#235 Jim Hunter - Oakland Athletics

James Augustus Hunter
Oakland Athletics
Pitcher

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'0"  Weight:  190
Born:  April 8, 1946, Hertford, NC
Signed:  Signed by the Kansas City Athletics as an amateur free agent before, June 8, 1964
Major League Teams:  Kansas City Athletics 1965-67; Oakland Athletics 1968-74; New York Yankees 1975-79

World Series Appearances:  Oakland Athletics 1972-74; New York Yankees 1976-78
Died:  September 9, 1999, Hertford, NC (age 53)
Hall of Fame Induction:  1987

Hall of Famer Catfish Hunter was one of the most dominant pitchers of his era, winning the Cy Young Award in 1974, earning eight All-Star Game bids and winning a total of five World Series rings with the Athletics and Yankees.  Hunter pitched a perfect game on May 8, 1968, the ninth in baseball history.  He won 20 games or more in five straight seasons, including 25 in his Cy Young winning year of 1974.  He also led the league that season with a 2.49 ERA.  Hunter won 224 games, had a career ERA of 3.26 and tallied 181 complete games with 42 shutouts.  He struck out 2,012 in a career cut short by arm injuries and diabetes.  Hunter was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1987 and had his #27 retired by the Athletics in 1991.  He passed away in 1999 after a battle with ALS.

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

Building the Set / Card #637

September 21, 2025 from The Philly Show (Richie's 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.  After about 90 minutes of walking and buying, while running low on funds, and even lower on stamina, I found a nice display of vintage Topps star cards at Richie's Sports Cards, from Manalpan, New Jersey.  I quickly and easily picked up six more star cards needed for our set from Richie's my fourth stop of the show.  This is the third of those six cards and it cost about $9 after a discount.

The Card / Athletics Team Set / Accuracy Index +2

Topps hat to go with a hatless photo of Hunter, given he had been wearing a now outdated Kansas City Athletics hat when the photo was taken, likely in 1966 or 1967.  The cartoon imagines Hunter crying over his 1967 All-Star Game loss, but I'm sure he was fine.  He had allowed a solo home run to Tony Perez (#295) in the top of the 15th inning to break a 1-1 tie.  His 1968 perfect game is highlighted in the write-up.

Accuracy Index:  Hunter's card earns five points for the accurate uniform, but loses three points for the lack of a hat.

1969 Season
Still only 23 years old, Hunter was 12-15 with a 3.35 ERA in 38 games and 247 innings pitched for the Athletics.  Only Blue Moon Odom (#195) with a 2.7 mark had a higher bWAR on the team's pitching staff than Hunter's 2.3.

1965 Topps #526

1970 Topps #565

1974 Topps #7

1976 Topps #100

1979 Topps #670

Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card:  1965 Topps #526
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (15):  1965-79
Most Recent Mainstream Card:  2025 Topps Allen & Ginter Wicked Curves #WC-30
Total Non-Parallel Baseball Cards:  733 in the Beckett online database as of 2/22/26.

Sources:  
Baseball Reference / SABR / Wikipedia

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

#234 Dave Bristol MG - Cincinnati Reds / #236 Manny Mota - Montreal Expos

#618 Ramon Webster - Oakland Athletics

Ramon Alberto Webster
Oakland Athletics
First Base

Bats:  Left  Throws:  Left  Height:  6'0"  Weight:  185
Born:  August 31, 1942, Colon, Panama
Signed:  Signed by the Kansas City Athletics as an amateur free agent before 1963 season
Major League Teams:  Kansas City Athletics 1967; Oakland Athletics 1968-69; San Diego Padres 1970-71; Oakland Athletics 1971; Chicago Cubs 1971

Ramon Webster's impressive spring training with the Athletics in 1967 earned him a spot on their opening day roster, and he'd eventually take over the regular first baseman's job from Danny Cater (#44).  He'd suffer a leg injury at some point in the season that curtailed his productivity and evidently limited his output over the rest of his playing career.  Webster never came close to the career highs he set in 1967 in games played (122), runs (41), hits (92), home runs (11) or RBIs (51).  He'd find some success with the Padres in 1970, appearing in 95 games and batting .259.  Webster appeared with three different teams in 1971, his last year in the majors, wrapping up his big league career with 16 games for the Cubs.  He'd be a mainstay with the Athletics' Triple-A teams in the early to mid 1970s.  Webster played in 380 big league games, batting .244 with 31 doubles, 17 home runs and 98 RBIs.

