#29 Felix Mantilla - Boston Red Sox

Felix Mantilla
Boston Red Sox
Second Base-Outfield

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'0"  Weight:  160
Born:  July 29, 1934, Isabella, Puerto Rico
Signed:  Signed by the Boston Braves as an amateur free agent before 1952 season
Major League Teams:  Milwaukee Braves 1956-1961; New York Mets 1962; Boston Red Sox 1963-1965; Houston Astros 1966

A light-hitting middle infielder for most of his career, Felix Mantilla showed a late career power boost over the last few seasons of his 11 years in the big leagues.  Mantilla came up through the Braves system and was Hank Aaron's (#170) roommate in the early to mid-1950s.  Both Mantilla and Aaron contributed to the 1957 Braves club that eventually defeated the Yankees in the World Series.  He was also indirecly responsible for breaking up Harvey Haddix's (#67) bid for a perfect game on May 26, 1959 when he reached on an error to start the 13th inning.  Left unprotected by the Braves in the 1961 expansion draft, Mantilla was drafted by the Mets and he'd serve as their opening day shortstop.  He only started 17 games at short, moving over to become the regular third baseman for the woeful Mets in their inaugural season.

Mantilla's late career resurgence came with the Red Sox, where he was traded in December 1962.  He made his first and only All-Star Game appearance in 1965, following a 1964 season in which he hit a career high 30 home runs.  For his career, Mantilla ended up with most of his appearances at second base (326), but he also played 180 games at shortstop, 156 games in the outfield and 143 games at third base.  He was a career .261 hitter with 89 home runs and 330 RBIs.

Building the Set
July 20, 2020 from Scottsdale, AZ - Card #128
I continued to be fairly active with my eBay purchases in July, as we prepared for the abbreviated 60-game baseball season to start.  Having been somewhat haphazard in my eBay hunts up until this point, I decided to focus and specifically try to complete the first series of our 1965 Topps set.  I added 10 cards to our set from the first series (cards #1 through #88) from Scottsdale Baseball Cards, and the envelope with our new cards arrived on July 20th.  As of this writing, we need 39 of the 88 cards from the first series so we're more than half-way there.  The priciest card still needed is the A.L. Home Run Leaders card (#5) featuring Mickey Mantle.  This Mantilla card entered our collection for $2.

The Card / Red Sox Team Set
The back of the card indicates Mantilla had "at last" been given a chance to play regularly and that was the reason for his power surge in 1964.  While that might be the case, he had appeared in over 100 games twice before (in 1959 with the Braves and in 1962 with the Mets) and his numbers came no where close to where they did in his 133 games with the Red Sox in 1964.  His two World Series appearances came in 1957 and 1958, with the Braves winning in 1957 and losing in 1958, both times to the Yankees.  Mantilla went hitless in 10 World Series at-bats.

1965 Season
The 1965 Red Sox lost 100 games under manager Billy Herman (#251) and Mantilla was their everyday second baseman.  Only first baseman Lee Thomas (#111) (151 games) appeared in more games than Mantilla (150 games) and Mantilla led the team with 92 RBIs.  He hit .275 with 18 home runs in what was overall a great year for him.  He was the starting second baseman for the A.L. All-Stars and went 0 for 2, grounding out to the catcher off Juan Marichal (#50) in the second and flying out to center off Jim Maloney (#530) in the fourth.

Prior to the start of the 1966 season, on April 3rd, Mantilla was traded to the Astros for Eddie Kasko.

1957 Topps #188

1959 Topps #157

1961 Topps #164

1964 Topps #228

1967 Topps #524

Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card:  1957 Topps #188
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (11):  1957-1967
Most Recent Mainstream Card:  1981 TCMA The 1960s II #327

47 - Mantilla non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 7/23/20.

