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Albert Leonard Rosen
Cleveland Indians
Third Base
Born: February 29, 1924, Spartanburg, SC
Signed: Signed by the Cleveland Indians as an amateur free agent before the 1942 season
Major League Teams: Cleveland Indians 1947-1956
Died: March 13, 2015, Rancho Mirage, CA (age 91)
Al Rosen enjoyed six full, solid seasons with the Indians before back and leg injuries shortened his playing career. Rosen was one of the most feared sluggers in the American League in the early 1950s, and his monster season in 1953 earned him unanimous MVP honors. That season Rosen hit .336 with 43 home runs and 145 RBIs, both totals topping the league. He missed winning the triple crown by a percentage point as Mickey Vernon hit .337 for the Senators. Rosen was named to four All-Star teams and played in two World Series with the Indians - beating the Dodgers in 1948 and losing to the Giants in 1954.
Following his playing days, Rosen served in the front offices for the Yankees (1978-1979), Astros (1980-1985) and Giants (1985-1992), winning Executive of the Year honors in 1989.
Building the Set
December 6, 1998 in Raleigh, NC - Card #171
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| Exposition Center at N.C. State Fairgrounds in Raleigh |
The Card
This is the first card to appear for the Cleveland Indians, the last team to make an appearance in the 1956 Topps set. Rosen includes his nickname "Flip" within his facsimile autograph on the front of the card.
The back of the card states that Rosen's birth date is March 1, 1925, when in actuality his birth date was February 29, 1924. He's one of 14 players in Major League history to have been born on Leap Day, the latest of whom was Stefan Crichton, born in 1992. Crichton pitched in 8 games for the 2017 Orioles.
1956 Season
Rosen was only 32 years old in 1956, but this was to be his last season in the Majors. He was limited to 121 games due to injuries, hitting .267 with 15 home runs and 61 RBIs. Al Smith (#105) took over at third base for Rosen in 1957.
Phillies Connection
In 1989, as General Manager of the Giants, Rosen helped engineer the trade that sent Steve Bedrosian to the Giants from the Phillies in exchange for Dennis Cook, Charlie Hayes and Terry Mulholland. Mulholland would go on to be a key starting pitcher for the Phillies' improbable N.L. championship team in 1993.
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First Mainstream Card: 1950 Bowman #232
First Topps Card: 1951 Topps Red Backs #35
Last Topps Card (as a player): 1956 Topps #35
Most Recent Topps Card (post-career): 1975 Topps #191 (with Roy Campanella)
Most Recent Mainstream Card: 2010 Topps Heritage Real One Autographs #ROA-AR
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (8): 1951-1956, 1961, 1975
143 - Rosen non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 2/10/19.
Sources:
Baseball Reference
Beckett Database
SABR
The Trading Card Database
In some cases, the first and last cards listed above are subjective and chosen by me if multiple cards were released within the same year. Most recent mainstream card may also be subjective and does not include extremely low serial numbered cards, buybacks or cut autograph cards.
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Order Collected: #236 Kansas City Athletics Team Card / #45 Gus Zernial - Kansas City Athletics
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