Building the Set / Card #586
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 27th of 36 total cards bought from America's Pastime, and the 27th of 91 cards for set added overall on the day, and it cost a little over $2 after the dealer discount.

The Card / Athletics Team Set / Accuracy Index +5

This is Webster's third and final appearance in a Topps flagship set, and it's odd he'd not appear as a Padre in the 1970 or 1971 Topps sets.  The photo used here is from spring training in 1968 or 1969, displaying the new "A" logo on the team's hat following their move from Kansas City to Oakland.  I didn't know anything about Webster before adding this card to our set build, and it's a shame his injury cost him the ability to contribute to the upcoming A's dynasty of the early 1970s.

Accuracy Index:  Webster's card earns a solid +5.

1969 Season
Webster was used primarily as a pinch-hitter in 1969, batting .260 overall in 64 games with a home run and 13 RBIs.  He pinch hit in 49 of those 64 games, batting .256 in that role.

1967 Topps #603

1968 Topps #164

Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card:  1967 Topps #603
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (3):  1967-69
Most Recent Mainstream Card:  1969 Topps #618
Total Non-Parallel Baseball Cards:  15 in the Beckett online database as of 10/25/25.

Sources:  
Baseball Reference / Wikipedia

Beckett Database / The Trading Card Database

#617 Jesse Gonder - San Diego Padres / #619 Royals Rookie Stars

#597 A.L. Rookie Stars - Bob Floyd / Larry Burchart / Rollie Fingers

Robert Nathan Floyd
Baltimore Orioles
Infield

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'1"  Weight:  180
Born:  October 20, 1943, Hawthorne, CA
Signed:  Signed by the Baltimore Orioles as an amateur free agent before 1964 season
Major League Teams:  Baltimore Orioles 1968-70; Kansas City Royals 1970-74

Larry Wayne Burchart
Cleveland Indians
Pitcher

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'3"  Weight:  205
Born:  February 8, 1946, Tulsa, OK
Drafted:  Drafted by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 3rd round of the 1967 amateur draft, June 6, 1967
Major League Teams:  Cleveland Indians 1969

Roland Glen Fingers
Oakland Athletics
Pitcher

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'4"  Weight:  190
Born:  August 25, 1946, Steubenville, OH
Signed:  Signed by the Kansas City Athletics as an amateur free agent, December 24, 1964
Major League Teams:  Oakland Athletics 1968-76; San Diego Padres 1977-80; Milwaukee Brewers 1981-82, 1984-85

World Series Appearances:  Oakland Athletics 1972-74
Hall of Fame Induction:  1992

Bobby Floyd put in seven seasons in the majors as a back-up infielder and pinch-hitter, appearing in a career-high 61 games with the Royals in 1971.  Blocked by Mark Belanger (#299) in Baltimore and Freddie Patek (#219) in Kansas City, Floyd started sparingly while in the majors.  He spent the entire 1969 season on the Orioles roster, but did not see any action in that year's ALDS or World Series.  Dealt to the Royals in June 1970 for Moe Drabowsky (#508), Floyd was a key reserve for the team between 1970 and 1974.  His best season came in 1973 when he batted .333 in 51 games for the Royals.  In 214 big league games, Floyd batted .219 overall with 18 doubles and 26 RBIs.  Floyd would manage in the Mariners and Mets minor league systems following his retirement as a player until the early 2000s.  He served on the Mets' coaching staff in 2001 and 2004.