Sources:  
Baseball Reference
Beckett Database
SABR
The Trading Card Database

Previous Card:  #28 Barney Schultz - St. Louis Cardinals

Next Card:  #30 Jim Bouton - New York Yankees

#27 Dick Bertell - Chicago Cubs

Richard George Bertell
Chicago Cubs
Catcher

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'0"  Weight:  200
Born:  November 21, 1935, Oak Park, IL
Signed:  Signed by the Chicago Cubs as an amateur free agent, June 20, 1957
Major League Teams:  Chicago Cubs 1960-1965; San Francisco Giants 1965; Chicago Cubs 1967
Died:  December 20, 1999, Mission Viejo, CA (age 64)

Between 1961 and 1965, no one started more games behind the plate for the Cubs than Dick Bertell.  His last full season with the team, 1964, was also his best season as he appeared in 112 games and hit .238 with career highs in home runs (4) and RBIs (35).  He led the league twice in passed balls in 1961 and 1962, but he also led the league in baserunners caught stealing with 34 in 1964.  Bertell was known for his strong arm and his 47.7% career caught stealing percentage is currently 47th on the all-time list.

In 444 career games, Bertell was a lifetime .250 hitter with 10 home runs and 112 RBIs.

July 18, 2020 - Doug at bat with
home plate umpire behind pitcher

Building the Set
July 20, 2020 from Scottsdale, AZ - Card #127
I continued to be fairly active with my eBay purchases in July, as we prepared for the abbreviated 60-game baseball season to start.  Having been somewhat haphazard in my eBay hunts up until this point, I decided to focus and specifically try to complete the first series of our 1965 Topps set.  I added 10 cards to our set from the first series (cards #1 through #88) from Scottsdale Baseball Cards, and the envelope with our new cards arrived on July 20th.  As of this writing, we need 39 of the 88 cards from the first series so we're more than half-way there.  The priciest card still needed is the A.L. Home Run Leaders card (#5) featuring Mickey Mantle.  This Bertell card entered our collection for $2.

The Monday these cards arrived, Doug and I spent the day recovering from a long and hot weekend of tournament baseball in Palmyra and Hummelstown.  It was absurdly hot and we had the added angst of trying to make sure we stayed socially distant from everyone.  We live in South Jersey, and I've been happy to see most of the people we've encountered in our day to day required travels are masked up when needed.  That wasn't really the case during our trip west into Pennsylvania for this tournament.  If you had dropped in from outer space and were told there was a nationwide pandemic going on, you wouldn't really have known from the people and interactions I saw all weekend.  Watching Doug play baseball was great, shaking my head at people not wearing masks or not socially distancing was frustrating.

The Card / Cubs Team Set
No offense to Bertell, but there's nothing incredibly remarkable about this card.  The write-up on the back notes he was the captain of the Iowa State baseball team and Bertell was inducted posthumously in 2000 into the Iowa State Hall of Fame.

1965 Season
Bertell was the opening day catcher for the Cubs, and he'd appear in 34 games before a May 29th trade sent him to the Giants.  Bertell was sent to San Francisco with Len Gabrielson (#14) for Ed Bailey (#559), Bob Hendley (#444) and Harvey Kuenn (#103).  He spent the rest of the season as the back-up to Tom Haller (#465), getting into 22 games and hitting .188.  In total, Bertell appeared in 56 games, hitting .205 with 10 RBIs.

1961 Topps #441

1963 Topps #287

1964 Topps #424

1966 Topps #587

Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card:  1961 Topps #441
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (5):  1961, 1963-1966
Most Recent Mainstream Card:  1966 Topps #587

18 - Bertell non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 7/21/20.

Sources:  
Baseball Reference
Beckett Database
The Trading Card Database
Wikipedia

Previous Card:  #26 Bobby Knoop - Los Angeles Angels

Next Card:  #28 Barney Schultz - St. Louis Cardinals

#26 Bobby Knoop - Los Angeles Angels

Robert Frank Knoop
Los Angeles Angels
Second Base

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'1"  Weight:  170
Born:  October 18, 1938, Sioux City, IA
Signed:  Signed by the Milwaukee Braves as an amateur free agent before 1956 season
Major League Teams:  Los Angeles Angels 1964; California Angels 1965-1969; Chicago White Sox 1969-1970; Kansas City Royals 1971-1972

Bobby Knoop enjoyed a nine-year Major League career, winning a Gold Glove three years in a row (1966-1968) for his work at second base and earning a trip to the All-Star Game in 1966.  Known for his defense, Knoop is acknowledged as one of the better fielding infielders of the 1960s as he had fantastic range and a strong throwing arm.  Along with shortstop Jim Fregosi (#210), Knoop formed a solid double play combination for the Angels between 1964 and 1969.  He was the club's MVP four seasons in a row, a mark since tied by Garret Anderson and Mike Trout.  In 1,153 career games, Knoop hit .236 with 56 home runs and 331 RBIs.  He currently ranks within the top 100 in MLB history for putouts, assists and double plays turned as a second baseman.

