Bill Dillman (#466)

Bill Dillman had cards in each Topps set from 1967-70. His rookie card was the only 1967 Rookie Stars card with red borders. (All the other 42 Rookie Stars cards had yellow borders.) In addition to having Orioles' cards in the '68 and '69 sets, his final card in the 1970 set shows him with the Cardinals.

I was all ready to write about Dillman being part of the 1967-69 wave of Orioles' pitchers (along with Tom Phoebus, Jim Hardin, and Dave Leonhard) that followed the 1964-66 wave of Dave McNally, Wally Bunker, and Jim Palmer, but when I looked him up in Baseball-Reference.com today, I was surprised to see that he only pitched 32 games for the O's, all in 1967 (when their "main" pitchers were all out with sore arms). 

 

The oddball "red rookie card" in the 1967 set:

In 1968, McNally rebounded to win 22 games, while Hardin and Phoebus won 18 and 15 respectively. With rookie Dave Leonhard joining the team that year, and Bunker sharing the #5 starter job with Gene Brabender, there was no room on the roster for Dillman, so he spent the next 2 seasons pitching for their AAA Rochester club. (It's surprising then that he had a card in the 1969 set.)

 

After the 1969 season he was purchased by the Cardinals, so Topps gave him one more chance. However, early in the 1970 season (having not played for the Cardinals) he was traded to the Expos for Carroll Sembera, and pitched in 18 games for Montreal from May to July, then it was back to triple-A for the rest of that season and all of 1971. 

 

Dillman finished out his career in 1972 with the Mets’ AAA team. 

 

Don Shaw (#521)

Don Shaw pitched briefly for the Mets, Expos, and Cardinals from 1967-72. 

 

He was signed by the Mets in 1965, and made his major-league debut in April 1967. Don appeared in 40 games (all in relief) in his rookie season, and was the only lefthander in the bullpen.

Shaw spent most of 1968 in triple-A, with 5 of his 7 MLB games coming in September. 

 

He was selected by the Expos in the expansion draft, and pitched 34 games in relief, 1 start, and 7 games in triple-A. 

 

Don was in the minors for all of 1970, moving to the Cardinals’ organization in May. He returned to the majors in 1971, pitching 45 games out of the Cardinals’ bullpen. 

 

Shaw made 8 appearances for St Louis in 1972, then was traded to the Athletics in mid-May. After 3 games with the A’s, he was sent down for the remainder of the season. 

 

The following spring he was traded to the Tigers, but played all of 1973 in the minors before retiring. 

 

Russ Gibson (#297)

Russ Gibson was the Red Sox' starting catcher for 1968-69, basically keeping the gear warm until the arrival of Carlton Fisk.

Russ was signed by the Red Sox in 1957. After ten seasons in the minors, he finally made his major-league debut (at age 27) in 1967, starting 13 of the team's first 17 games. He soon settled in as the Sox' #3 catcher, only making 37 starts behind Mike Ryan (74 starts) and the Bob Tillman / Elston Howard tandem (51 starts).

After the off-season trade of Ryan to the Phillies, Gibson shared the #1 catcher job with Howard, who was in his final season. Each started 60+ games, with Russ Nixon picking up the scraps at #3.

Gibson rose to the top of the pile in 1969, his last season with Boston. He started 78 games (mostly in the first half). The Red Sox were also working rookie Jerry Moses into the lineup, along with Tom Satriano, who was acquired from the Angels in mid-June.

Three days before the 1970 season he was purchased by the Giants, and spent the next 2 years as a little-used backup to Dick Dietz. In 1972 the Giants used rookie Dave Rader behind the plate. Gibson only played 4 games in May and one in September for the Giants, spending much of the '72 season in triple-A.

He passed away in 2008 at age 69.

Jim Hardin (#222)

Jim Hardin pitched for the Orioles from 1967 to 1971. Early-on, he and Tom Phoebus backfilled a rotation decimated by injuries to Jim Palmer and Wally Bunker. After a few years, Palmer recovered and returned to the Orioles’ rotation, and Mike Cuellar was acquired from the Astros. Having served his purpose, Hardin moved on to the Yankees.

Hardin was signed by the Mets, and played in their farm system from 1962-1965. After the ’65 season the Orioles acquired him in the minor-league draft.

