Friday, December 29, 2023

#271 Foster Castleman - New York Giants


Foster Ephraim Castelman
New York Giants
Third Base

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'0"  Weight:  175
Born:  January 1, 1931, Nashville, TN
Signed:  Signed by the New York Giants as an amateur free agent before 1949 season
Major League Teams:  New York Giants 1954-1957; Baltimore Orioles 1958
Died:  November 9, 2020, The Villages, FL (age 89)

Foster Castleman played in parts of five big league seasons, only playing regularly with the Giants in 1956 and with the Orioles in 1958.  Casteleman worked his way through the Giants system between 1949 and mid-1954, missing two full seasons in 1951 and 1952 due to military service.  In his 13 games with the Giants in 1954, and his 15 games with the Giants in 1955, he was used almost entirely as a pinch-hitter.  But in 1956, he made the team out of spring training and took over regular third base duties from Hank Thompson (#199).  Castleman appeared in a career high 124 games, batting only .226, and he'd be back to limited use by the Giants in 1957.  In March 1958 he was sold to the Orioles, and he'd play in 98 games, making 64 starts at shortstop and a pair of starts at second base.  Again, his hitting was his weakness as he batted just .170 during his only season in Baltimore, and his final season in the majors.

Castleman played for two more seasons in the minors with the Orioles, Senators and White Sox organizations before retiring in 1960.  In 268 major league games, Castleman collected 136 hits and batted .205 with 20 home runs and 65 RBIs.

Building the Set
December 28, 2007 from Dad's eBay purchases - Card #333
The way my Dad and I finished the 1956 Topps set was somewhat anti-climatic but nevertheless a joyful memory.  Leading up to the Christmas of 2007, my Dad (with the help of my Mom) scoured eBay and other online baseball card stores for the remaining 29 cards we needed to complete the set.  Throughout the weeks and months leading up to the holidays, he knew we had completed the set but he kept it quiet, wanting to surprise me on Christmas morning.  I have no idea, and I'll never know, what the true last card was that he acquired to finish off the set.  And I have no record, nor was he able to tell me, how much they had paid for any of these final 29 cards.

December 24, 2007 - Doug and Dad
Our son Doug had just turned one, and on Christmas morning 2007, we were anxiously awaiting the arrival of our families to our house to celebrate the day.  I've had a few rough Christmases, but this was one of the worst as my Dad ended up in the hospital that day and it was the beginning of his health struggles that would continue until he passed away in late 2011.  He was discharged from the hospital three days later, and it was only then we celebrated Christmas together, on December 28th, and I opened the package containing the last of the cards needed for our 1956 Topps set.

Dad was understandably distraught that Christmas, but not solely because of his own health issues.  Because of his unselfish nature, he was worried that he had ruined Christmas for everyone since we had spent the holidays in a hospital.  He was also upset that his surprise package containing those last 29 baseball cards sat in the back seat of his car for three days until he recovered enough to come home.  I was just happy to have him out of the hospital, but I do remember feeling confused and somewhat hopeless as we weren't quite sure yet what was wrong with him.

I don't have any pictures from December 28th, which is unusual for me.  I'm assuming I was just happy that Dad was out of the hospital and taking pictures never crossed my mind.  Among the "big" cards in that final haul were the cards of Roberto Clemente (#33), Monte Irvin (#194), Whitey Ford (#240), Pee Wee Reese (#260) and the Checklist covering Series 1 and 3.  I remember thinking I had never seen this Castleman card before, which was odd considering we had been collecting the set for over 20 years at this point.

The Card / Giants Team Set
This is Castleman's rookie card, and he'd appear in two more Topps flagship sets in 1957 and 1958.  If that's Castleman in the action shot, it looks as if he's wearing a uniform number ending in "2" so the picture could be from early in the 1956 season?  He wore #18 during his brief stints with the club in 1954 and 1955, switching to #18 in 1956.  He played two games at third base in August 1954 against the Braves and Pirates, and one more game at third base on April 28, 1955 against the Cardinals.  Since it appears to be a Cardinals' baserunner, I thought maybe the photo was from that April 28th game, but there doesn't appear to be any plays at third while Castleman was in the game.  His next action at third base against the Cardinals didn't come until early May in 1956.

(Another theory:  The third baseman is actually Joey Amalfitano, who wore #12 with the Giants in 1955.)

Topps misspells Castleman's middle name on the back of the card.  The three cartoon panels explain how he missed time in 1955 due to injuries, tout his ability to switch infield positions, and highlight his .302 average in 1955 (in 43 games) with the Minneapolis Millers.