Following his playing career, Knoop served as a coach, scout and front office advisor between the mid-1970s and his retirement in 2019.  He coached at the Major League level with the White Sox (1977-1978), Angels (1979-1996, 2013-2018), Blue Jays (2000) and Rockies (2008-2012).  Knoop was elected into the Angels Hall of Fame in 2013.

Building the Set
July 20, 2020 from Scottsdale, AZ - Card #126
I continued to be fairly active with my eBay purchases in July, as we prepared for the abbreviated 60-game baseball season to start.  Having been somewhat haphazard in my eBay hunts up until this point, I decided to focus and specifically try to complete the first series of our 1965 Topps set.  I added 10 cards to our set from the first series (cards #1 through #88) from Scottsdale Baseball Cards, and the envelope with our new cards arrived on July 20th.  As of this writing, we need 39 of the 88 cards from the first series so we're more than half-way there.  The priciest card still needed is the A.L. Home Run Leaders card (#5) featuring Mickey Mantle.  This Knoop card entered our collection for $1.25.

The Card / Angels Team Set
Knoop's rookie card can be found in the 1964 Topps set, as he shared a Rookie Stars card with Bob Lee (#46).  We unintentionally added Lee's 1965 card to our set with this purchase as well.  This is Knoop's first solo Topps baseball card appearance, and he'd appear in each Topps flagship release through 1972.  Knoop hadn't yet won a Gold Glove, but the back of the card was already touting his strong defensive skills.  The note on the back about him being drafted from Hawaii isn't entirely accurate.  Knoop was selected by the Angels from the Braves in December 1963 in the annual rule 5 draft.  Somehow, prior to the draft, Knoop had finished the 1962 season with the Hawaii Islanders, the PCL affiliate of the Angels.

Knoop 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 second full season as the regular second baseman for the Angels, Knoop played in 142 games and hit .269 with 7 home runs and 43 RBIs.  On the strength of his defensive play, he actually earned some A.L. MVP votes, finishing 24th overall.

1964 Topps #502

1967 Topps #175

1969 Topps #445

1970 Topps #695

1972 Topps #664

Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card:  1964 Topps #502
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (9):  1964-1972
Most Recent Mainstream Card:  1978 TCMA The 1960s I #234

58 - Knoop non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 7/21/20.

Sources:  
Baseball Reference
Beckett Database
The Trading Card Database
Wikipedia

Previous Card:  #25 Al McBean - Pittsburgh Pirates

Next Card:  #27 Dick Bertell - Chicago Cubs

#24 Minnesota Twins Team Card

Beginning in 1956 and going all the way through to 1981, with a one year absence in 1969, Topps included team cards in its flagship sets.

Building the Set
July 18, 2020 from Albany, NY - Card #125

This was a fairly random addition to our set.  eBay seller cuda3 had a small lot of 1965 Topps cards up for bid, and for some reason the description of "MANY OF THESE HAVE REAL SHARP CORNERS" in their listings caught my eye when browsing through the available cards.  I set out intending to add the Jim Bunning (#20) card among 3 or 4 others listed by cuda3 and I ended up losing all auctions except for the listing for this Twins team card.  I won the card with a winning bid of $3.13, and I can confirm now that I have the card in hand it does in fact have real sharp corners.

This card arrived on the same day as the Warren Spahn (#205) card, so it was a good, albeit extremely hot, day.

The Card / Twins Team Set
The Twins went from being a sixth place team, with a sub-.500 record in 1964 to the improbable American League champions in 1965.  For some context here, the franchise had relocated from Washington following the 1960 season, and 1964 was only their fourth year in existence.  In 1961, Topps issued their first team card, informing collectors on the card's front the team was formerly known as the Washington Senators.  The photo used on their 1965 team card first appeared on the Twins team card within the 1962 Topps set, which means the photo is either from 1961 or early 1962.  Topps then used the same photo every year between 1962 and 1965 before finally using an updated team photo for the 1966 Twins team card.