He made his Orioles’ debut in June 1967, after the above mentioned injuries decimated the starting rotation (also including Dave McNally).

Jim was 8-3 as a rookie, and won 18 games in 1968 as the O’s #2 starter behind a fully-recovered McNally, who won 22 games.

He slipped to 6-7 in 1969, but by then was the #5 starter behind Cuellar (23 wins), McNally (20), Palmer (16) and Phoebus (14).

Hardin pitched one more full season with the Birds (1970), and although they won the World Series, it was a down season for him personally, posting a 6-5 record. He and Phoebus (5-5) were the forgotten members of the rotation, as the Big Three all won 20+ games and made 40 starts each.

Jim was traded to the Yankees in May 1971, and after another bad season was released the following April. He was picked up by the Braves a few weeks later and pitched 26 games (mostly in relief) in his final season.

After his playing career, Hardin became a small aircraft pilot. He was killed in 1991 when his 6-seat plane crashed in Key West, FL. He was 47.

Mike Marshall (#201)

Mike Marshall was a relief pitcher for 9 teams from 1968 to 1981, most notably for the Expos and Dodgers.

He was signed by the Phillies (I didn’t know that until today) in 1960, and played in their farm system as a SHORTSTOP (also didn’t know that) through the 1964 season. He switched over to pitching at the start of the 1965 season, and after 1 year was sold to the Tigers. D’oh! Why did the Phillies let go of so many good young players back then? 

After a year on the Tigers’ farm, he made his major-league debut in May 1967. Mike pitched in 37 games (all in relief) and fashioned a team-leading 1.98 ERA as a rookie. What did he get as a reward? He spent all of the 1968 season in triple A, posting a 15-9 record with 190 strikeouts, but didn’t even get a September call-up to help the eventual world champs! (I also didn’t realize until today that he didn’t pitch for the Tigers in ’68. That makes 3 things I’ve learned today. I’m tired now!) 

Apparently the high-riding Tigers didn’t need the services of this promising young hurler, and left him unprotected in the expansion draft. As a further insult, he was the FIFTY-THIRD pick in the draft, by the Seattle Pilots. Marshall played all of 1969 for the expansion Pilots, his only season as a starting pitcher. He also hit .259 (7 for 24), a higher average than all but 3 of the every-day batters.

He was sold to the Astros after the season, but by mid-June 1970 was traded to the Expos for outfielder Don Bosch.

Mike played for the Expos for the next 3 ½ seasons. The “light” switched on during the 1971 season, as Marshall began a 6-year period of unusually high workload. He led the NL in games pitched from 1972-74, and in games finished from 1971-1974. In 1973 (his last with the Expos), he appeared in a phenomenal 92 games, finishing 73 of them, while collecting an NL-best 31 saves. He also was the Cy Young Award runner-up.

After the 1973 season he was traded to the Dodgers for outfielder Willie Davis. (Amazing, because he was at the peak of his career, while Davis was in decline.) As if 92 games weren’t enough to wear a man out, in 1974 Marshall pitched in ONE HUNDRED AND SIX GAMES! He again led the NL in games finished (83) and saves (21), and won the CY Young Award that season. He also made his first of 2 All-Star teams that year, the other coming in 1975.

He came back to earth in 1975, pitching a modest 58 games. In June 1976 he was traded to the Braves for Lee Lacy and pitcher Elias Sosa. (I guess the Dodgers wanted to unload him before he broke down from over-use! If so, that worked out for them. After pitching 54 games in 1976, he only made 16 appearances in 1977.)

After a short time with Atlanta, the Rangers purchased his contract at the end of April 1977, but he played only that 1 season for Texas.

He was granted free agency after the 1977 season, and was without a team until the following May, when the Twins signed him. Marshall made a comeback with the Twins, pitching in 54 games in 1978 and an AL-leading 90 games in 1979. He also led the league with 32 saves in 1979.

He was released in June 1980, and more than a year later was picked up by the Mets in August 1981, but was released after the season.

Oddly enough, the record shows he pitched 1 inning for the Angels’ AAA team in 1983. Seems like a bad idea, resulting in a 60.75 ERA.

Manny Sanguillen (#251)

This is Manny Sanguillen's rookie card. He rated a whole card to himself, by virtue of a second-half call-up in 1967. (Hey Topps, where was Reggie Jackson's 1968 card?)