1956 Season
Castleman batted just .226, but his 14 home runs were tied for third on the Giants behind Willie Mays (#130), who hit 36, and Bill White, who hit 22.  Shortstop Daryl Spencer (#277) also hit 14 home runs.  He made 97 starts at third base as manager Bill Rigney tried to find some offense for the Giants' line-up.

1957 Topps #237
1958 Topps #416

Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card:  1956 Topps #271
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (3):  1956-1958
Most Recent Mainstream Card:  1979 TCMA The 1950s #225

7 - Castleman non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 11/22/23.

 Sources:  
Baseball Reference
Beckett Database
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Friday, December 22, 2023

#270 Billy Loes - Brooklyn Dodgers


William Loes
Brooklyn Dodgers
Pitcher

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'1"  Weight:  165
Born:  December 13, 1929, Long Island City, NY
Signed:  Signed by the Brooklyn Dodgers as an amateur free agent before 1948 season
Major League Teams:  Brooklyn Dodgers 1950, 1952-1956; Baltimore Orioles 1956-1959; San Francisco Giants 1960-1961
Died:  July 15, 2010, Tucson, AZ (age 80)

Known for his oddball and sometimes zany comments to the press, Billy Loes pitched for 11 seasons in the majors, winning a World Series ring with the Dodgers in 1955.  After 10 games in 1950 and missing all of 1951 while in the military, Loes stuck with the Dodgers in 1952 as a 22-year-old swingman.  He'd go 13-8 with a 2.69 that season for Brooklyn in what may have been his best year.  On the eve of the World Series against the Yankees, he made headlines by predicting the Yankees would likely win in seven games.  Helping to prove his prediction, Loes was the losing pitcher in Game 6.  In that game, the Yankees scored the go-ahead run in the seventh inning on a ground ball that hit off Loes' leg.  He told reporters afterward he had lost the ground ball in the sun.

Loes also proclaimed he'd never want to be a 20-game winner, "because then I'd be expected to do it every year."  He'd win at least 10 games in five different seasons, including a career-high 14 in 1954.  To add to his persona, Loes was incredibly superstitious, waiting to go to the mound only after the opposing base coaches were in position, and going periods of time without uttering a word to anyone during mound visits.  Sold to the Orioles in May 1956, Loes made the All-Star team in 1957 and was 12-7 with a 3.24 ERA for Baltimore in 1957.  He'd pitch through the 1961 season with the Orioles and Giants, primarily as a reliever, before retiring from the game.  In 316 major league games, Loes was 80-63 with a 3.89 ERA and he recorded 645 strikeouts over 1,190 1/3 innings pitched.

Building the Set
December 25, 2006 from Mays Landing, NJ - Card #286
I was officially given this card on Christmas Day in 2006, but my Dad had purchased it several weeks (months?) earlier at a baseball card show held at the Hamilton Mall in Mays Landing, New Jersey.

This was one of nine cards I received that Christmas from my Dad, and he spent a total of $210 on all nine cards with the Hank Aaron (#31) card being the big ticket item at $150.  Like all his purchases, he was extremely proud of this card's condition and I'm sure there was a negotiation story that went along with the acquisition.

Our first son Doug was born a few weeks before Christmas that year and we brought him home just in time for the big day.  He obviously doesn't remember much from his first Christmas, but he spent the holidays being held and loved by his parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles.  One of the great joys of my life was seeing how proud my Dad was to have a grandson.

The Card / Dodgers Team Set
Loes was exclusive with Bowman in 1954 and 1955, returning to Topps in 1956.  In the action photo, his uniform #30 can be seen, and that was the number he wore with Brooklyn between 1952 and 1956.  Behind Loes, several other Dodgers players can be seen warming up, along with some potential autograph seekers lined up in the Ebbets Field box seats.  The cartoons on the back cover his arm injury in 1955, his signing out of high school and his pitch repertoire.  The card was reprinted as part of the 1995 Topps Archives Brooklyn Dodgers set.

1956 Season
Loes spent spring training battling shoulder pain, which at one point got so bad he threatened to quit baseball.  He made just one start with the Dodgers on April 29th, lasting 1 1/3 innings and giving up six runs on five hits to the Pirates.  On May 14th, the Orioles acquired him as a waiver claim, paying the Dodgers $20,000.  Loes pitched in 21 games for the Orioles, making six starts, and was 2-7 with a 4.76 ERA in 56 2/3 innings pitched.  He thew a complete game on June 30th against the Red Sox, and also notched three saves.