1961 Topps #542

1962 Topps #584

1963 Topps #162

1964 Topps #318

1965 Season
On July 5th, the Twins swept a double header with the Red Sox, assuming sole possession of first place in the American League and they never relinquished that spot.  Manager Sam Mele (#506) guided the team to a 102 win season and they came close to toppling the Dodgers in the 7-game World Series.  Minnesota also hosted the All-Star Game, sending six players - Harmon Killebrew (#400), Zoilo Versalles (#157), Tony Oliva (#340), Jimmie Hall (#580), Earl Battey (#490) and Mudcat Grant (#432).

Versalles was a somewhat controversial choice to win A.L. MVP honors in 1965, leading the team with 126 runs scored and winning a Gold Glove at shortstop despite also leading the league with 39 errors.  Oliva led the team with 98 RBIs and a .321 average, and even though Killebrew was limited due to injuries, he still led the club with 25 home runs.  Grant (21-7, 3.30) and Jim Kaat (#62) (18-11, 2.83) led the pitching staff with closer Al Worthington (#216) recording 21 saves.

Update Cards
For each team card featured, I'll be building a checklist of cards that could have been included in a 1965 Topps update set.  For the most part, the major players from the Twins roster were already represented in the 1965 Topps set, but here's who I would add to an update set:

• Jerry Kindall - Kindall was the regular second baseman for the Twins, starting 101 games and hitting .196.  1965 was to be his final season in the Majors, and his last Topps card appearance had come back in 1963 with the Indians.
• Frank Quillici  - Kindall's back-up was Twins' future manager Quillici who made 39 starts at second base and started all seven games at second base for the Twins in the World Series.  His rookie card can be found in the 1966 Topps set.
• Andy Kosco - Kosco was a late season call-up, appearing in 23 games.  With the Triple-A Denver Bears, Kosco had a monster season with 27 home runs and 116 RBIs while batting .327.
• Sandy Valdespino - Left fielder Valdespino shares a Rookie Stars card with Cesar Tovar (#201) but I'd give him his own solo card in my update set.
• Billy Martin - Finally, coach Billy Martin gets a card.  He was the Twins' third base coach and helped mentor the careers of Versalles and later, future Hall of Famer Rod Carew.

Honorable mention for a card goes to 4th round draft pick Graig Nettles.

Sources
Baseball Reference

Previous Card:  #23 Bob Tiefenauer - Milwaukee Braves

Next Card:  #25 Al McBean - Pittsburgh Pirates

#205 Warren Spahn - New York Mets

Warren Edward Spahn
New York Mets
Pitcher-Coach

Bats:  Left  Throws:  Left  Height:  6'0"  Weight:  172
Born:  April 23, 1921, Buffalo, NY
Signed:  Signed by the Boston Bees as an amateur free agent in 1940
Major League Teams:  Boston Braves 1942, 1946-1952; Milwaukee Braves 1953-1964; New York Mets 1965; San Francisco Giants 1965
Died:  November 24, 2003, Broken Arrow, OK (age 82)
Hall of Fame Induction:  1973

One of the greatest left-handed pitchers of all time, Warren Spahn enjoyed a 21-year career in the Major Leagues and his 363 wins are the most ever by a lefty.  He was a 14-time National League All-Star and he compiled 20-win seasons 13 times, including in 1963 at the age of 42.  Spahn was the National League Cy Young Award winner in 1957, the year he led the Milwaukee Braves to their only World Championship title.  He pitched no-hitters in 1960 and 1961 and he led the league in complete games seven years in a row between 1957 and 1963.

He missed three seasons (1943-1945) early in his career serving in World War II and he pitched professionally until he was 46 with the Triple-A Tulsa Oilers.  Following his playing days, Spahn managed the Tulsa Oilers (a Cardinals farm club) for five seasons and was the Indians pitching coach in 1972 and 1973.

Some text for this post originally appeared on my 1956 Topps blog.

Building the Set
July 18, 2020 from Thornwood, NY - Card #124
I had no intention of adding this Spahn card to our set.  Back in early June, I won a few eBay auctions hosted by B&E Collectibles out of Thornwood, NY, and included in my winnings was the Masanori Murakami (#282) rookie card.  I had seen this Spahn card at the time, thought the Buy It Now price was a little too high and I added the card to my watch list.  A month and a half later, cleaning out that same watch list, I noticed B&E Collectibles was accepting offers for this card so I submitted what I thought was something reasonable and the offer was accepted.

