#222 Dave Philley - Baltimore Orioles

David Earl Philley
Baltimore Orioles
Outfield

Bats:  Both  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'0"  Weight:  188
Born:  May 16, 1920, Paris, TX
Acquired:  Purchased by the Chicago White Sox from the Shreveport Sports of the Texas League, July 18, 1941
Major League Teams:  Chicago White Sox 1941, 1946-1951; Philadelphia Athletics 1951-1953; Cleveland Indians 1954-1955; Baltimore Orioles 1955-1956; Chicago White Sox 1957; Detroit Tigers 1957; Philadelphia Phillies 1958-1960; San Francisco Giants 1960; Baltimore Orioles 1960-1961; Boston Red Sox 1962

Died:  March 15, 2012, Paris, TX (age 91)

Journeyman outfielder Dave Philley spent part of 18 seasons in the majors with eight different teams, and that's after having missed three full years while serving during World War II.  With a strong outfield arm, Philley led all outfielders in assists three times (1948, 1949, 1953).  His best seasons came in the early 1950s as he reached career highs in home runs (14) and RBIs (80) with the White Sox in 1950, and strung together seven consecutive seasons between 1947 and 1953 with at least 20 doubles.  With the Athletics in 1953, he reached career highs in batting average (.303), hits (188) and doubles (30).  Philley's sole postseason appearance came in the 1954 World Series with the Indians, where he was used mostly as a late inning defensive replacement.  With the Orioles in 1955, Philley won the team's batting title with a .299 mark and was named the club's MVP.

1958 Hires #12

Philley continued to move around during the final phase of his career, playing for seven different teams between 1956 and 1962, including second stints with the White Sox and Orioles.  He developed into an excellent pinch-hitter, collecting 18 pinch-hits for the Phillies in 1958, including eight in a row at the end of the season.  Philley earned a lifetime average of .300 as a pinch-hitter, collecting 92 pinch-hits in 307 at-bats.  He retired following the 1962 season with a .270 average in 1,904 games, exactly 1,700 hits and 101 stolen bases.  Philley briefly managed in the Houston system following his retirement, and also spent time with the Red Sox as a scout.

Building the Set

Summer of 1983 or 1984 in Millville, NJ - Card #27
This was one of the Original 44, and I re-told the story of how my Dad and I started collecting this set with the Early Wynn (#187) post, back in January.  Seven of the Original 44 came from series one, with 11 coming from series two, and this Philley card is the ninth of 16 from series three.

The Card / Orioles Team Set
Philley appeared in both Bowman and Topps sets in 1954, and then was completely left out of both sets in 1955.  He's shown here swinging a bat in Yankee Stadium, and it's possible he's wearing an Indians uniform that had been updated by a Topps artist to look like an Orioles uniform.  On the back, his team-leading average from 1955 is highlighted, and Topps is incorrect in their prediction that the frequently moving Philley was in Baltimore to stay.  By the time collectors were finding this card in packs, he was most likely already back with the White Sox.

1956 Season

Philley began the year with the Orioles and was their opening day right fielder.  He'd play in just 32 games for Baltimore before the team swapped him to the White Sox with Jim Wilson (#171) for Mike Fornieles, Connie Johnson (#326), George Kell (#195) and Bob Nieman (#267).  In his second stint with Chicago, Philley appeared in 86 games overall, seeing time at first base, right field and left field.  He batted .265 with four home runs and 47 RBIs for the White Sox as the team finished in third place in the American League.

Phillies Career
On December 11, 1957, the Tigers sold Philley to the Phillies, finally bringing together the player and the team that bore the same name.  He was acquired specifically to be a veteran bat off the bench, although he did make 17 starts at first base and 24 starts in right field, occasionally backing up Ed Bouchee or Wally Post (#158).  He broke his nose on May 17th after diving into the stands while playing first base and trying to catch a foul ball.  He spent all of 1959 with the club in the same pinch-hitting and back-up role, and returned for 14 games in 1960 before being sold to the Giants on May 12, 1960.  In 1959, his average as a pinch-hitter was an incredible .395 (15 for 38) and he drove in 11 runs.

With the Phillies, Philley appeared in 204 games overall, batting .300 with 10 home runs and 72 RBIs.  He collected 37 pinch-hits and his 18 pinch-hits from the 1958 season are the fourth most in a season by a Phillies player behind Greg Dobbs (22 in 2008), Doc Miller (20 in 1913) and Greg Gross (19 in 1982).

1948-49 Leaf #85

1952 Topps #226

1954 Topps #159

1959 Topps #92

1962 Topps #542

Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card:  1948-49 Leaf #85
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (10):  1952-1954, 1956-1962
Most Recent Mainstream Card:  1994 Topps Archives 1954 #159

61 - Philley non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 10/11/22.

Sources:  
Baseball Reference
Beckett Database

The Phillies Room

SABR
The Trading Card Database

Wikipedia

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Set Order: #221 Bob Friend - Pittsburgh Pirates / #223 Randy Jackson - Brooklyn Dodgers

Order Collected: #218 Joe Nuxhall - Cincinnati Redlegs / #231 Bob Hale - Baltimore Orioles