After a successful collegiate career at Oklahoma State University, and two successful seasons in the Dodgers' minor league system, Larry Burchart was selected by the Indians in the 1968 rule 5 draft.  He'd join Cleveland's bullpen for the 1969 season, appearing in 29 games and pitching to a 4.25 ERA in 42 1/3 innings pitched.  Burchart had his season, and likely his career, cut short following a violent collision at first base with the Red Sox' George Scott (#574).  Having torn muscles in his pitching shoulder, Burchart pitched for two more seasons in the minor leagues before retiring from baseball.

With his signature handle-bar mustache, Rollie Fingers authored a 17-season Hall of Fame career, winning three World Series rings with the Athletics and earning both American League MVP and Cy Young Award honors in 1981.  Fingers helped usher in the modern closer role, dominating at the back-end of the bullpen, and leading the league in saves in 1977 (35), 1978 (37) and the strike-shortened 1981 (28).  He was a seven-time All-Star, including four straight appearances with the Athletics between 1973 and 1976.  That run corresponded with the Athletics dynasty that won three straight World Championships between 1972 and 1974.  Fingers was the MVP of the 1974 series, after winning the first game and saving the final three wins.  He departed Oakland in 1976 as a free agent, and after four dominant seasons with the Padres, Fingers joined the Brewers for the final act of his career.

He helped pitch the Brewers to their first postseason berth in 1981, going 6-3 with a 1.04 ERA in 78 innings pitched.  Fingers retired following the 1985 season as the all-time saves leader with 341, the record until surpassed by Jeff Reardon in 1992.  He was 114-118 lifetime with a 2.90 ERA in 1,701 1/3 innings pitched, and his 709 career games finished still ranks fifth all-time.  Fingers was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1992, the second reliever in the Hall, after Hoyt Wilhelm (#565).  His #34 was retired by both the Athletics and the Brewers.

Building the Set / Card #543
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 over the past seven months, I've composted a post for each of the 98 commons and semi-stars I pulled from the binder.

But I had one more card to purchase from Uncle Dick's Cards.  My Dad taught me one particular negotiation tactic at some of the earliest baseball card shows we attended together, held inside the Ocean City Music Pier in the early to mid-1980s.  I had already expressed interest in this Hall of Fame rookie card before diving into the last binder of commons.  After totaling the cards I had committed to purchase, I asked the dealer what kind of a deal he could give me on the Fingers card, seeing as I had just shown him I was an interested buyer.  The suggested price offered was lower than the sale price on the sticker, and I added this key card from the set to my day's haul.

The Card / Orioles Team Set / Indians Team Set / Athletics Team Set

Floyd Accuracy Index -3 / Burchart Accuracy Index +5 / Fingers Accuracy Index +5
No offense to Floyd or Burchart, but this card is rightfully known as the "Rollie Fingers rookie card," and I would have been hard pressed to name the other two players with Fingers before adding this card to our set.  Topps has reprinted the card a few times over the years, both with Floyd and Burchart and without.  They created a great "card that never was" in 2018 for Fingers to sign as part of the Topps Heritage release.

Accuracy Index:  Burchart and Fingers both score a +5, and Floyd loses points for the mystery jersey and lack of a hat.

1969 Season - Floyd
Floyd appeared in 39 games for the Orioles, batting .202 with four doubles.  He made 19 starts all season - 12 at shortstop, backing up Belanger, five at second base and two at third base.  His other appearances came as a late inning defensive replacement, and he made one pinch-hitting appearance all season, going 0 for 1.

1970 Topps #101

1971 Topps #646

1972 Topps #273

1974 Topps #41

Other Notable Baseball Cards - Floyd
First Mainstream Card:  1969 Topps #597
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (5):  1969-72, 1974
Most Recent Mainstream Card:  1997 Topps Stars Rookie Reprints #5
Total Non-Parallel Baseball Cards:  30 in the Beckett online database as of 8/3/25.