The card arrived on a sweltering hot day in July while Doug and I were out of town for his baseball tournament and fortunately my wife Jenna rescued the envelope from our mailbox before it boiled.  We added the Twins team card (#24) to our set the same day, and I'll write about that card in my next post.

The Card / Mets Team Set
I'm guessing the photo used for this card was taken in 1963 or 1964, from the same photo session that yielded the photo used for Spahn's 1964 Topps card.  If the photo was taken back in 1963, let's say during spring training, that would make Spahn a little under 42 years old at the time.  This is the last card in Spahn's streak of appearing in every Topps flagship set dating back to their first sets issued in 1951.  I'm curious to see if anyone else in the 1965 Topps set can lay hold to that claim.  Maybe Yogi Berra (#470)?  Spahn's lengthy career means there's not room for anything other than statistics on the back of the card, and it looks as though Topps even had to squish the letters of his name in order to fit everything.

Also, I'd think this would have to be one of the only instances ever of a position designation of "P-Coach" showing up on a Topps baseball card.

The card was reprinted and signed by Spahn for the 2001 Topps Team Topps Legends Autographs insert set, and a non-signed reprint can also be found in the 2001 Topps Archives set.

1965 Season
On November 23, 1964, following 20 years with the Boston/Milwaukee Braves, Spahn was sold to the Mets to be the team's pitching coach as well as an active pitcher.  A week later, Casey Stengel's (#187) team signed Berra for a similar coach/player role.  At the time, Spahn remarked, "I don't know whether we'll be the oldest battery in baseball, but I know we'll be the ugliest."

Spahn made 20 appearances and 19 starts with the Mets, going 4-12 with a 4.36 ERA.  His best performance came on April 20th when he took a shutout into the ninth inning against the Dodgers.  He lost the shutout, but finished the game for his first of five complete games with the Mets.  The Mets released him on July 17th and he signed two days later with the Giants who were in the midst of a pennant run.

With the Giants, Spahn joined a pitching staff boasting future Hall of Famers Juan Marichal (#50) and Gaylord Perry (#193).  He pitched in 16 games, making 11 starts, and went 3-4 with a 3.39 ERA.  In his final game, on October 1st, Spahn was one of eight pitchers used by manager Herman Franks (#32) in a 17-2 pounding by the Reds.  He faced three batters and was relieved by Bill Hands, ending his big league career.  Spahn was released by the Giants on October 15th.

1948 Bowman #18

1954 Topps #20

1957 Topps #90

1964 Topps #400

1973 Topps #449

Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card:  1948 Bowman #18
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (16):  1951-1965, 1973
Most Recent Mainstream Card:  2020 Topps Decades' Best #DB-16

1,050 - Spahn non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 7/20/20.

Sources:  
1956 Topps
Baseball Reference
Beckett Database
National Baseball Hall of Fame
SABR
The Trading Card Database

Previous Card:  #204 Russ Snyder - Baltimore Orioles

Next Card:  #206 Willie Horton - Detroit Tigers

#573 Red Sox Rookie Stars - Lonborg / Moses / Ryan / Schlesinger

James Reynold Lonborg
Boston Red Sox
Pitcher

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'5"  Weight:  200
Born:  April 16, 1942, Santa Maria, CA
Signed:  Signed by the Boston Red Sox as an amateur free agent, August 14, 1963
Major League Teams:  Boston Red Sox 1965-1971; Milwaukee Brewers 1972; Philadelphia Phillies 1973-1979




Michael James Ryan
Boston Red Sox
Catcher

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'2"  Weight:  205
Born:  November 25, 1941, Haverhill, MA
Signed:  Signed by the Boston Red Sox as an amateur free agent, October 15, 1960
Major League Teams:  Boston Red Sox 1964-1967; Philadelphia Phillies 1968-1973; Pittsburgh Pirates 1974
Died:  July 7, 2020, Wolfeboro, NH (age 78)

Gerald Braheen Moses
Boston Red Sox
Catcher

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'3"  Weight:  210
Born:  August 9, 1946, Yazoo City, MS
Signed:  Signed by the Boston Red Sox as an amateur free agent, June 1964
Major League Teams:  Boston Red Sox 1965, 1968-1970; California Angels 1971; Cleveland Indians 1972; New York Yankees 1973; Detroit Tigers 1974; San Diego Padres 1975; Chicago White Sox 1975
Died:  March 26, 2018, Haverhill, MA (age 71)

