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Robert Gerald Miller
Detroit Tigers
Pitcher
Born: July 15, 1935, Berwyn, IL
Signed: Signed by the Detroit Tigers as an amateur free agent (bonus baby), June 20, 1953
Major League Teams: Detroit Tigers 1953-56; Cincinnati Reds 1962; New York Mets 1962
Died: May 24, 2022, St. Charles, IL (age 86)
The Tigers signed two "bonus baby" amateur players in late June 1953 within a day of each other, pitcher Bob Miller for $60,000 and outfielder Al Kaline (#20) for $35,000. Kaline would go on to have a Hall of Fame career, his #6 ultimately retired by the Tigers. Miller would find brief success as a teenage reliever for the Tigers, making his big league debut 10 days after his signing and 20 days before his 18th birthday. His best season came in 1954 when he had a 2.45 ERA in 32 appearances, throwing a career-high 69 2/3 innings and recording 27 strikeouts. Miller would appear in 63 games overall with the Tigers, almost all of them prior to reaching his 20th birthday, before missing all of 1957 while in military service.
He'd pitch exclusively in the minor leagues for four seasons between 1958 and 1961, making it back to the majors with the Reds for a brief six-game stint in April 1962. Dealt to the expansion Mets on May 7, 1962 in exchange for Don Zimmer (#99), Miller would appear in the final 17 games of his pitching career, earning a 7.08 ERA in 20 1/3 innings pitched. In 86 games in parts of five seasons, Miller was 6-8 with a 4.72 ERA.
Building the Set
Summer of 1983 or 1984 in Millville, NJ - Card #35
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 Walt Dropo (#238) post, back in February. Seven of the Original 44 came from series one, with 11 coming from series two, and 16 from series three. This is the first of ten cards to come from the final series four.
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 Walt Dropo (#238) post, back in February. Seven of the Original 44 came from series one, with 11 coming from series two, and 16 from series three. This is the first of ten cards to come from the final series four.
The Card / Tigers Team Set
This is one of two Bob Miller cards in the set. The other Bob Miller (#334) was a right-hand pitcher with the Phillies for 10 seasons. There are two Tigers teammates making a cameo behind Miller's action photo on the card. #8 would be Ray Boone (#6), who was with the Tigers between 1953 and 1958. #5 is Bob Nieman (#267) given the photo was likely taken in 1953 or 1954. The head shot of Miller shows up for the third year in a row, as Topps had used the photo for his 1954 and 1955 cards. The back of the card highlights his signing by the Tigers and his successful high school career.
1956 Season
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First Mainstream Card: 1954 Topps #241
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (4): 1954-1956, 1962
Most Recent Mainstream Card: 1994 Topps Archives 1954 #241
9 - Miller non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 10/6/23.
Sources:
Baseball Reference
Beckett Database
The Trading Card Database
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Order Collected: #255 Bob Lemon - Cleveland Indians / #268 Dale Mitchell - Cleveland Indians
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