Manny had a card in 1968, but not major-league playing time. He spent the entire season in the minors, then returned in 1969 as the starting catcher.

Sanguillen was signed by the Pirates in late 1964, then played 2 seasons in A ball before jumping up to triple-A for 1967.

When Pirates' regular catcher Jerry May went down with an injury in late July, Sanguillen was called up and started 14 of the next 24 games behind the plate, alternating with aging veteran Jim Pagliaroni. When May returned in mid-August, Pags was shelved for the remainder of the season, with Sanguillen backing up May.

Manny spent the entire 1968 season back in triple-A "getting his playing time", while journeymen types like Chris Cannizzaro and Gary Kolb were retained as May's backups.

Sanguillen returned in 1969, splitting the catching assignments with May for awhile, but by late-May Manny had taken over, ending up with 107 starts to Jerry's 50 starts. Except for the first half of 1973 (when Manny started 53 of the first 54 games in right field, in an attempt to replace the late Roberto Clemente), Sanguillen was the Pirates' regular catcher until September 1976, when he gave way to Duffy Dyer and Ed Ott.

Manny was an all-star in '71, '72, and '75, and hit a career-high 12 home runs in 1973. He also collected 11 hits in the 1971 World Series, good for a .379 batting average.

After the 1976 season, he was traded to the Athletics for manager (yes, manager) Chuck Tanner. Manny returned to Pittsburgh after only one season in Oakland, with the Pirates using him as a pinch-hitter and occasional backup first baseman for the next 3 seasons.

Traded to the Indians after the 1980 season, he was released in spring training the following year. Manny sat out the 1981 season, then played in the Mexican League in 1982.

Bobby Etheridge (#126)

Third baseman Bobby Etheridge joins his Giants' teammate Dick Dietz on the 1967 Topps All-Rookie team.

Etheridge was signed by the Giants in 1964, and played in their farm system from 1964-68. He joined the Giants in mid-July 1967, and played 40 games in his rookie season, mostly in July and August. (In late August, Jim Ray Hart moved back in to 3rd base from left field, and Etheridge rarely played in September.) Somehow, Bobby got the all-rookie nod, over other rookie 3rd basemen like Aurelio Rodriguez and Sal Bando.

Bobby was back in the minors for all of 1968, then returned to the Giants for the entire 1969 season, this time playing in 56 games (with 34 starts at 3B).

That was it for Etheridge, both as a Giant and as a major-league player. After the season, he was traded to the Padres along with pitcher Ron Herbel and catcher Bob Barton for pitcher Frank Reberger.

Bobby played in the minors though the 1973 season, with the Padres', Cardinals', and Mets' organizations.

Rod Carew (#80)

I've already posted 1st baseman Lee May's all-rookie card, so let's skip ahead to 2nd base.

Rod Carew checks in as the 2nd baseman on Topps' 1967 All-Rookie team (which makes sense, since he was the AL Rookie of the Year). This was my first Carew card, as to this day Rod's 1967 rookie card is one of 4 cards I need to complete that set.

Carew was born in the Panama Canal Zone in 1945, but grew up in New York City. He was signed by the Twins in 1964, and played a half-season in rookie ball in '64, then 2 seasons in class-A ball before making his major-league debut at the start of the 1967 season. (Carew hit .303 in his 1st season in class A. I wonder why the Twins didn't promote him to double A for 1966. Maybe it was his 28 errors at 2nd base?)

Rod assumed the starting 2nd base job on opening day 1967, and started 131 games there (missing 17 consecutive games in mid-August). Carew was a slam-dunk for Rookie of the Year, getting 19 of the possible 20 votes (Red Sox' center fielder Reggie Smith received 1 vote). He also made his first of 18 consecutive all-star teams.

Carew played his first 12 seasons with the Twins. During that time, he led the AL in batting 7 times, and hit over .330 in 2 other seasons.

He switched to 1st base in 1976, and continued his torrid hitting. Rod was the AL MVP in 1977, while leading the league in runs, hits, triples, batting average, on-base percentage, and OPS. He also collected 100 walks that season.

In February 1979, Carew was traded to the Angels for pitchers Paul Hartzell and Brad Havens, catcher Dave Engle, and outfielder Ken Landreaux. His league-leading days were over, although he hit over .300 in his first 5 seasons in California, including .339 in 1983.

