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Robert George Wiesler
Washington Nationals
Pitcher
Born: August 13, 1930, St. Louis, MO
Signed: Signed by the New York Yankees as an amateur free agent before 1949 season
Major League Teams: New York Yankees 1951, 1954-55; Washington Nationals 1956; Washington Senators 1957-58
Died: August 10, 2014, Florissant, MO (age 83)
On the strength of several strong minor league seasons, Bob Wiesler was promoted to the Yankees in August 1951, pitching in his first four big league ballgames. He'd miss all of the 1952 season while serving in the U.S. Army during the Korean War, and then spend the 1953 season back in the minors. Wiesler pitched sparingly with the Yankees in 1954 and 1955, and a trade to the Nationals in early 1956 finally gave him a shot at regular appearances in the majors. He'd see the most major league action of his career that season, going 3-12 with a 6.44 ERA in 37 games overall, and 21 starts. Wiesler threw a career-high 123 innings, striking out 49 but walking an alarming 112.
He'd spend a few more seasons bouncing between the minor leagues and Washington, pitching in his final major league game on May 10, 1958. Wiesler spent the next three seasons attempting to mount a comeback, spending time in the Yankees, Angels and Twins minor league systems. In 70 games in the majors, Wiesler was 7-19 with a 5.74 ERA, 113 strikeouts and 218 walks in 241 1/3 innings pitched.
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| 1957 Topps #126 |
This is the second to last card added to our complete 1956 Topps set. I recently shared this full story with the Rocky Bridges (#324) post earlier this month, but I'll repeat myself, in an edited version, here. 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.
This Wiesler card was one of the final 29. It was one of the commons included in a memorable haul that included the cards of Pee Wee Reese (#260), Roberto Clemente (#33), Whitey Ford (#240) and a spotless checklist card for the 1st and 3rd Series.
The Card / Nationals Team Set
Wiesler is wearing a Yankees uniform here, and Topps did an admirable job transferring him over to his new team's uniform. The Yankee pinstripes can still be seen when you look at the card up close, and the Nationals only wore pinstripes in 1955 at home. The cartoon panels on the back highlight his minor league success, his blazing fastball and his arrival at Griffith Stadium, the Nationals' home ballpark, for the 1956 season. This is his rookie card.
1956 Season
First Mainstream Card: 1956 Topps #327
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (2): 1956-57
Most Recent Mainstream Card: 2006 Topps Heritage Real One Autographs #ROA-BW
5 - Wiesler non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 3/31/25.
Sources:
Baseball Reference
Beckett Database
The Trading Card Database
Previous Card / Next Card
Set Order: #326 Connie Johnson - Chicago White Sox / #328 Preston Ward - Pittsburgh Pirates
Order Collected: #326 Connie Johnson - Chicago White Sox / 1st Series / 3rd Series Checklist
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