William Cordes Schlesinger
Boston Red Sox
Outfield

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'2"  Weight:  175
Born:  November 15, 1941, Cincinnati, OH
Signed:  Signed by the Boston Red Sox as an amateur free agent, October 1963
Major League Teams:  Boston Red Sox 1965

1995 Phillies Team Issue #9

A veteran of 15 big league seasons, Jim Lonborg enjoyed his best season in 1967, making the A.L. All Stars, winning 22 games and helping to pitch the Red Sox to the pennant.  Lonborg started three of the seven games in the World Series eventually lost to the Cardinals and he was awarded the Cy Young Award for his amazing season.  He'd never win 20 games in the Majors again, but he'd come close by winning 17 in 1974 and 18 in 1976, both with the Phillies.  For his career, he compiled a 157-137 record with a 3.86 ERA and 1,475 strikeouts.  Lonborg was elected into the Red Sox Hall of Fame in 2002.

Jerry Moses provided catching and pinch-hitting services for the Red Sox and six other teams for nine seasons.  His best season came in 1970 when he was named to the A.L. All-Star team and ended up hitting .263 with career highs in home runs (6) and RBIs (35).  In 386 career games, Moses hit .251 with 25 home runs and 109 RBIs.

Mike Ryan was primarily a back-up catcher during his 11 seasons with the Red Sox, Phillies and Pirates.  He had his best season in 1969 as the Phillies' regular catcher, hitting .204 with 12 home runs and 44 RBIs.  He made his mark as a long-time and popular Phillies coach following his playing days.  Ryan was a coach for the club between 1980 and 1995, and that tenure is second only in length to his long-time friend and teammate John Vukovich.  Ryan is the only coach in Phillies franchise history to coach for the club in three World Series appearances - 1980, 1983 and 1993.

Bill "Rudy" Schlesinger had one big league at-bat in a professional career that spanned four franchises and seven minor league seasons.  He tallied 732 minor league games within the Red Sox, Athletics, Cubs and Phillies organizations, hitting .270 with 127 home runs.

Building the Set
July 15, 2020 from Richmond, VA - Card #123
Upon learning of the passing of former Phillies player and coach Ryan, I specifically sought out his rookie card on eBay - no offense to the other three guys on the card.  I immediately found this card from seller kardman11 and clicked on the Buy It Now price of $8.

The Card / Red Sox Team Set
There are 55 multi-player Rookie Stars cards in the 1965 Topps set, and this is one of five cards to feature four different players.  It's funny what I notice first when inspecting old baseball cards for the first time, and once again my attention was drawn to the fact that Lonborg and Moses get much bigger spaces for their mug shots than Ryan and Schlesinger do.  I'm not sure why Topps designed these four-player cards that way as all four subjects could have easily had the same space dedicated to each of them.  I'd say all four photos were taken on the same day in the same space given the identical sky blue backgrounds.

Ryan is the only one of the four with prior year Major League experience, having debuted with the Red Sox in 1964, yet only his minor league batting record is presented on the back.  In a rarity, all four would go on to appear on additional Topps baseball cards.

A version of this card, featuring Lonborg only, was reprinted in the 2001 Topps Archives set.  Lonborg signed versions of the card for inclusions in an 2001 Topps Archives Autographs set as well.

1965 Season - Lonborg
Lonborg made his debut on April 23rd against the Orioles and opposing starting pitcher Robin Roberts (#15).  He stuck in the Red Sox pitching rotation, behind Earl Wilson (#42), Bill Monbouquette (#142) and Dave Morehead (#434), for the rest of the season.  He appeared in 32 games (31 starts) and went 9-17 with a 4.46 ERA for a Red Sox team that lost 100 games.

Phillies Career - Lonborg
The Phillies acquired Lonborg from the Brewers on October 31, 1972 with Ken Brett, Ken Sanders and Earl Stephenson for Bill Champion, Don Money and John Vukovich.  Lonborg immediately solidified a shaky Phillies pitching rotation, and he'd serve as one of the club's top starters throughout the rest of the decade.  Second only behind Steve Carlton (#477) for most of his time in the Phillies' rotation, Lonborg helped the team reach the postseason in three straight seasons between 1976 to 1978.