Injuries limited him to 93 games in 1984, although he hit .295 that season. Carew's final season was 1985, the only year he didn't make the all-star team.

Rod appeared in the post-season 4 times: '69 and '70 with the Twins, and '79 and '82 with the Angels.

He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1991, with 90% of the vote.

Tom Seaver (#45)

Tom Seaver was the right-handed pitcher on Topps’ all-rookie team in 1967.

Seaver was drafted by the Dodgers in June 1965 but did not sign. He was then drafted by the Braves the following January, but the pick was voided by the commissioner on a technicality involving his college playing status. The Mets won a lottery (which also included the Phillies and Indians) and signed Seaver in April 1966.

After 1 season in the minors, “Tom Terrific” debuted with the Mets in April 1967, starting the 2nd game of the season, and going on to start 34 games and pitch 251 innings (leading the team in both categories). With 16 wins, he was the only Mets’ pitcher with double-digit wins, and was named the NL Rookie of the Year.

Seaver spearheaded the Mets' rise to respectability, after spending their first 7 seasons as the league's doormat. He was an all-star in 11 of his first 12 seasons (only missing in 1974). He also won the Cy Young award in ’69, ’73, and ’75. Tom was a 5-time 20-game winner, and led the NL in wins in 1969 and 1975. Seaver led the NL in strikeouts 5 times and ERA 3 times. All of the above stats were as Met.

During the 1977 season, he was traded to the Reds and continued winning through the 1981 season. After an off-year in 1982, he returned to the Mets for 1983 (another sub-par season), then had 2 good years for the White Sox (1984-85) before wrapping up his career in 1986 with the ChiSox and BoSox.

Seaver pitched in the post-season 3 times: ’69 and ’73 with the Mets, and 1979 with the Reds.

Final Card: Bill Denehy

The last card in the 1968 "final cards" series...

This is the only solo card for pitcher Bill Denehy (#526). He also appeared on a Mets Rookies card in 1967 - a very pricey card, due to his cardmate Tom Seaver.

Denehy was signed by the Mets in 1965, and was a starting pitcher in their system for 2 seasons.

He made his major-league debut on 4/16/1967, but after going 1-7 in 15 games (8 starts), he was sent down in late June. After the 1967 season, Bill was traded to the Senators for MANAGER Gil Hodges.

Denehy only pitched 2 innings for the Nats in '68, but was 9-10 in 25 starts in the minors. He spent most of 1969-73 pitching in the minors for the Indians, Mets (again), Tigers, Yankees, Phillies, White Sox, and Red Sox.

 In 1971, Bill spent all but the month of April pitching for the Tigers, appearing in 31 games (1 start).

Final Card: Tony Pierce

Here is the only solo card for Athletics' pitcher Tony Pierce (#38). He also appeared in a late-series Athletics Rookie Stars card in the 1967 set.

Pierce was signed by the Kansas City Athletics in 1964, and was a starting pitcher in their minor-league system for 3 seasons. Tony advanced slowly, pitching in Rookie and A ball in '64, repeating A ball in '65, and moving up to AA in '66.

After compiling a 13-8 record with AA Mobile in 1966, Pierce skipped over triple-A, jumping up to Kansas City to start the 1967 season. Tony worked out of the bullpen, where he and Paul Lindblad were the only lefties on the entire staff. Besides his 43 relief appearances, he also started 6 games (including all 5 of his games in September).

When the Athletics moved to Oakland in 1968, Pierce returned to the bullpen. He only pitched in 17 games that season, the last on June 21st. I suspect he came down with arm problems, since he never played in the majors or minors again.

Final Card: Clarence Jones

This is the first and last card for Clarence Jones (#506). For the second consecutive post, we are saying goodbye to a short-time Cubs' first baseman.

Jones was signed by the Phillies in June 1959. After finishing that season in the Phillies' organization, he was out of baseball in 1960. Clarence returned in 1961, and spent the next 5 seasons in the Dodgers' farm system.

After the 1965 season, he was drafted by the Cubs, and finally made it up to triple-A during the 1966 season.

Jones made his major-league debut in April 1967 with the Cubs. He played in 53 games that year, mostly as a pinch-hitter, but also 2 dozen games in right field and a dozen as Banks' backup at 1st base. He also spent mid-May to mid-July back in the minors.

