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Robert Chance
Washington Senators
First Base
Born: September 10, 1940, Statesboro, GA
Signed: Signed by the San Francisco Giants as an amateur free agent before 1961 season
Major League Teams: Cleveland Indians 1963-1964; Washington Senators 1965-1967; California Angels 1969
Died: October 3, 2013, Charleston, WV (age 73)
Bob Chance was the first baseman on Topps' 1964 All-Star Rookie team due to his excellent rookie campaign with the Indians. He had previously been named the Eastern League MVP in 1963. In 120 games in 1964, Chance hit .279 with 14 home runs and 75 RBIs. It was to be his most successful season in the Majors and following the season he was dealt to the Senators with Woodie Held (#336) for Chuck Hinton (#235).
In parts of six big league seasons, Chance played in 277 games and hit .261 with 24 home runs. He finished up his professional career with two seasons in Japan playing for the Sankei/Yakult Atoms in 1969 and 1970.
Building the Set
December 7, 2019 from King of Prussia, PA - Card #22
We were up to 11 cards for our 1965 Topps set, and I honestly had it in mind that I wanted to purchase one fairly major "star" card during our remaining time at the Philadelphia Sportscard & Memorabilia Show inside the Valley Forge Casino. The showroom floor was packed as we were now into the early afternoon and autograph guests were showing up every 15 minutes or so. The PA announcer would call out ticket numbers in groups of 10 all while imploring collectors to back away from the entrance that led into the autograph signing area.
That was the backdrop when we came upon the table for MJW Collectibles out of Somerdale, NJ. This dealer had a bunch of 1960s Topps binders spread out, and the sign on the 1965 Topps binder caught my eye - ALL CARDS $1. And with Doug's help, I dug in.
The Card
Topps didn't mess around with its All-Star Rookie trophy in the 1960s, as it's the centerpiece of the front of the card. Chance is clearly wearing an Indians uniform here, but his trade happened early enough in the offseason (December 1st) for Topps to be able to update his team designation and to mention the deal on the back of the card.
Either Chance's nickname in 1964 was Chuck, or the more likely scenario is that the cartoonist got confused and had Hinton on the mind when adding the "Chuck Sent Us" sign. That must be the case as otherwise the small cartoon in the upper right-hand corner doesn't make any sense. His 75 RBIs in 1964 were a distant second on the Indians behind Leon Wagner (#367) who had 100. Chance is in the harder to find 1965 Topps Transfers insert set, but he's not in the 1965 Topps Embossed insert set.
1965 Season
In his first season with the Senators, Chance appeared in 72 games and batted .256 with 4 home runs and 14 RBIs. The Senators finished in eighth place in the A.L. under the guidance of manager Gil Hodges (#99). Chance and Joe Cunningham (#496) shared the starting first base duties for the first part of the season, but then Chance missed two months in July and August and spent a little bit of time playing for the Hawaii Islanders, the top farm club for the Indians.
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First Mainstream Card: 1964 Topps #146 (with Tommy John)
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (5): 1964-1967, 1969
Most Recent Mainstream Card: 1978 TCMA The 1960s I #82
16 - Chance non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 12/27/19.
Sources:
Baseball Reference
Beckett Database
The Trading Card Database
In some cases, the first and last cards listed above are subjective and chosen by me if multiple cards were released within the same year. Most recent mainstream card may also be subjective and does not include extremely low serial numbered cards, buybacks or cut autograph cards.
Prior Card: #223 Dan Osinski - Milwaukee Braves
Next Card: #225 Bo Belinsky - Philadelphia Phillies
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