Saturday, August 31, 2019

Prime 9 - Philadelphia Phillies


The 16th installment in the "Prime 9" series - spotlighting the 9 best players per team from the 1966-70 time period.

For the series backstory and team rankings, click here.

The Phillies won 381 games between 1966 and 1970. (16th out of the 20 teams.)

Chris Short, Tony Taylor, Johnny Callison, and Tony Gonzalez were with the team for most of the 1960s.  Jim Bunning, Turk Farrell, Tony Taylor, and Dick Allen each had two stints with the Phillies.

If only Fergie Jenkins hadn't been traded away in early-1966... but that's a story best swept under the rug.

Sunday, August 25, 2019

Prime 9 - New York Mets


The 15th installment in the "Prime 9" series - spotlighting the 9 best players per team from the 1966-70 time period.

For the series backstory and team rankings, click here.

The Mets won 383 games between 1966 and 1970. Five out of nine players are sporting Topps All-Rookie trophies!

The Mets finished in 10th or 9th place every one of their first seven seasons.  In season 8, they won 100 games, an improvement of  TWENTY-SEVEN wins over their 9th-place finish in 1968.

That kind of jump should have been an embarrassment to the Phillies, Indians, Senators, and even the White Sox (who were good from 1963-67, but went into the dumper from 1968-70). What did the Phillies do to improve?  They added the likes of Lowell Palmer, Billy Champion, Barry Lersch, Ken Reynolds, and Billy Wilson to their pitching staff.  Yay!

Thursday, August 22, 2019

RIP - Al Jackson


Original Met Al Jackson passed away on August 19, 2019 at age 83.


Jackson played briefly with the Pirates in 1959 and 1961, then was selected by the Mets in the pre-1962 expansion draft.

He pitched for the Mets from 1962-65, and again from 1968-69.  During his first stint with the Mets, he was one of the team's top 3 starting pitchers each season.

Jackson was traded to the Cardinals after the 1965 season for 3rd baseman Ken Boyer. Although he was on the 1967 World Champion Cardinals, he did not play in the World Series. He also played the last half of the 1969 season (his last) for the Reds.

After his playing career he was a long-time minor-league instructor for the Mets, as well as coaching for the Red Sox and Orioles.

CNN obituary

New York Times obituary
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Tuesday, August 20, 2019

Prime 9 - California Angels


The 14th installment in the "Prime 9" series - spotlighting the 9 best players per team from the 1966-70 time period.

For the series backstory and team rankings, click here.

The Angels won 388 games between 1966 and 1970. Although they fared better than their AL expansion partner (Washington Senators), the Angels would not finish in 1st place until 1979.

Sunday, August 18, 2019

Prime 9 - Kansas City / Oakland Athletics


The 13th installment in the "Prime 9" series - spotlighting the 9 best players per team from the 1966-70 time period.

For the series backstory and team rankings, click here.

The Athletics won 395 games between 1966 and 1970. After only winning only 74 and 62 games in their final 2 seasons in Kansas City, the A's moved to Oakland in 1968 and had a winning record every season from 1968 to 1976, including 3 straight World Series championships.

After the awful photos on their 1968 and most 1969 cards, it's great to see everyone in fresh new Oakland uniforms.

Friday, August 16, 2019

Prime 9 - New York Yankees


The 12th installment in the "Prime 9" series - spotlighting the 9 best players per team from the 1966-70 time period.

For the series backstory and team rankings, click here.

The Yankees won 398 games between 1966 and 1970. After losing more games than they won from 1966-69 (including a last-place finish in 1966), in 1970 they won 93 games, a 13-game improvement over 1969.

Wednesday, August 14, 2019

Prime 9 - Chicago Cubs



The 11th installment in the "Prime 9" series - spotlighting the 9 best players per team from the 1966-70 time period.

For the series backstory and team rankings, click here.

The Cubs won 409 games between 1966 and 1970. Quite a comeback for only winning 59 games in 1966!

Monday, August 12, 2019

Prime 9 - Atlanta Braves


The 10th installment in the "Prime 9" series - spotlighting the 9 best players per team from the 1966-70 time period.

For the series backstory and team rankings, click here.

The Braves won 412 games between 1966 and 1970, their first 5 seasons in Atlanta. Orlando Cepeda is the first player to appear twice in this Prime 9 series.

Saturday, August 10, 2019

Prime 9 - Los Angeles Dodgers


The 9th installment in the "Prime 9" series - spotlighting the 9 best players per team from the 1966-70 time period.

For the series backstory and team rankings, click here.

The Dodgers won a ninth-best 416 games between 1966 and 1970. This despite enduring the only stretch under manager Walter Alston where they finished lower than 2nd place for 3 consecutive seasons (1967-69).

(I should have included Sandy Koufax here, but he only played 1 season during this time period.)

Thursday, August 8, 2019

Prime 9 - Boston Red Sox


The 8th installment in the "Prime 9" series - spotlighting the 9 best players per team from the 1966-70 time period.

For the series backstory and team rankings, click here.

The Red Sox won 424 games between 1966 and 1970. They jumped from 9th place in '66 to 1st in '67, losing the World Series in 7 games.

Tuesday, August 6, 2019

RIP - Ernie Bowman


Ernie Bowman, an infielder for the Giants from 1961-63, passed away on August 4, 2019 at age 84.


Bowman played in the minors every year from 1956-69, except for 1962 and 1963. Those were the seasons he stayed with the Giants all year, backing up at 3 infield positions.

He was involved in multi-player deals in 1964 (to the Braves) and 1965 (to the Mets), but never played in the majors after September 1963, even though he had a card in the 1966 Topps set.

Johnson City (TN) Press obituary

Sunday, August 4, 2019

Prime 9 - Pittsburgh Pirates


The 7th installment in the "Prime 9" series - spotlighting the 9 best players per team from the 1966-70 time period.

For the series backstory and team rankings, click here.

The Pirates won 430 games between 1966 and 1970. They were strong at every position except catcher and 3rd base. (Maury Wills played 3rd base in '67 and '68, but by then he was just "a name".)