Sources - Floyd:  
Baseball Reference / SABR / Wikipedia

Beckett Database / The Trading Card Database

1969 Season - Burchart
Burchart had to remain on the Indians' roster all season given they had picked him up in the rule 5 draft.  He appeared in five games for the Indians in April, before his collision with Scott during the game on April 18th.  Burchart would miss two months while recovering, and likely should have taken more time to heal.  He'd pitch fairly well upon his return though, and for the season Burchart was 0-2 with a 4.25 ERA.

1969 Season - Fingers
Following a September call-up in 1968, Fingers came up for good in 1969.  He began the season as a fifth starter for the Athletics, but found most of his work from the bullpen.  In 60 appearances, including eight starts, Fingers was 6-7 with a 3.71 ERA in 119 innings pitched.  No other reliever was used more frequently than him, and Fingers led the club with 12 saves.

1970 Topps #412

1997 Topps Stars Rookie Reprints Autographs #5

2001 Topps Archives #281

2018 Topps Heritage Real One Autographs #ROA-RF

Other Notable Baseball Cards - Burchart
First Mainstream Card:  1969 Topps #597
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (2):  1969-70
Most Recent Mainstream Card:  1997 Topps Stars Rookie Reprints #5
Total Non-Parallel Baseball Cards:  6 in the Beckett online database as of 8/3/25.

Sources - Burchart:  
Baseball Reference / Wikipedia

Beckett Database / The Trading Card Database

Other Notable Baseball Cards - Fingers
First Mainstream Card:  1969 Topps #597
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (18):  1969-86
Most Recent Mainstream Card:  2025 Topps Heritage Real One Autographs #ROA-RF
Total Non-Parallel Baseball Cards:  966 in the Beckett online database as of 8/3/25.

Sources - Fingers:  
Baseball Reference / SABR / Wikipedia

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

1970 Topps #502

1975 Topps #21

1978 Topps #140

1981 Topps Traded #761

1986 Topps #185

#596 Chuck Hartenstein - Pittsburgh Pirates / #598 Ruben Amaro - California Angels

#655 Mike Hershberger - Oakland Athletics

Norman Michael Hershberger
Oakland Athletics
Outfield

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  5'10"  Weight:  175
Born:  October 9, 1939, Massillon, OH
Signed:  Signed by the Chicago White Sox as an amateur free agent before 1959 season
Major League Teams:  Chicago White Sox 1961-64; Kansas City Athletics 1965-67; Oakland Athletics 1968-69; Milwaukee Brewers 1970; Chicago White Sox 1971

Died:  July 1, 2012, Massillon, OH (age 72)

Mike Hershberger was the regular right fielder for the White Sox between 1962 and 1964, before serving in the same role with the Athletics between 1965 and 1967.  Hershberger drove in at least 40 runs in five different seasons, hitting his career high with 57 in 1966.  That was the season he also led the league in sacrifice flies with seven.  A fine fielder with a strong arm, Hershberger led all right fielders in assists for three seasons in a row between 1965 and 1967.  In 11 seasons, all in the American League, he batted .252 with 26 home runs and 344 RBIs.

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

Building the Set / Card #538
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 94th of 98 commons pulled from the binder.  After a generous dealer discount due to my bulk purchase, this card cost me less than $1.50.

The Card / Athletics Team Set / Accuracy Index +5

This is a great looking Athletics card.  The photo features the relatively new Oakland hat, one of the many in the late series of the set, along with the earlier Reggie Jackson (#260) card, taken during spring training in 1969.  Hershberger's success from the 1968 season is highlighted on the back.

Accuracy Index:  The card scores a solid +5.

