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Gilbert Raymond Hodges
Brooklyn Dodgers
First Base
Born: April 4, 1924, Princeton, IN
Signed: Signed by the Brooklyn Dodgers as an amateur free agent, September 6, 1943
Major League Teams: Brooklyn Dodgers 1943, 1947-1957; Los Angeles Dodgers 1958-1961; New York Mets 1962-1963
As a Manager: Washington Senators 1963-1967; New York Mets 1968-1971
Died: April 2, 1972, West Palm Beach, FL (age 47)
Hall of Fame Induction: 2022
Jackie Robinson (#30) called Gil Hodges, "The core of the Brooklyn Dodgers." Originally a catcher, Hodges moved to first base for the Dodgers in the late 1940s where he'd be a mainstay for the club throughout the next decade and including their move west to Los Angeles. Hodges had seven straight seasons of 100 RBIs or more between 1949 and 1955, and his bat helped lead the Dodgers to World Series titles in 1955 and 1959. He never won an MVP, but the eight-time All-Star was a perennial MVP vote getter. Considered one of the finest defensive first baseman of his era, he won three Gold Gloves. His 361 career home runs are second on the Dodgers' all-time list behind Duke Snider's (#150) 389. Hodges finished his playing career as a member of the expansion Mets and in 1,921 career games he hit .273 with 370 home runs and 1,274 RBIs.
Hodges retired as an active player when the Mets traded him to the Senators on May 23, 1963 for Jim Piersall (#143), and Hodges assumed managerial duties for the departed Mickey Vernon (#228). His years with the Senators were fairly dismal as the team never finished above sixth place. He took over at the helm for the Mets in 1968 and led the club to their first improbable World Championship title in 1969 with a miraculous victory over the heavily favored Orioles. Hodges passed away unexpectedly during spring training 1972, felled by a heart attack after a round of golf with his Mets coaches.
Hodges is considered to be one of the best players from his era not currently in the Hall of Fame. His #14 was retired by the Mets in 1973 and he was elected into the Mets Hall of Fame in 1982.
Jackie Robinson (#30) called Gil Hodges, "The core of the Brooklyn Dodgers." Originally a catcher, Hodges moved to first base for the Dodgers in the late 1940s where he'd be a mainstay for the club throughout the next decade and including their move west to Los Angeles. Hodges had seven straight seasons of 100 RBIs or more between 1949 and 1955, and his bat helped lead the Dodgers to World Series titles in 1955 and 1959. He never won an MVP, but the eight-time All-Star was a perennial MVP vote getter. Considered one of the finest defensive first baseman of his era, he won three Gold Gloves. His 361 career home runs are second on the Dodgers' all-time list behind Duke Snider's (#150) 389. Hodges finished his playing career as a member of the expansion Mets and in 1,921 career games he hit .273 with 370 home runs and 1,274 RBIs.
Hodges retired as an active player when the Mets traded him to the Senators on May 23, 1963 for Jim Piersall (#143), and Hodges assumed managerial duties for the departed Mickey Vernon (#228). His years with the Senators were fairly dismal as the team never finished above sixth place. He took over at the helm for the Mets in 1968 and led the club to their first improbable World Championship title in 1969 with a miraculous victory over the heavily favored Orioles. Hodges passed away unexpectedly during spring training 1972, felled by a heart attack after a round of golf with his Mets coaches.
Hodges is considered to be one of the best players from his era not currently in the Hall of Fame. His #14 was retired by the Mets in 1973 and he was elected into the Mets Hall of Fame in 1982.
Postscript - Gil Hodges was elected into the Hall of Fame in December 2021 by the Golden Days Era Committee, and he'll be inducted posthumously in July 2022.
1956 Season
Hodges appeared in 153 games for the Dodgers as their regular first baseman. He batted .265 with 32 home runs (second on the club behind Snider's 43) and 87 RBIs. In the World Series, won by the Dodgers over the Yankees, Hodges played every inning in all seven games, batting .304 (7 for 23) with a home run and 8 RBIs.
Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card: 1949 Bowman #100
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (22): 1951-1952, 1954-1972, 1989
Most Recent Mainstream Card: 2020 Panini Absolute Legends #AL2
511 - Hodges non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 4/1/21.
Sources:
1965 Topps Blog
Some text for this post originally appeared on my 1965 Topps blog.
Building the Set
December 25, 1998 from San Diego, CA (Kit Young Cards) - Card #173
I'm not sure what inspired me to take the picture shown here back in November 1998, but it shows the view from my couch in my apartment in Raleigh, North Carolina at the time. I had (and still have) way too many CDs, and my 1956 Topps binder is open to the page showing cards #41 to #48. That's Art Fowler (#47) and Jim Hegan (#48) blurry on the bottom.
December 25, 1998 from San Diego, CA (Kit Young Cards) - Card #173
I'm not sure what inspired me to take the picture shown here back in November 1998, but it shows the view from my couch in my apartment in Raleigh, North Carolina at the time. I had (and still have) way too many CDs, and my 1956 Topps binder is open to the page showing cards #41 to #48. That's Art Fowler (#47) and Jim Hegan (#48) blurry on the bottom.
This Hodges card would have been missing from that binder at the time, as my parents gave me this card for Christmas in 1998. It was my "big" present and my Dad let it slide that he had paid $50 for it from Kit Young Cards, his baseball card dealer of choice. It was a lean year for building our 1956 Topps set, as we added just 14 new cards throughout all of 1998.
The Card / Dodgers Team Set
Unless Hodges' head is blocking the fielder holding the ball, I'd say the sliding Hodges is safe at third in the action photo. Baseball card collectors had become familiar with the headshot of Hodges by now, as it had also appeared on his 1954 and 1955 Topps cards. His power numbers are celebrated on the back. Hodges drove in at least 100 runs for seven straight seasons between 1949 and 1955. He'd dip down to 87 RBIs in 1956 and almost crack the 100-RBI plateau in 1957 with 98. His 162-game average for his career, over 18 seasons, was an impressive even 100 RBIs with 29 home runs. Hodges' four-home run game came on August 31, 1950 against the Braves at Ebbets Field against four different Braves pitchers - Normie Roy, Warren Spahn (#10), Bob Hall and Johnny Antonelli (#138).
The Card / Dodgers Team Set
Unless Hodges' head is blocking the fielder holding the ball, I'd say the sliding Hodges is safe at third in the action photo. Baseball card collectors had become familiar with the headshot of Hodges by now, as it had also appeared on his 1954 and 1955 Topps cards. His power numbers are celebrated on the back. Hodges drove in at least 100 runs for seven straight seasons between 1949 and 1955. He'd dip down to 87 RBIs in 1956 and almost crack the 100-RBI plateau in 1957 with 98. His 162-game average for his career, over 18 seasons, was an impressive even 100 RBIs with 29 home runs. Hodges' four-home run game came on August 31, 1950 against the Braves at Ebbets Field against four different Braves pitchers - Normie Roy, Warren Spahn (#10), Bob Hall and Johnny Antonelli (#138).
This card was reprinted as part of the 1995 Topps Archives Brooklyn Dodgers set.
1956 Season
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First Mainstream Card: 1949 Bowman #100
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (22): 1951-1952, 1954-1972, 1989
Most Recent Mainstream Card: 2020 Panini Absolute Legends #AL2
511 - Hodges non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 4/1/21.
Sources:
1965 Topps Blog
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Order Collected: #45 Gus Zernial - Kansas City Athletics / #320 Joe Adcock - Milwaukee Braves