He was released on June 16, 1979, ending his playing days.  With the Phillies, Lonborg appeared in 188 games, pitching more innings than he had during his seven seasons in Boston.  He went 75-60 with a 3.98 ERA and 548 strikeouts.

1965 Season - Moses
A bonus baby, Moses appeared in only four games for the Red Sox in 1965.  He became the youngest player in franchise history to hit a home run when he homered (for his first hit) off Mudcat Grant (#432) on May 25th.

Moses played with both Pittsfield and Winston-Salem during the season, appearing in 65 games and hitting .221.

1966 Topps #93

1967 Topps #371

1971 Topps #577

1975 Topps #94

1979 Topps #446

Other Notable Baseball Cards - Lonborg
First Mainstream Card:  1965 Topps #573
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (15):  1965-1979
Most Recent Mainstream Card:  2005 Topps All-Time Fan Favorites #69

137 - Lonborg non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 7/17/20.

Sources - Lonborg:  
Baseball Reference
Beckett Database
The Phillies Room
SABR
The Trading Card Database
Wikipedia

Other Notable Baseball Cards - Moses
First Mainstream Card:  1965 Topps #573
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (8):  1965, 1969-1975
Most Recent Mainstream Card:  1975 Topps #271

27 - Moses non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 7/17/20.

Sources - Moses:  
Baseball Reference
Beckett Database
SABR
The Trading Card Database

1969 Topps #476

1970 Topps #104

1972 Topps #356

1974 Topps #19

1975 Topps #271

1965 Season - Ryan
Ryan made the Red Sox opening day roster, but didn't see any game action until May 2nd.  He ended up splitting the season between Boston and the Triple-A Toronto Maple Leafs.  In the Majors, Ryan appeared in 33 games, hitting .159 with three home runs.  He  started 30 games overall behind the plate and finished the year as the team's primary catcher.

Phillies Career - Ryan
Ryan was traded to the Phillies with cash on December 15, 1967 for Dick Ellsworth (#165) and Gene Oliver (#106).  He split catching duties with Clay Dalrymple (#372) in 1968 but assumed more work as the regular backstop in 1969.  With the arrival of Tim McCarver (#294) in 1970, Ryan was once again relegated to back-up duties and he'd serve in that role through the 1973 season.  On January 31, 1974, he was traded to the Pirates for Jackie Hernandez.

Ryan was brought back to the Phillies organization in 1977, serving as the team's minor league catching instructor.  Mid-way through the 1977 season, he filled in as manager of their Triple-A team in Oklahoma City.  Ryan joined the big club in 1980 as their bullpen coach and he'd serve in that position for the next 15 seasons.  One of the most popular coaches of that era, Ryan retired following the 1995 season.

1965 Season - Schlesinger
Schlesinger's first and last game came on May 4th when he pinch-hit for pitcher Morehead to lead off the top of the sixth.  Facing the Angels' Marcelino Lopez (#537), Schlesinger grounded back to the pitcher who threw him out at first and his big league career was over.

Demoted soon thereafter, he was selected off waivers by the Athletics on May 7th.  He spend the rest of the season playing for two teams in the Athletics' minor league system, hitting .232 over 98 games.

Phillies Connection - Schlesinger
Schlesinger was on his fourth stint with the Red Sox when the team traded him to the Phillies on May 5, 1969 for Don Lock (#445).  He played for two seasons with the Eugene Emeralds in 1969 and 1970, appearing in 127 games and hitting .244.

1968 Topps #258

Other Notable Baseball Cards - Ryan
First Mainstream Card:  1965 Topps #573
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (11):  1965-1974, 1988
Most Recent Mainstream Card:  1988 Topps #669

50 - Ryan non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 7/17/20.

Sources - Ryan:  
Baseball Reference
Beckett Database
The Phillies Room
SABR
The Trading Card Database

Other Notable Baseball Cards - Schlesinger
First Mainstream Card:  1965 Topps #573
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (2):  1965, 1968
Most Recent Mainstream Card:  1968 Topps #258

4 - Schlesinger non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 7/17/20.

Sources - Schlesinger:  
Baseball Reference
Beckett Database
SABR
The Trading Card Database

1966 Topps #419

1970 Topps #591

1972 Topps #324

1974 Topps #564

1988 Topps #669

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