 |
 |
Topps included full team photos in its baseball card set for the first time in 1956, having previously experimented with team cards in a limited edition 1951 stand-alone set.
February 7, 2007 in Voorhees, NJ - Card #291
This is one of six cards I purchased at the Echelon Mall Baseball Card show in February 2007, spending $70 total, including $20 on this Orioles team card, which was probably too much. At the time, Doug was a few days away from turning two months old and we had just celebrated my Dad's 63rd birthday a few weeks earlier.
I think Jenna had been out shopping on this day when she texted (or called) me to let me know there was a baseball card show being held at what used to be the Echelon Mall. The former mall has since been converted as part of the Voorhees Town Center.
The Card
The St. Louis Browns moved to Baltimore and were renamed the Orioles after the 1953 season. A question I often ask myself is if I had been born a die-hard Orioles fan, would I go back and collect all Browns baseball cards up through 1953? I'm assuming I would as those Browns players still have a connection to the Orioles franchise today. The existing Orioles franchise actually began its life as the Milwaukee Brewers in 1901 before moving to St. Louis in 1902 where they'd play the next 52 seasons.
The back of this team card goes into the history of baseball in Baltimore prior to the Browns moving to Maryland. The original Baltimore Orioles played in the American Association and the National League between 1882 and 1899. The players mentioned on the back of this card were members of that original Orioles team - Dan Brouthers (1894-1895), Hugh Jennings (1893-1899), Willie Keeler (1894-1898), John McGraw (1891-1899) and Wilbert (not Wilbur) Robinson (1890-1899).
Two of the charter members of the American League in 1902 were the Milwaukee Brewers, who moved to Baltimore as mentioned above, and the second version of the Baltimore Orioles who would become the New York Highlanders or Americans between 1903 and 1913, and eventually the New York Yankees. McGraw and Robinson played for both the first and second versions of the Orioles. The third version of the Orioles was a minor league team active between 1903 and 1953. If you're keeping score at home, the current Orioles team is the fourth version of the franchise overall.
|
|
Here are the subjects featured on the card, including a listing of their 1956 Topps card if they had one. The photo was taken in Memorial Stadium after July 30, 1955, as that's the date the Orioles received Eddie Lopat in a trade from the Yankees for Jim McDonald. Lopat is present in the second row of the photo. Former Whiz Kid Eddie Waitkus was released by the team on July 25th, but he's not present in the team photo.
|
|
|
Most Home Runs - 257 in 1996Most Double Plays - 191 in 1999
Games Won - 109 in 1969
Most Consecutive Games Won - 14 in 1916 and 1973
Additional Pennant Winning Teams - 1966, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1973, 1974, 1979, 1983, 1997, 2014
Additional Championship Teams - 1966, 1970, 1983
Orioles Team Set
1956 Season
In their third year in Baltimore, manager Richards guided the team to a 69-85 record, finishing in sixth place in the American League. It was the new team's best finish since moving from St. Louis and they'd reach the .500 mark in 1957. Left fielder Bob Nieman could be considered the team MVP as he hit .322 with 12 home runs and 64 RBIs. Triandos led the team in both home runs with 21 and RBIs with 88 and he hit .279.
The pitching was fairly lackluster with Moore leading the team with 12 wins and a 4.18 ERA. Connie Johnson was 9-10 with a 3.43 ERA and Zuverink led the team with 16 saves.
Third base prospect Brooks Robinson had been a September call-up in 1955 and in 1956 he appeared in 15 games with the Orioles, batting .227 (10 for 44) and hitting his first home run.
Orioles Cards That Never Were
There are a number of good options here for 1956 Topps cards that never were:
- Paul Richards (manager) - Richards was also serving as the team's GM and he'd manage the Orioles between 1955 and 1961.
- Dick Williams (center field) - Williams appeared in 87 games for the Orioles in 1956, but he'd need to wait until 1957 for his first Topps Orioles card. He'd go on to have a Hall of Fame career as a manager.
- Tito Francona (right field) - Francona's rookie card is in the 1957 Topps set. He appeared in 139 games for the 1956 Orioles.
- Hoot Evers (outfield) - 1956 was to be the last year of Evers' 12-year career. His only Topps flagship card is found in the 1952 Topps set.
- Wayne Causey (third base) - Appearing in 68 games in 1955 and 53 in 1956, Causey wouldn't appear on any baseball cards until he joined the Athletics in 1961.
- Brooks Robinson (third base) - The future Hall of Famer's rookie card can be found in the 1957 Topps set.
The late, great Bob Lemke created card #351 for Robinson and he posted it to his blog back in November 2015. I'm reproducing here, but please head over to Bob Lemke's Blog to view his wonderful collection of cards that never were.
 |
 |
There are quite a few other players who appeared with the Orioles in 1956, but appear in the 1956 Topps set with other teams: regular third baseman and future Hall of Famer George Kell (#195 - White Sox), regular left fielder Nieman (#267 - White Sox), outfielder Joe Frazier (#141 - Cardinals), infielder Grady Hatton (#26 - Red Sox), starting pitcher Connie Johnson (#326 - White Sox), and relievers Billy Loes (#270 - Dodgers), Johnny Schmitz (#298 - Red Sox), Sandy Consuegra (#265 - White Sox) and Babe Birrer (#84 - Tigers).
That's a wrap on the first series from the 1956 Topps set. I've added a 1st Series Review page here, summarizing the first 100 cards from the set.
Sources
Baseball Reference
Previous Card / Next Card
Order Collected: #90 Cincinnati Redlegs Team Card / #177 Hank Bauer - New York Yankees
No comments:
Post a Comment