1952 Topps #20
1953 Topps #174
1954 Bowman #42
1957 Topps #244
1961 Topps #237

Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card:  1952 Topps #20
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (8):  1952-1953, 1956-1961
Most Recent Mainstream Card:  1995 Topps Archives Brooklyn Dodgers #160

44 - Loes non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 11/21/23.

 Sources:  
Baseball Reference
Beckett Database
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Friday, December 15, 2023

#269 Jack Meyer - Philadelphia Phillies


John Robert Meyer
Philadelphia Phillies
Pitcher


Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'1"  Weight:  175
Born:  March 23, 1932, Philadelphia, PA
Signed:  Signed by the Philadelphia Phillies as an amateur free agent before 1951 season
Major League Teams:  Philadelphia Phillies 1955-1961
Died:  March 9, 1967, Philadelphia, PA (age 34)

After pitching for the Wake Forest College (now University) baseball team, Jack Meyer signed with the Phillies in 1951 to begin his professional career.  He spent four seasons working his way up through the Phillies' minor league system, and as a starting pitcher he won at least 12 games each season between 1952 and 1954.  He recorded a league-leading 226 strikeouts in 1953 while pitching for the Class A Schenectady Blue Jays.  Meyer made the Phillies opening day squad in 1955, and was initially inserted into their starting pitching rotation.  Moving to the bullpen permanently in late May, Meyer would record a league-leading 16 saves and finish as runner-up in Rookie of the Year voting behind the Cardinals' Bill Virdon (#170).  Injuries and his participation in extracurricular, late-night activities along with fellow pitchers Turk Farrell and Jim Owens (#114), the "Dalton Gang," limited Meyer's success over the next few seasons.

He'd rebound somewhat in 1958 and 1959, serving as a reliable reliever for the Phillies.  A back injury suffered in 1960 after a postgame drinking binge limited his output to seven games in 1960 and one last game in 1961.  Unable to continue pitching, Meyer retired from baseball at the age of 29 on May 9, 1961.  In 202 games over seven seasons with the Phillies, Meyer was 24-34 with 21 saves and a 3.92 ERA.  He struck out 375 batters over 455 innings pitched.  Sadly, Meyer passed away at the age of 34 after suffering a heart attack.

June 1988 - Dad mowing the lawn on 12th Street
Building the Set
February 27, 1988 in Bridgeton, NJ (Hummel's) - Card #55
My notes indicate we bought this card at Hummel's in Bridgeton, New Jersey in February 1988 along with the Billy Klaus (#217) card.  This was a Saturday, and I'm guessing my Dad and I needed to get out of the house so we made the quick drive to Bridgeton to purchase some baseball cards.  I'm also assuming I was anxious to get my hands on more new packs of 1988 Topps, and we knew Hummel's most likely had a box or two for sale.  My set collecting records show we had completed the 1974 Topps set earlier in the month, we were about half-way through with the 1976 Topps set and we'd start to collect the 1973 Topps set that June.  It was a very good year.

My memories of Hummel's are hazy at best, but I seem to recall it was a large building with a sprawling liquor store on the first floor and a baseball card shop on the second floor.  With baseball card stores booming in the mid to late 1980s, we'd often take a ride to one of the four or five local card shops we were lucky enough to have near us.

The Card / Phillies Team Set
This is Meyer's rookie card and given his status as one of the top rookies in the game, I imagine kids (including my Dad) would have been thrilled to finally find a Meyer card in Series 4 packs of 1956 Topps.  The cartoons on the back highlight his success in 1954 in the minor leagues, his high strikeout rate and his switch to the bullpen during the 1955 season.

1956 Season
Meyer made 41 appearances for the Phillies, going 7-11 with a 4.41 ERA.  As a starter, he was 1-5 in seven starts, with a 4.68 ERA.  On April 29th at the Polo Grounds, Meyer hit a 10th inning home run off Giants' reliever Hoyt Wilhelm (#307) to give the Phillies a 5-4 lead and eventually, the win.  He was particularly effective in the month of June, with a 1.47 ERA in 18 1/3 innings pitched.

Phillies Career
I'd highly recommend reading Meyer's full SABR biography, linked below, to get a sense of the self-created destruction the young pitcher put himself through during his brief pitching career.  With some better role models and a little direction, it seems as if Meyer could have been a star pitcher for the Phillies during some the franchise's leaner years.  Robin Roberts (#180) remembered Meyer as having "Nolan Ryan-type stuff with a sharp curveball to go with a blazing fastball."

