Earl Wilson (#160)

Here we see Earl Wilson, coming off his first full season with the Tigers, and about to embark on a season culminating in a World Series championship!

Wilson was signed by the Red Sox way back in 1953. He pitched 4 seasons in the low minors, then lost the ’57 and ’58 seasons while in military service. He returned to the minors (triple-A) in 1959, but also played 9 games for the Sox during the 2nd half of 1959, and 13 games in the 2nd half of 1960. In 1959, Wilson became the first black pitcher to play for Boston.

After a full season back in triple-A in 1961, Wilson made the Red Sox for good at the start of the 1962 season. From '62 to '65, Earl averaged 12 wins a season, as he and Bill Monbouquette formed a 1-2 punch in the starting rotation.

With the emergence of Jim Lonborg and others, both Wilson (age 30) and Monbouquette (29) were deemed past their prime, and were dealt to the Tigers in separate deals. Monbo was traded in December ’65 for a bag of beans, and Wilson, the following June for an aging Don Demeter. Wilson was 5-5 at the time of the trade, but went on a 13-6 tear with the Tigers, to finish up at 18-11, good for 3rd best in the AL. His 200 strikeouts was also 3rd best.

In 1967 he won 22 games, tieing him with Lonborg for the most victories. The Red Sox lost the ’67 World Series by 1 game. If they had held onto Wilson, the Series outcome could have been different.

In 1968 and 1969, Earl settled back into the 12 to 13 wins bracket he was in from 1962-66. He was the Tigers’ #3 starting pitcher (behind Denny McLain and Mickey Lolich) during their World Champions season, and started game #3 in the Series. (After falling behind in the Series , the Tigers came back with their top 2 starters for games #6 and #7, winning both.)

1970 was Wilson’s last season. With his record at 4-6, he was sold to the Padres in mid-July. After a lackluster 1-6 showing with San Diego, he was released in January 1971.

Wilson died from a heart attack in April 2005, at age 70.

AL Pitching Leaders (#8, #10, #12)

Here are the 1968 cards showing the previous season's American League pitching leaders in ERA, victories, and strikeouts. Like many of the mid-1960s' AL pitching leader cards, the Indians and White Sox are well represented.


Joel Horlen and Gary Peters (both frequent guests on the AL ERA leaders cards) gave the Chisox a great 1-2 punch.  Their teammate Tommy John just missed being included on this card by a 0.10 margin!  The Indians' Sonny Siebert rounds out the top three, which he also did two years earlier.

The ERA leaders cards also include a "more than 75 innings" category (primarily for relievers). Leading that group was 44-year-old Hoyt Wilhelm, with a miniscule 1.31 ERA.

Having his career year in 1967, Jim Lonborg topped AL pitchers with 22 victories. Actually, Jim shared the lead with Tigers' pitcher (and former Red Sox teammate) Earl Wilson. Wilson was traded to the Tigers during the 1966 season, and finished among the top 3 that season.

It seems like if they had kept Wilson, he could have made the difference in the 1967 World Series, which Boston lost in 7 games. The only other 20-game winner in the AL in '67 was Dean Chance, in his first season with the Twins.

Here's Lonborg again, edging out Sam McDowell by only 10 strikeouts. McDowell led the AL in strikeouts in '65, '66, '68, '69, and '70. Dean Chance finished 3rd here also, with Topps using the same photo as above. Rounding out the 200+ strikeout club were two more Twins, an Indian, and the White Sox' Peters.

Click on the "league leaders" label below to see all the other cards for this year.