and Carpenter agreeing to trade Allen following the season.

Throughout July and August, Allen began writing words in the infield dirt with his spikes, including "BOO" and "OCT 2," the final day of the season.  When he refused to go with the team to Reading for a scheduled exhibition game, Skinner resigned.  Despite the turmoil, Allen had a decent season, batting .288 with 32 home runs and 89 RBIs in 118 games and winning the team's offensive Triple Crown.  On October 7th, Allen was dealt to the Cardinals with Jerry Johnson (#253) and Cookie Rojas (#507) for Byron Browne, Curt Flood (#540), Joe Hoerner (#522) and Tim McCarver (#475).  When Flood refused to report to the Phillies, the Cardinals sent Willie Montanez and Jim Browning to replace him in the deal.

Phillies Career
In his nine seasons with the Phillies, Allen hit .290 with 204 home runs and 655 RBIs.  He currently ranks second in club history with a .530 slugging percentage (behind Chuck Klien's .553) and 10th on the team's all-time home run list.  He was inducted into the Phillies Wall of Fame in 1994.

He also joined the team's front office in 1994 as a fan representative and the 2020 Phillies Media Guide listed his official title as Club Ambassador.

1964 Topps #243

1966 Topps #80

1968 Topps #225

1975 Topps #400

1976 Topps #455

Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card:  1964 Topps #243
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (13):  1964-1976
Most Recent Mainstream Card:  2022 Topps Allen & Ginter #128
Total Non-Parallel Baseball Cards:  249 in the Beckett online database as of 1/1/23.

Sources:  
Baseball Reference / SABR

Beckett Database / The Trading Card Database
1965 Topps Blog / The Phillies Room

#349 Dick Williams MG - Boston Red Sox / #351 Carroll Sembera - Montreal Expos