1957 Topps #162
1958 Topps #186
1959 Topps #269
1960 Topps #64
1961 Topps #111

Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card:  1956 Topps #269
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (6):  1956-1961
Most Recent Mainstream Card:  1961 Topps #111

13 - Meyer non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 11/20/23.

 Sources:  
Baseball Reference
Beckett Database
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Friday, December 8, 2023

#268 Dale Mitchell - Cleveland Indians


Loren Dale Mitchell
Cleveland Indians
Outfield

Bats:  Left  Throws:  Left  Height:  6'1"  Weight:  195
Born:  August 23, 1921, Colony, OK
Signed:  Signed by the Cleveland Indians as an amateur free agent before 1946 season
Major League Teams:  Cleveland Indians 1946-1956; Brooklyn Dodgers 1956
Died:  January 5, 1987, Tulsa, OK (age 65)

After a stellar collegiate career at the University of Oklahoma, where he accumulated a career batting average of .467, Dale Mitchell signed with the Indians in early 1946 and made his big league debut a few months later.  Mitchell settled in as the club's regular left fielder between 1947 and 1953, earning his way onto two All-Star teams and receiving MVP votes in four different seasons.  Mitchell was a member of the World Champion Indians team in 1948, as Cleveland defeated the Boston Braves in six games.  He led the American League in hits (203) and triples (23) in 1949, and put together his strongest seasons in 1952 and 1953.  In 1952, Mitchell batted .323 with 58 RBIs, and he hit a career-high 13 home runs in 1953.  A back-up in 1954, Mitchell appeared in only 53 games, and he made three pinch-hitting appearances in the 1954 World Series in which the Indians were swept by the Giants.  He saw his last major league action with the Dodgers in 1956, appearing with the club in that year's World Series against the Yankees.

August 19, 2023 - Mitchell on the scoreboard during his induction
into the Cleveland Guardians Hall of Fame
Mitchell finished his career with 1,244 hits and a .312 average, with only Stan Musial and Ted Williams (#5) having a higher average between 1943 and 1960.  He rarely struck out, and his at-bat/strikeout ratio of 33.5 is currently 14th all-time.  A fine fielder as well, his .986 fielding percentage in left field is currently 45th all-time.  Mitchell was posthumously inducted into the Cleveland Guardians Hall of Fame in 2023, and the baseball park at the University of Oklahoma is named in his honor.

Building the Set
Summer of 1983 or 1984 in Millville, NJ - Card #36
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 second of ten cards to come from the final series four.

The Card / Indians Team Set
This won't mean anything to anyone other than my immediate family who happens to read this, but I always felt Mitchell looked like my late Uncle Dick on this card.  Mitchell returns to the Topps set here after a two-year absence as he had appeared exclusively with Bowman in 1954 and 1955.  This is also his final Topps flagship set appearance.  The fielder in the action shot looks like a Yankees player, so it could be Gil McDougald (#225), Phil Rizzuto (#113) or Billy Hunter, among others.

The first cartoon panel on the back is pretty cool, with Williams and Bill Skowron (#61) making cameo appearances.  Skowron's inclusion is questionable, as he only had two seasons under his belt, but he did have a .328 average following the 1955 season.  Williams was batting .348 for his career through 1955, and Mitchell was at .314.  The final cartoon panel is interesting too, as I've never heard of fielding percentage referred to as "infielding."  Mitchell led the league in 1948 and 1949 with marks of .991 and .994.

1956 Season
Mitchell began the season with the Indians, where he was used exclusively as a pinch-hitter, save for one appearance in left field.  In 38 games with Cleveland, he batted .133 (4 for 30) and was sold to the Dodgers on July 29th.  With his new club, again almost entirely as a pinch-hitter, Mitchell appeared in 19 games and batted a more respectable .292 (7 for 24).  He was included on the Dodgers' World Series roster, and made four pinch-hitting appearances against the Yankees, going 0 for 4.  Mitchell pinch-hit for pitcher Sal Maglie in the top of the ninth of Game 6 against Don Larsen (#332), and he struck out looking to clinch Larsen's perfect game.

1949 Bowman #43
1951 Bowman #5
1952 Topps #92
1953 Topps #26
1955 Bowman #314

Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card:  1949 Bowman #43
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (4):  1951-1953, 1956
Most Recent Mainstream Card:  1991 Topps Archives 1953 #26

54 - Mitchell non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 11/20/23.

