Interesting Stats, Cool Cards ... This hobby can be fun!

Virtualizard

I spent the better part of the day going through about 20,000 raw cards. I was in search of some specific cards, but I did turn up a few interesting ones as well.

First, I remember a recent post where someone posted a scan of a '70s card and called it something like "the poor man's '53 Bowman Color Pee Wee Reese". Well, I found the '90s version today:


1991 Topps #455 Walt Weiss



Another one that popped out as "unique" is the 1992 Topps Stadium Club Wade Boggs. Not at all what you would expect from a standard card photo:


1992 Topps Stadium Club #520 Wade Boggs



Finally, I was looking at the back of my 1972 Topps #448 Willie Stargell IA card and I was intrigued by the stat:


1972 Topps #448 Willie Stargell IA



I did a little research on this stat. From 1966-1974, Ron Hunt led the league each year in the HBP category (he was #2 in three of the previous 5 years and #5 in one year as well). Only Don Baylor leads Ron Hunt on the All-Time HBP list (there are 2 players from the 1800s ahead of both Hunt and Baylor).

Craig Biggio at 34 HBP in 1997, is the most recent player to even come close to the modern single season record of 50 HBP by Ron Hunt.

This is my salute to these gluttons for punishment:

JEB.


1970 Topps #276 Ron Hunt




1979 Topps #635 Don Baylor

Robby

LIZARD , The Boggs card picture is really a neat card ! Enjoy looking at your posts of cards - wish I was a little more computor savvy to post some pics of my own ! Robby

mrc32

Nice post.

So fess up Virtualizard-- what "specific cards" were you looking for?

Virtualizard

<< <i>Nice post.

So fess up Virtualizard-- what "specific cards" were you looking for? >>




Hopefully you'll find out in a month or so!

JEB.

KING KELLOGG

LIZARD...


Great post...Super pix....Informative story line ......... All around good job !!


I wonder haw many times Baylor was hit in the head by a pitch??? The Rockies started off pretty good under his management, then a slow decline......(Not doing much better now with a new skipper either......)




Larry

helionaut

There's a story on Ron Hunt in one of Bill James's books form the last couple years, I think the New Abstract. He says that Hunt was a highly disliked person, very crabby and unpleasant to be around. After a few years, he couldn't hit as well as he used to and so started leaning into pitches to get on base. It got to be his most valuable offensive tool, and was able to hang around a few years because people noticed he was always on base. This was before the OPS craze and all that.

Yes, the early 90s Topps cards have a lot of great pictures, especially in the 1991 Topps set. In that area, they put more effort into their 40th anniversary than their 50th, although 10 years later they were putting out a lot more cards.

A favorite card of mine is from a 1960s set, I don't know if it was 64, 67, or what, but it had a small action photo at the top of the front with the checklist beneath. The photo was of a run-down, and I don't know of any other card that shows a run-down, which is odd because that's one of the most exciting plays in the game.

CW

Great post!

Basilone

Was the picture on the Boggs card taken from a game or a stag party? Wade seems very "eager" in the photo.

John

Cubfan

Great post Virtual.

I remember watching the game Hunt broke that record on TV. Helionaut was correct. The guy would stand right on the plate and was able to get his entire body as close as possible because he nearly stood straight up and didnt crouch. The pitch would come in and he would twist and get hit.

I also remember a game against the Cubs where he got hit and they called it a strike because he bent over the plate. It kept him in the bigs though.

Fun stuff.

mrc32

Virtualizard
I was surfing and ran across one of those THIS DAY IN HISTORY sections:

On this day in history...

1567 - War of Religion - Huguenots try to kidnap king Charles IX.
1650 - Henry Robinson opens 1st marriage bureau (England).
1793 - Tennis is 1st mentioned in an English sporting magazine.
1950 - Telephone Answering Machine created by Bell Laboratories.
1971 - Ron Hunt is hit by a pitch for record 50th time in a season.
1973 - Insurance industry announces auto racers get into more highway accidents.
1976 - Jerry Lee Lewis, attempting to shoot soda bottles hits his bass player Norman Owens twice in the chest.
1996 - Nintendo 64 video game system debuts in USA (3 months after Japan).


I couldn't beleive that today Hunt was with by a pitch for the 50th time. Check out your card...it says it on there.

Virtualizard

mrc32,

Thanks. I didn't notice the date. That's pretty cool. I guess my original post was "relatively timely".

JEB.