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Raymond Hayes Crone
Milwaukee Braves
Pitcher
Bats: Right Throws: Right Height: 6'2" Weight: 165
Born: August 7, 1931, Memphis, TN
Signed: Signed by the Boston Braves as an amateur free agent, July 7, 1949
Major League Teams: Milwaukee Braves 1954-1957; New York Giants 1957; San Francisco Giants 1958
Ray Crone pitched in parts of five seasons with the Braves and Giants, earning a career record of 30-30 with a 3.87 ERA over 137 games, with 61 starts. With the Braves in the mid-1950s, he was often an overlooked fourth or fifth starter, pitching in the same rotation as Warren Spahn (#10), Lew Burdette (#219) and Bob Buhl (#244). He enjoyed his finest season in 1956 (see below) and in June 1957, the Braves traded him with Danny O'Connell (#272) and Bobby Thomson (#257) to the Giants for Red Schoendienst (#165). Crone pitched briefly for the Giants following the team's move to San Francisco in 1958.
Following three more seasons in the minors with the Tigers, Athletics and Colt .45s organizations, Crone retired in 1961. Following his playing days, Crone served as a scout for the Expos, Orioles, Padres and Diamondbacks.
Building the Set
December 2, 2000 from Raleigh, NC - Card #207
I went nuts and bought 16 cards for our 1956 Topps set on this day at the Sports Card & NASCAR Collectibles Show in Raleigh. My records show the 16 cards set me back $55 which I would have considered to be a small fortune back then. I hadn't yet moved back north yet, so I was still living in Raleigh at this time planning for my eventual escape. I would have provided my Dad with an updated checklist following this show as he was back in New Jersey.
The Card
This is Crone's third appearance in a Topps set, with his 1954 rookie card using a different photo than his 1955 and 1956 cards. The no-hitter referenced in the middle panel on the back of the card came on August 20th against the St. Paul Saints while Crone was pitching for the Toledo Sox. It was a seven-inning no-hitter as it was the first game of a double header.
His first Braves start came on May 23, 1954, prior to him being sent back down to Toledo. Crone threw 10 innings and the information presented by Topps on the back of the card is actually incorrect. Crone did come to bat in the 10th inning, but the Braves had already taken a 4-2 lead on RBIs from Andy Pafko (#312) and Hank Aaron (#31). Crone grounded to third to end the inning. However, Crone did hit a ninth inning single to drive home Howie Pollet (#262) and give the Braves a 1-0 lead at the time.
1956 Season
Crone went 11-10 for the Braves, appearing in 35 games (21 starts) with an ERA of 3.87. On May 26th, Crone earned a complete-game 11-inning win when the Braves outlasted the Reds to win 3-1. He allowed one run on seven hits while striking out four, lowering his season ERA to 1.80 in the process. Heading into the final weekend of the season, the Braves were in first place by a half game. But they would lose two of three to the Cardinals and the Dodgers swept the Pirates to win the N.L. pennant. Crone's roommate during the 1956 season was Braves' outfielder Chuck Tanner (#69).
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First Mainstream Card: 1954 Topps #206
First Topps Card: 1954 Topps #206
Last Topps Card: 1958 Topps #272
Most Recent Mainstream Card: 2007 Topps Heritage Real One Autographs #ROA-RC
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (5): 1954-1958
19 - Crone non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 11/23/19.
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: #245 Billy Goodman - Boston Red Sox / #93 George Susce, Jr. - Boston Red Sox
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