 Sources:  
Baseball Reference
Beckett Database
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Friday, December 1, 2023

#267 Bob Nieman - Chicago White Sox


Robert Charles Nieman
Chicago White Sox
Outfield

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  5'11"  Weight:  195
Born:  January 26, 1927, Cincinnati, OH
Signed:  Signed by the Cincinnati Reds as an amateur free agent before 1948 season
Major League Teams:  St. Louis Browns 1951-1952; Detroit Tigers 1953-1954; Chicago White Sox 1955-1956; Baltimore Orioles 1956-1959; St. Louis Cardinals 1960-1961; Cleveland Indians 1961-1962; San Francisco Giants 1962
Died:  March 10, 1985, Corona, CA (age 58)

The first thing that struck me about Bob Nieman's major league career is that he didn't seem to stick around very long with any one team.  His longest stint without switching teams came in the late 1950s with the Orioles between mid-1956 and 1959.  Before that, he was a regular with the Browns, Tigers and White Sox and his big league debut with the Browns in 1951 was one for the record books.  On September 14, 1951 against the Red Sox in Fenway Park, Nieman homered in his first two at-bats against Mickey McDermott (#340).  He became the first player in Major League history with two home runs in his debut game, a feat since accomplished by four other players.

Nieman's best years came with the Orioles.  He batted .322 with 12 home runs and 64 RBIs following a trade to Baltimore in May 1956, and in 1959, he clubbed a career best 21 home runs.  He departed Baltimore following the 1959 season, bouncing around again from the Cardinals to the Indians and finally to the Giants.  Serving almost exclusively as a pinch-hitter in 1962 with San Francisco, Nieman batted .300 for the season and saw his only World Series action, walking in Game 4 as a pinch-hitter against the Yankees.  The Yankees would prevail over the Giants in seven games.  Nieman spent the 1963 season with the Chunichi Dragons in Japan before retiring.  Over 12 major league seasons, Nieman batted .295 with 125 home runs and 544 RBIs.  He'd later serve as a scout for the Indians, Dodgers, Athletics, White Sox and Yankees.

Building the Set
September 25, 2005 in Ft. Washington, PA - Card #268
This was a late edition to our set and one of 11 cards we purchased at the 92nd Philadelphia Sports Card Show held at the convention center in Ft. Washington.  My records show we paid $7 for this card. With the Ocean City baseball card shows long gone by now, our only options for local baseball card shows were the "Philly Shows" held in Ft. Washington at the time or the occasional mall baseball card show.

August 14, 2005 - Dad and me at Yankee Stadium
My Dad didn't like the drive to Ft. Washington, and this would have been one of only a few shows we attended together in this location.  Our next show together was a few months later in December, also in Ft. Washington.  Looking at my records of when and where we purchased our cards, a full year would go by before we'd add any more cards to the set after that December show.

The year-long hiatus in collecting the set came at a time my wife and I were expecting our first son and as we moved into our first real house, so we had a pretty good excuse not to be purchasing baseball cards at the time.

The Card / White Sox Team Set
Nieman's rookie card can be found in the 1955 Bowman set, and this is his first Topps card.  If the runner sliding into second base is in fact Nieman, the photo was taken while he was with the Tigers, wearing #5 in either 1953 or 1954.  With the White Sox, Nieman wore #18.  The back of the card rightfully highlights the two home runs he hit during his big league debut.  The final cartoon panel covers his fielding skills, and Nieman had five double plays as an outfielder in 1952, tying him with Mickey Mantle (#135) and Faye Throneberry.

1956 Season
Nieman began the season with the White Sox, appearing in 14 games and batting .300 (12 for 40), making 10 starts in right field.  On May 21st, Nieman, Mike Fornieles, Connie Johnson (#326) and George Kell (#195) were traded to the Orioles for Dave Philley (#222) and Jim Wilson (#171).  Nieman started off hot for the Orioles, batting .308 with five home runs and 30 RBIs in his first 37 games with the club, through the end of June.  He assumed the everyday left fielder's job and was arguably the team's MVP, leading the way with a 4.0 bWAR.  His .320 average was fifth best in the league and he finished seventh in the year's MVP voting.

1955 Bowman #145
1957 Topps #14
1959 Topps #375
1961 Topps #178
1962 Topps #182

Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card:  1955 Bowman #145
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (7):  1956-1962
Most Recent Mainstream Card:  1979 TCMA The 1950s #211

32 - Nieman non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 11/19/23.

 Sources:  
Baseball Reference
Beckett Database
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