The following season, he was back in triple-A for most of the season, only playing 5 games with the Cubs in September. After the '68 season he was dealt to the Reds, but spent the 1969 season at triple-A Indianapolis.

Jones then played in Japan from 1970 through 1977.

Gary Nolan (#196)

This is Gary Nolan's rookie card. I've always wondered why he wasn't included on a Reds Rookies card in the 1967 set. Checking his minor-league stats tonight, I found that he was the Reds' #1 pick in the 1966 draft, and played that season in the class-A Northern League. Ok, Topps probably doesn't rush to include players with only low-level minor-league experience on their cards, I get that.

But, he made the Reds' starting rotation from the beginning of the '67 season, struck out 12 Dodgers in his 2nd big-league game, and by the end of April, had pitched 4 games, striking out 33 while walking only four. Didn't Topps consider bumping someone off a yet-to-be-issued 7th-series "NL Rookies" card in favor of Nolan? What about the dubious Norm Gigon?

Gary finished his rookie season with a 14-8 record over 226 innings, with 206 strikeouts and 62 walks. He came in 3rd in the NL Rookie of the Year voting behind Tom Seaver and Cardinals' pitcher Dick Hughes.

Although he mostly played for the Reds in '68 and '69, he spent some time in the minors (including a stint in single-A in 1968) with arm issues. Nolan was back to full speed in 1970, going 18-7 in 250 innings as the Reds' ace, on a staff that also featured 20-game winner Jim Merritt.

1971 and 1972 were also fine years for Gary, as he again sat on top of the rotation, along with rookies Don Gullett ('71) and Ross Grimsley ('72). In 1972 Nolan compiled a 15-5 record and a 1.99 ERA, although mid-season injuries forced him to miss some time, including the all-star game. He missed almost all of the next 2 seasons with injuries, pitching 2 games for the Reds in '73 and 2 games in the minors in '74.

Gary staged a comeback in 1975, compiling identical 15-9 records in '75 and '76, and pitched in his 3rd and 4th World Series. After getting off to a slow start in 1977, he was traded to the Angels in June. Injuries cropped up again, limiting him to only 5 games with the Angels.

California released him in January 1978, and the next month he was picked up by the Brewers, who also released him a month later, ending his 10 year career.

Danny Frisella (#191)

This is the rookie card for Danny Frisella, a relief pitcher for the Mets and others from 1967 to 1976.

Frisella was signed by the Mets in June 1966. During his time in the Mets' minor-league system (1966-1970) he was a starting pitcher. He compiled a record of 11-5 during the first half of 1967 (in A and AAA ball), and then made his major-league debut on July 27th, starting 11 of his 14 games during his rookie season.

In 1968, he started 7 games in triple-A, and appeared in 19 games with the Mets, this year mostly in relief. Danny spent most of 1969 in the minors, so he missed all the "Amazin' Mets" hoopla. (I don't know if he was on the post-season roster. The Mets only used 6 pitchers in the NLCS, and 6 pitchers in the World Series, and he wasn't one of them.)


Frisella started 13 games for the Mets' triple-A team in 1970, and rejoined the Mets' bullpen, where he appeared in 30 games as the setup man for closers Ron Taylor and Tug McGraw. He won 8 games in each of 1970 and 1971, and became the right-handed closer in 1971, leading the team with 12 saves.

In 1972, his record slipped to 5-8, and his saves dropped to 9, as lefty Tug McGraw picked up most of the team's saves that season. After the season, Danny was traded to the Braves (with pitcher Gary Gentry) for 2nd baseman Felix Millan and pitcher George Stone.

Frisella spent 2 seasons in the Braves' bullpen, and was traded to the Padres for outfielder Cito Gaston in the off-season.

He was the Padres' closer in 1975, and although he compiled a 1-6 record, he led the team with 9 saves. After only one season, he was traded to the Cardinals on April 8, 1976. Two months later, after only 22 innings pitched, he was shipped to Milwaukee, where he became the Brewers' closer, again leading his team in saves.

On January 1, 1977 Danny Frisella was killed in a dune buggy accident in Arizona at age 30.

Here is a message board on the Ultimate Mets Database site, where fans (and Frisella's widow) have posted their comments.
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