1969 Season
This was Hershberger's final season with the Athletics, and he had settled into a full-time reserve outfielder role.  In 51 games, he batted .202 with a pair of doubles and a home run.  32 of those appearances were starts, including an opening day start in left field.  On January 15, 1970, Hershberger, Lew Krausse (#23), Phil Roof (#334) and Ken Sanders were dealt to the Pilots, soon to be the Brewers, for Ron Clark (#561) and Don Mincher (#285).

1962 Topps #341

1964 Topps #465

1966 Topps #236

1970 Topps #596

1971 Topps #149

Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card:  1962 Topps #341
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (10):  1962-71
Most Recent Mainstream Card:  1978 TCMA The 1960s I #287
Total Non-Parallel Baseball Cards:  49 in the Beckett online database as of 7/27/25.

Sources:  
Baseball Reference / Wikipedia

Beckett Database / The Trading Card Database
1965 Topps Blog

#654 White Sox Rookie Stars / #656 Dan Schneider - Houston Astros

#638 Ed Sprague - Oakland Athletics

Edward Nelson Sprague
Oakland Athletics
Pitcher

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'4"  Weight:  195
Born:  September 16, 1945, Boston, MA
Signed:  Signed by the St. Louis Cardinals as an amateur free agent before 1966 season
Major League Teams:  Oakland Athletics 1968-69; Cincinnati Reds 1971-73; St. Louis Cardinals 1973; Milwaukee Brewers 1973-76

Died:  January 10, 2020, Lodi, CA (age 74)

Pitcher Ed Sprague played in parts of eight big league seasons, finding the most success late in his career as a converted starter for the Brewers.  Sprague came up with the Athletics in 1968, appearing in 47 games, and earning four saves.  He was one of the young team's most frequently used relievers, along with Jack Aker (#612), Diego Segui (#511) and Paul Lindblad (#449).  Sprague spent part of 1969 and all of 1970 back in the minor leagues, attempting his first conversion to a starting pitcher.  Traded to the Reds in October 1970, Sprague would appear in 33 games for the club in 1972 and 28 games in 1973, before another trade sent him briefly to the Cardinals.  The Brewers purchased his contract in September 1973, and Sprague's best stretch in the majors came during the 1974 season.  He was 7-2 with a 2.39 ERA in 20 games, including 10 starts, throwing three complete games.  Injuries must have cost him playing time, as he'd pitch sparingly for the Brewers over the next two seasons before retiring.  Sprague was 17-23 lifetime with a 3.84 ERA in 408 innings pitched.  He had nine career saves.

His son, Ed Sprague Jr., was an All-Star in 1999 for the Pirates, and a member of the 1992 and 1993 World Champion Blue Jays.  The younger Sprague played for 11 seasons, mostly with the Blue Jays, and collected 152 career home runs.

Building the Set / Card #527
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 83rd of 98 commons pulled from the binder.  After a generous dealer discount due to my bulk purchase, this card cost me less than $1.50.

The Card / Athletics Team Set / Accuracy Index +5

This is Sprague's rookie card, and despite his longevity in the majors and 198 games pitched, he only appeared on three total Topps flagship cards.  I guess the Topps cartoonist was tasked with drawing a California Girl for the cartoon on the back of the card.

Accuracy Index:  Sprague's card earns a +5 for the accurate uniform (and hat) depiction.

1969 Season
In 27 games for the Athletics, Sprague was 1-1 with a 4.47 ERA, all in relief.  He spent the summer months in the minor leagues with the Triple-A Iowa Oaks, where he was 7-5 with a 3.57 ERA in 15 starts.

1972 Topps #121

1975 Topps #76

1976 SSPC #230

Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card:  1969 Topps #638
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (3):  1969, 1972, 1975
Most Recent Mainstream Card:  1976 SSPC #230
Total Non-Parallel Baseball Cards:  13 in the Beckett online database as of 6/14/25.

Sources:  
Baseball Reference / Wikipedia

Beckett Database / The Trading Card Database

#637 Padres Rookie Stars / #639 Barry Moore - Washington Senators